Prohibited sharks Regulations in New York (2026)

Where

Statewide

Size limit

Take or Possession Prohibited

Bag limit

Take or Possession Prohibited

Possession

Take or Possession Prohibited

• Sharks, excluding spiny dogfish, shall not be taken for commercial or recreational purposes by baited hooking except with the use of non-stainless steel non-offset circle hooks.
• No person shall conduct, sponsor or participate in any shark tournament unless said tournament's rules and regulations require the exclusive use of non-stainless steel, non-offset circle hooks.
• Species: Atlantic angel, basking, bigeye sand tiger, bigeye thresher, bignose, blacknose, Caribbean sharpnose, dusky, Galapagos, longfin mako, narrowtooth, night, oceanic whitetip, reef, sand tiger, sandbar, sharpnose sevengill, shortfin mako, silky, bigeye sixgill, bluntnose sixgill, smalltail, whale, and white.
• "Take" is defined in New York's Environmental Regulations - 6 NYCRR Section 40.6 and includes pursuing, capturing and killing sharks. Any angler who is making an effort to catch a prohibited shark species is pursuing or targeting that species in violation of 6 NYCRR 40.6(c)(1). Do not fish for or target prohibited sharks in New York waters. If captured, prohibited sharks must remain in the water and must be released immediately, without undue harm. These rules apply to all vessel-based and shore-based anglers.
• Regulations were last changed on August 27, 2025 and are subject to change at any time.
• All landed sharks must have head, tails and fins attached.
• No sale allowed.
• No finning.

Official source