Japanese Flounder fishing in Sanriku coast

June, July and August are the prime months. No permit is required for recreational sea fishing.

When

Season grading is our editorial judgement, not a sourced figure. It says when the fish is catchable, not when the water is legally open — for that, read the closed seasons below.

Do you need a permit?

No permit is required for recreational sea fishing.

Water: Saltwater
Prefecture: Iwate
Region: Tohoku
Getting there: Shinkansen to Morioka, then 2 h

How far our answer goes here

✓National lawApplies everywhere. Foreign-national gear limits, protected species, bluefin controls.
?PrefectureMinimum sizes, closed seasons and legal gear. This is a floor — local rules add to it, never subtract.
~Sea-area / inland committeeDirectives that close specific waters or periods. We hold these for a few prefectures only.
—Cooperative permitSea fishing needs no cooperative permit. A Common Fishery Right still covers the shore — see the rule above.

Rules stack. Everything above the line we hold; everything below it you still need to confirm on the ground. That gap is exactly what a local guide is for.

Legal gear in Iwate

○Hand line & rod fishing×Trolling○Landing net○Scoop net△Cast net×Fishing spear (excluding harpoons)○Rake / clam tool○Hand gathering

Sea areas only, as of 2026-03-31. Anything not listed — diving apparatus, spearguns — may not be used at all. Full table & footnotes

Size limits and closed seasons

Not yet transcribed for this prefecture. The cooperative’s permit rules and national law still apply.

About Japanese Flounder

Surf and shallow sand. Minimum sizes apply in many prefectures.

Japanese: ヒラメ · hirame
Scientific name: Paralichthys olivaceus
Typical size: 40–80 cm (16–31 in)

How it is fished here

Lure casting, Boat bait fishing

Elsewhere

Japanese Flounder is also listed at Rishiri & Wakkanai coast, Shiretoko coast. Everything caught in Sanriku coast.