How to Hire Fishing Guides and Deckhands: Coast Guard Rules, Drug Testing, Licenses and Pay

Hiring for a fishing lodge or charter boat means answering to two regulators at once. The Coast Guard cares about who runs the boat and whether the crew is drug tested. The state cares about who guides the clients. Then there is pay, which in this business can be a day rate, a monthly salary, a crew share or mostly tips.

What follows is what the federal and state rules say, what lodges and charters published for pay and housing, and when they hire. Rules vary by state and change often, so check anything legal with the Coast Guard and your state agency before you rely on it.

What Coast Guard license does a charter captain or fishing guide need, and does a deckhand need one?

The person running the boat needs one; the deckhand generally does not. Under 46 U.S.C. 8903, a self-propelled uninspected passenger vessel must be operated by an individual licensed by the Coast Guard, and 46 CFR 15.605 puts each such vessel under the direction and control of a credentialed individual. Neither provision sets a credential requirement for other crew.

For most charters and lodge boats that means the Operator of Uninspected Passenger Vessels endorsement, the “six-pack.” Under 46 CFR 11.467 it covers vessels of less than 100 gross register tons carrying six or fewer passengers. A near-coastal OUPV requires 12 months of experience operating vessels, including at least 3 months on ocean or near-coastal waters, and limits service to waters not more than 100 miles offshore. An inland-only OUPV requires 12 months of experience. Under 46 CFR 11.201, an OUPV applicant must be at least 18, and original officer endorsements require a drug test and a current CPR course certificate.

Employers add to that floor. Whaler’s Cove Lodge in Southeast Alaska requires its 2026 guides to hold an OUPV with a near-coastal endorsement, current American Red Cross first aid and CPR, and a Transportation Worker Identification Credential, plus two years of Alaska saltwater experience. Larsen Bay Lodge on Kodiak Island asked for a “six pack” license and references. On rivers, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s 2023 registration form told guides that anyone operating a motorized vessel with clients on navigable waters must carry a Coast Guard operator’s license. More on course costs is in outdoor job certifications.

Do I have to drug test my captains and deckhands?

Your captain, yes, and very likely your deckhands too. Coast Guard chemical testing runs under 46 CFR Part 16, with collection and lab procedures under 49 CFR Part 40. The definition of crewmember in 46 CFR 16.105 covers anyone acting under a Coast Guard credential and anyone engaged or employed on a U.S. vessel that the law requires to be operated by a credentialed individual. The exceptions include people not required by the manning rules who have no duties that directly affect the safe operation of the vessel. A Coast Guard guidebook for uninspected passenger vessels (revised August 2017) gives the example of crew who assist passengers in emergencies as covered.

What the rules require of a marine employer:

• Pre-employment. Under 46 CFR 16.210, no marine employer may engage or employ anyone as a crewmember unless the individual passes a drug test. You may waive it if the person passed a required test in the previous six months with no positive since, or was in a random program for at least 60 of the previous 185 days without failing or refusing.
• Random. Under 46 CFR 16.230, the minimum annual random rate is 50 percent of covered crewmembers, which the Commandant may lower to 25 percent after two years of positive rates under 1 percent. Employers may use a consortium, and the count can be based on all crewmembers the consortium covers.
• History check. The Coast Guard guidebook, citing 49 CFR 40.25, says employers must ask previous DOT-regulated employers, with the new hire’s written consent, whether the person failed or refused a test in the prior two years.
• Serious marine incidents. The same guidebook says everyone directly involved must be tested within 32 hours for drugs and 2 hours for alcohol.

Lodges build this into hiring. Whaler’s Cove lists pre-employment drug testing for all staff and random testing for guides through the season, and Miller’s Landing in Seward says some positions may require pre-employment or random testing.

What state licenses do fishing guides and crew need?

It depends on the state. Alaska registers the business, the guides and the boats; Montana and Idaho license the guide and tie the license to an outfitter.

State	Who registers or is licensed	Cost	What the employer does
Alaska, sport fishing	The business, each guide and each vessel register with ADF&G; guides carry their registration, a copy of the employer’s business registration, a sport fishing license and photo ID. Kenai River guides and vessels also register with State Parks.	Free	Register the business and every guide vessel; saltwater operators get logbooks and make sure guides keep them complete
Alaska, commercial	Anyone who participates in commercial fishing, including handling gear or helping with navigation, docking or operating the vessel, needs a crewmember license	$60 resident, $220 nonresident a year; one 7-day license for $30	Confirm each crewmember holds one before fishing
Montana	Guide license for anyone employed by or contracted with a licensed outfitter who accompanies a client in pursuit of fish or game: 18 or older, board-approved first aid, conservation license	$125 application	Endorse the guide; guides using watercraft display board-issued stickers with their license number
Idaho	Guide license valid only while employed by a licensed outfitter; Red Cross or comparable first aid; float guides need three complete supervised trips on each classified river or 500 commercial miles, power boat guides 50 hours on the river	$105 first-time	Employ and document the guide’s river experience

Sources: ADF&G sport fish business, guide and vessel registration pages, 2025 Southcentral guide regulations, commercial crewmember license page and license price list; Montana Board of Outfitters guide application (rev. Sept. 2024); IDAPA 24.35.01.103 and Idaho DOPL fee list. All accessed Sep 14, 2026.

How much do lodges and charters pay fishing guides and deckhands?

Lodges pay guides by the day or the month with room and board, charters pay mates by the trip and let tips carry the rest, and commercial boats pay a share of the catch.

Position and source	Structure	Published pay	Included
River guide, Talaheim Lodge, Alaska	Day rate	$150 a day plus tips, with a performance raise possible after two weeks	Room, board, round-trip air from Anchorage; 11 weeks, June 30 to Sept 3
Fishing guide, Larsen Bay Lodge, Kodiak (posted Jul 14, 2026)	Salary plus tips	$10,000 to $13,000 a month, salary and tips combined	Airfare, room, board, laundry, wifi
Charter fishing guide, Whaler’s Cove Lodge, Alaska (2026)	Day rate plus guest tips	Rate not published	Private room, three meals, travel benefit by seniority; 68 to 72 consecutive guiding days
Fishing guide, Swan Mountain Outfitters, Montana	Monthly	$2,000 to $3,500 a month	Room and board; June to September
Madison River float guide, Montana (FWP estimate, 2022)	Per trip from outfitter	About $425 of a $600 to $650 trip, plus $50 to $200 tip	Guide often covers shuttle, lunch, flies and mileage
Charter mate, Hatteras, North Carolina (2022)	Per trip from captain	$100 to $150 a trip plus 15 to 20 percent of the trip cost in tips	Not stated
Salmon purse seine deckhand, Prince William Sound (2026)	Crew share	A percentage of the gross poundage caught	June 10 to Sept 1
Oyster boat deckhand, H-2B job orders, Texas	Hourly	$17.68 to $18.71 an hour, 35 hours a week	Oct 13, 2026 to May 2027

Sources: employer pages and listings for Talaheim Lodge, Larsen Bay Lodge and F/V Coles Creek (CoolWorks), Whaler’s Cove Lodge and Swan Mountain Outfitters; Montana FWP Madison River workgroup, “Outfitter and Guide Estimated Income and Expenditures for a Day Float Trip” (May 26, 2022 meeting); InTheBite, “A Mate’s Pay” (November 2022); DOL SeasonalJobs.dol.gov H-2B job orders H-400-26196-101285 and H-400-26196-101462. All accessed Sep 14, 2026.

Tips set expectations for crew as much as base pay does. Homer Halibut Hunters tells clients a 15 percent gratuity is appreciated, and Crazy Ray’s Adventures in Seward says the standard is 15 to 20 percent of the trip or about $80 a person. Older crew-share benchmarks exist: a 2009 Alaska Department of Labor handout put newcomer deckhand shares at 1.5 to 10 percent of the adjusted gross catch, with some boats paying $50 to $100 a day instead. Applicants see the same figures in fishing guide pay and deckhand pay.

What do wage and tax rules say about crew shares, tips and guides?

Fishing has more exemptions than most work, but they are narrow. The Fair Labor Standards Act, at 29 U.S.C. 213(a)(5), exempts from federal minimum wage and overtime any employee employed in catching, taking or harvesting fish and other aquatic life. Section 213(a)(3) exempts employees of a seasonal amusement or recreational establishment that operates no more than seven months a year, but it does not apply to employees of private entities providing services in a national park, national forest or National Wildlife Refuge under a contract with the Secretary of the Interior or Agriculture.

Alaska’s rules, per the state’s Wage and Hour Act summary (revised January 2026): the minimum wage is $14.00 an hour from July 1, 2026; employees in the taking of aquatic life are exempt from minimum wage, overtime and sick leave; overtime is otherwise owed past 8 hours a day or 40 a week, with exceptions including seamen and employers with three or fewer employees; and since July 1, 2025, employees earn an hour of sick leave for every 30 hours worked. Whether a lodge guide or a dock worker falls under an exemption depends on the job, so ask the state.

On taxes, IRS Publication 15 treats crew paid a share of the boat’s catch, where the operating crew is normally fewer than 10, as exempt from income tax withholding, and from Social Security and Medicare as long as any cash pay is $100 or less, contingent on a minimum catch and paid only for extra duties such as mate, engineer or cook. On tips, the Labor Department says an employer cannot keep employees’ tips under any circumstances, and managers and supervisors may not keep them either. In Montana, the FWP estimate lists an Independent Contractor Exemption Certificate among a contract guide’s annual costs; the state charges $125 to apply, and its program requires that the worker be free from the hiring business’s control and run an established independent business.

When should I hire, and what housing do crews expect?

Hire in winter for a May start, and plan to house people. Major Marine Tours in Seward does its peak seasonal hiring from January 15 to April 15. Whaler’s Cove has staff arrive from May through mid-June and leave in September, Katmailand runs late May through mid-September, and Talaheim’s guide season is June 30 to September 3. Lodges ask for the whole season: Whaler’s Cove requires a commitment through its operating season.

Housing is part of the offer, and applicants compare it. Remote lodges include it outright: Katmailand provides accommodations and meals at no cost, Whaler’s Cove gives guides a private room and the same three meals as guests, and Talaheim and Larsen Bay include airfare. Town-based charters vary. Major Marine offers shared dorm housing in Seward for $15 a night and reimburses out-of-state employees $400 for travel after they complete their contract, while Miller’s Landing offers bunkhouse, camping, camper and cabin options but no meals or transportation. State in the listing whether housing is free, what it costs and whether it has power and heat. Applicants weigh these against other seasonal jobs with housing.

Put the license, drug testing and season dates in the first lines of the listing; Whaler’s Cove and Larsen Bay both lead with them. Candidates browse fishing guide jobs, deckhand jobs and fishing crew jobs, and you can post an opening on WildWork’s post a job page.