Sport fishing in Costa Rica is a world-class experience. From the Pacific sailfish to the Caribbean tarpon, the country's coasts attract tens of thousands of anglers every year. But until recently, accessing reliable information about sea conditions, regulations, and licenses required navigating a maze of websites, phone calls, and guesswork.
That changed in 2026 when FECOP, the Costa Rican Fishing Federation, launched PezCA. This is a free mobile application that puts satellite oceanographic data, fishing regulations, and license purchasing in one single place. And honestly, it is about time someone did this.
1. What Is FECOP and Why It Matters
The organization behind Costa Rica's sport fishing conservation.
The Costa Rican Fishing Federation, FECOP for short, is a non-profit founded by people who love sport fishing and care deeply about conservation. Their work goes way beyond tourism promotion. FECOP does scientific research, pushes for better fishing laws, runs marine education programs, and now with PezCA they are putting technology to work for the ocean.
- Pioneered catch and release sport fishing as a sustainable economic model for coastal communities
- Advocated for science based fishing regulations, including closed seasons and size limits for key species
- Conducted marine research in partnership with universities and international organizations
- Launched PezCA in 2026, the first app in Central America to combine satellite oceanography with fishing regulations and digital licenses
2. What PezCA offers and how it works
A free app that puts ocean data, regulations, and licenses in your pocket.
PezCA is available for iOS and Android, and yes, it is completely free. The name comes from 'pez' and 'CA' for Costa Rica. It is the first app of its kind in Central America and it integrates three things that any sport fisherman needs: satellite ocean data, fishing regulations, and a way to buy your license digitally.
The heart of PezCA is its satellite oceanographic data. The app pulls information from NOAA and NASA satellites and processes it to show conditions that matter for sport fishing. Here is what you get on the screen:
Shows thermal gradients and upwelling zones where pelagic species concentrate. Crucial for finding sailfish, marlin, and dorado in the Pacific.
Indicates the base of the marine food chain. More chlorophyll means more baitfish and more predators. Essential for planning where to fish.
Identifies eddies and current boundaries where pelagic fish tend to gather. A positive anomaly often points to warmer, life rich water masses.
Wind speed and direction for both coasts. Critical for safety and to understand where baitfish will drift with surface currents.
Real time wave data to plan safe departures and returns. Updated every 6 hours from satellite altimetry.
Direction and speed of marine currents. Vital for drift patterns, best trolling speeds, and fuel efficiency.
48 hour marine forecast with rain chance, cloud cover, and pressure. Uses IMN data from the National Meteorological Institute.
3. Fishing regulations at your fingertips
Closed seasons, size limits, and protected species. All updated.
One of the smartest parts of PezCA is its regulations section, built together with INCOPESCA, the Costa Rican Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture. Inside the app you will find:
- A calendar of closed seasons for all regulated species, with push notifications before closures begin
- Minimum size limits and bag limits per species, per day, per angler
- A complete list of fully protected species that you must release right away
- A marine protected areas map showing no fishing zones, national parks, and biological reserves
- Gear restrictions so you know what equipment is legal for sport fishing and what is not
| Species | Coast | Closed Season | Min. Size | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pez Vela (Sailfish) | Pacific | Oct to Mar (varies) | N/A | Catch and release only |
| Marlín (Marlin) | Pacific | Check INCOPESCA | N/A | Catch and release recommended |
| Dorado (Mahi-Mahi) | Both | May to Sep (Pacific) | 80 cm | Respect minimum size |
| Sábalo (Tarpon) | Caribbean | Check INCOPESCA | N/A | Catch and release only |
4. Digital fishing license: buy it from your phone
No more paperwork. Your license is always on your phone.
One of the things I like most about PezCA is that you can buy and store your sport fishing license right there in the app. Before this, you had to find an authorized seller somewhere, fill out paper forms, and carry the physical document with you. Now the whole thing takes minutes.
- Download the app from the App Store or Google Play. It is free.
- Create your profile with your full name, passport or ID number, and an email address
- Pick the license type: national, foreign tourist, or foreign resident. Price changes by category
- Choose the duration: daily, weekly, monthly, or annual
- Pay securely with credit or debit card through the app's payment system
- Your digital license stays in the app and you can show it to authorities even without internet
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5. PezCA and marine conservation
Technology as a tool to protect Costa Rica's oceans.
PezCA is not just a fishing tool. FECOP built it with conservation at its core. Here are the features that directly help protect our marine resources:
You can log your catches voluntarily and that data goes to FECOP's scientific research on species distribution and abundance. It is anonymous and aggregate, and it helps scientists understand fish populations better.
The app sends you a notification when you get close to a marine protected area, reminding you about fishing rules. The GPS prevents accidental incursions into no take zones.
You can report sightings of rare or endangered species like whale sharks, sea turtles, and cetaceans. That data feeds into SINAC and university research databases.
The app has a feature to report suspected illegal fishing straight to INCOPESCA and the Coast Guard, with optional photo evidence and GPS coordinates.
6. Practical tips for using PezCA
Get the most out of the app from day one.
- Download satellite data while on WiFi. The app lets you cache data for offline use at sea.
- Check the regulations for the species you plan to target. Rules change, do not assume last month's rules still apply.
- Buy or renew your license before leaving. Cell signal at sea is not reliable.
- Use the chlorophyll layer to find productive zones. Look for temperature breaks where cold and warm waters meet.
- Turn on the protected areas alert. The notification system works offline using GPS.
- Log your catches even if you release them. The data helps conservation science.
- Sync your catch log when you have WiFi again. Anonymous data goes to FECOP's research database.
- Report any illegal fishing you saw through the app's reporting feature.
- Check the app for regulation updates. INCOPESCA publishes changes that sync automatically.
7. Final summary: why every angler needs PezCA
The five reasons that matter most.
Sources: FECOP (Costa Rican Fishing Federation) - fecop.org; INCOPESCA (Costa Rican Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture) - incopesca.go.cr; NOAA CoastWatch Program - coastwatch.noaa.gov; NASA Ocean Biology Processing Group - oceancolor.gsfc.nasa.gov; Costa Rican Sport Fishing Law No. 8436 and its regulations; INCOPESCA Executive Decree on sport fishing licenses; SINAC marine protected areas registry; La Nación - 'FECOP lanza PezCA para revolucionar la pesca deportiva responsable' (February 2026); The Tico Times - 'New FECOP app brings satellite data to Costa Rica sport fishing' (March 2026). All prices are approximate and can change. Always verify with the competent institutions.
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