Social licence is defined as an unwritten social contract that reflects the expectations of governments, non-government organisations, other industries/businesses, and the broader community on the impacts and benefits of industry practices. It comprises socio-political factors like legitimacy, credibility and trust which are relevant for the establishment of viable aquaculture industries. To date scholarly interest in the relationship between social licence and aquaculture has been predominantly concerned with the expansion of marine-based aquaculture industries both near-shore and offshore. However, this literature has not focused specifically on the relevance of social licence to the expansion of onshore aquaculture, and specifically recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS). This paper addresses this gap and reports on recent social research that investigates how social licence is relevant in the context of two Australian onshore aquaculture industries. The research comprised individual semi-structured interviews with four stakeholder groups – government agencies in those states where onshore aquaculture facilities are located; seafood as well as industry bodies/associations involved in the development of the two industries that were the focus of the research; onshore aquaculture business owners or managers, encompassing hatcheries and grow-out facilities; and relevant non-government organisations (NGOs). Through analysis of the qualitative data from these interviews, our research provides important insights into the relevance of social licence to expansion of Australian onshore aquaculture industries, as well as the main social licence priorities, drivers, challenges, and opportunities. In concluding, the paper reflects on the strategies and mechanisms that are likely to be most effective in securing social licence for onshore aquaculture industries.