Overview
EU countries are obliged to report annually on this balance, using the guidelines prepared by the European Commission.
Also on an annual basis, the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) reviews the national fleet reports and assesses the balance between the fishing capacity and the fishing opportunities for key fleet segments in the EU.
A fishing fleet capacity ceiling in kilowatts (kW) and gross tonnage (GT) is established for each EU country. New fishing vessels may enter the fleet only after the same fleet capacity (in kW and GT) is removed. Through this ‘entry-exit’ system, the EU’s fleet capacity is kept stable.
Access to waters
In general, fishing vessels registered in the EU fishing fleet register have equal access to all of the EU waters and resources that are managed under the common fisheries policy. Access to fisheries is normally authorised through a fishing licence.
There are two temporary exceptions to the rule of equal access
- an EU country can limit access in waters up to 12 nautical miles from its coast to certain vessels and fisheries
- in Europe’s outermost regions, access can be restricted in waters of up to 100 nautical miles from their coasts to vessels registered in these territories and to vessels that traditionally fish in those waters
The exceptions expire on 1 January 2032.
Fishing fleet register
The Commission maintains the EU fleet register with the necessary vessel information received periodically from EU countries.
Master data register
The Master data register contains data structures and lists of fisheries codes to be used in electronic information recording and exchanges among Member States and for Member States' communications with Norway with the purpose to record and report fishing activities.
News
A new system introducing a digital catch certificate for all fishery products entering the European Union came into force on 10 January 2026. This will support global efforts to tackle illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, help protect marine biodiversity
The European Commission is deeply concerned about the recent arrangement on mackerel fishing quotas reached by the United Kingdom, Norway, Iceland, and the Faroe Islands on 15 December 2025. This arrangement was signed without prior consultation with the European Union.
The EU and Norway concluded negotiations on the management of shared stocks in the Skagerrak and Kattegat, quota exchanges, and reciprocal access to waters.