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Document 02017R2403-20260110
Regulation (EU) 2017/2403 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2017 on the sustainable management of external fishing fleets, and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1006/2008
Consolidated text: Regulation (EU) 2017/2403 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2017 on the sustainable management of external fishing fleets, and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1006/2008
Regulation (EU) 2017/2403 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2017 on the sustainable management of external fishing fleets, and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1006/2008
02017R2403 — EN — 10.01.2026 — 002.001
This text is meant purely as a documentation tool and has no legal effect. The Union's institutions do not assume any liability for its contents. The authentic versions of the relevant acts, including their preambles, are those published in the Official Journal of the European Union and available in EUR-Lex. Those official texts are directly accessible through the links embedded in this document
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REGULATION (EU) 2017/2403 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 12 December 2017 (OJ L 347 28.12.2017, p. 81) |
Amended by:
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Official Journal |
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No |
page |
date |
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REGULATION (EU) 2019/498 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 25 March 2019 |
L 85I |
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27.3.2019 |
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REGULATION (EU) 2023/2842 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 22 November 2023 |
L 2842 |
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20.12.2023 |
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REGULATION (EU) 2017/2403 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
of 12 December 2017
on the sustainable management of external fishing fleets, and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1006/2008
TITLE I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1
Subject matter
This Regulation sets out rules for issuing and managing fishing authorisations for:
Union fishing vessels conducting fishing operations in waters under the sovereignty or jurisdiction of a third country, under the auspices of an RFMO to which the Union is a contracting party, in or outside Union waters, or on the high seas; and
third-country fishing vessels conducting fishing operations in Union waters.
Article 2
Relationship to international and Union law
This Regulation shall apply without prejudice to the provisions:
in SFPAs and other fisheries agreements concluded between the Union and third countries;
adopted by RFMOs to which the Union is a contracting party;
in Union law implementing or transposing provisions referred to in points (a) and (b).
Article 3
Definitions
For the purpose of this Regulation, the following definitions also apply:
‘support vessel’ means a vessel other than a craft carried on board that is not equipped with operational fishing gear designed to catch or attract fish and that facilitates, assists or prepares fishing operations;
‘fishing authorisation’ means, in respect of a Union fishing vessel, an authorisation:
and, in respect of a third-country fishing vessel, an authorisation entitling it to carry out in Union waters specific fishing operations during a specified period, in a given area or for a given fishery under specific conditions;
‘direct authorisation’ means a fishing authorisation issued by a third-country competent authority to a Union fishing vessel outside the framework of an SFPA or of an agreement on exchange of fishing opportunities and joint management of species of common interest;
‘third-country waters’ means waters under the sovereignty or jurisdiction of a third country. The waters of a Member State that are not Union waters are considered as third-country waters for the purpose of this Regulation;
‘observer programme’ means a scheme under the auspices of an RFMO, an SFPA, a third country or a Member State that provides observers on board fishing vessels including, where specifically provided for in the applicable observer scheme, to verify the vessel’s compliance with the rules adopted by that RFMO or that third country, or under that SFPA;
‘chartering’ means an arrangement by which a fishing vessel flying the flag of a Member State is contracted for a defined period by an operator in either another Member State or a third country without a change of flag;
‘fishing operation’ means all activities in connection with searching for fish, the shooting, towing and hauling of active gears, setting, soaking, removing or resetting of passive gears and the removal of any catch from the gear, keep nets, or from a transport cage to fattening and farming cages.
TITLE II
FISHING OPERATIONS BY UNION FISHING VESSELS OUTSIDE UNION WATERS
CHAPTER I
Common provisions
Article 4
General principle
Without prejudice to the requirement to obtain an authorisation from the competent organisation or third country, a Union fishing vessel shall not carry out fishing operations outside Union waters unless it has been authorised by its flag Member State, and the fishing operations are indicated in a valid fishing authorisation issued in accordance with Chapters II to V, as appropriate.
Article 5
Eligibility criteria
A flag Member State may only issue a fishing authorisation for fishing operations outside Union waters if:
it has received complete and accurate information, in accordance with the requirements of the Annex or the SFPA concerned or RFMO concerned, about the fishing vessel and the associated support vessel(s), including non-Union support vessels;
the fishing vessel has a valid fishing licence under Article 6 of the Control Regulation;
the fishing vessel and any associated support vessel apply the relevant IMO ship identification number scheme insofar as is required under Union law;
the fishing vessel is not included in an IUU vessel list adopted by an RFMO and/or by the Union pursuant to the IUU Regulation;
where applicable, fishing opportunities are available to the flag Member State under the fisheries agreement concerned or the relevant provisions of the RFMO; and
where applicable, the fishing vessel complies with the requirements set out in Article 6.
Article 6
Reflagging operations
This Article applies to vessels that, during the 5 years preceding the application for a fishing authorisation, have:
left the Union fishing fleet register and been reflagged in a third country; and
subsequently returned to the Union fishing fleet register.
A flag Member State may only issue a fishing authorisation if it has verified that, during the period that the vessel referred to in paragraph 1 operated under a third-country flag, it did not:
engage in IUU fishing;
operate in waters of a third country identified as a country allowing non-sustainable fishing pursuant to point (a) of Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1026/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 1 );
operate in waters of a third country listed as non-cooperating pursuant to Article 33 of the IUU Regulation; and
operate in waters of a third country identified as non-cooperating in fighting IUU fishing pursuant to Article 31 of the IUU Regulation after a period of 6 weeks following the adoption of the decision of the Commission identifying that third country as such, except for any operations carried out in the event that the Council has rejected a proposal to designate that third country as non-cooperating pursuant to Article 33 of that Regulation.
To that end, an operator shall provide the following information related to the period during which the vessel operated under a third-country flag required by a flag Member State:
a declaration of catches and fishing effort during the relevant period as required by the third-country flag state;
a copy of any fishing authorisations permitting fishing operations during the relevant period;
an official statement by the third country where the vessel was reflagged listing the sanctions the vessel or the operator had been subject to during the relevant period;
complete flag history during the period when the vessel had left the Union fleet register.
A flag Member State shall not issue a fishing authorisation to a vessel that has been reflagged in a third country:
listed as non-cooperating in fighting IUU fishing pursuant to Article 33 of the IUU Regulation;
identified as non-cooperating in fighting IUU fishing pursuant to Article 31 of the IUU Regulation after a period of 6 weeks following the adoption of the decision of the Commission identifying that third country as such, except for any operations carried out in the event that the Council has rejected a proposal to designate that third country as non-cooperating pursuant to Article 33 of that Regulation; or
identified as allowing non-sustainable fishing pursuant to point (a) of Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1026/2012.
Paragraph 4 shall not apply if the flag Member State is satisfied that, as soon as the circumstances described in points (b) to (d) of paragraph 2 or points (a) to (c) of paragraph 4 became applicable, the operator:
ceased fishing operations; and
immediately started the relevant administrative procedures to remove the vessel from the fishing fleet register of the third country.
Article 7
Management of fishing authorisations
Where the flag Member State concerned has not taken appropriate action to comply with the Commission decision referred to in the first subparagraph within a period of 15 days, the Commission shall send the updated details of the fishing vessels referred to in Article 22 to the Secretariat of the RFMO to address the vessel concerned. The Commission shall inform the flag Member State of its action. The flag Member State shall notify the operator of the action of the Commission.
Where the flag Member State concerned has not taken appropriate action to comply with the Commission decision referred to in the first subparagraph within a period of 15 days, the Commission shall send the updated details of the fishing vessels to the third country to address the Union fishing vessel concerned. The Commission shall inform the flag Member State of its action. The flag Member State shall notify the operator of the action of the Commission.
CHAPTER II
Fishing operations by Union fishing vessels in third-country waters
Article 8
Scope
This Section shall apply to fishing operations carried out by Union fishing vessels in third-country waters under an SFPA.
Article 9
RFMO membership
A Union fishing vessel may only carry out fishing operations in waters of a third country on stocks managed by an RFMO if that third country is a contracting party to that RFMO.
Article 10
Conditions for fishing authorisations by the flag Member State
A flag Member State may only issue a fishing authorisation for fishing operations carried out in third-country waters under an SFPA if:
the eligibility criteria set out in Article 5 are fulfilled;
the conditions set out in the relevant SFPA are complied with;
the operator has paid all fees due under the relevant agreements, and where applicable, related financial sanctions established by a judicial or administrative decision having final and binding effect; and
the fishing vessel has a valid fishing authorisation issued by the third country with sovereignty or jurisdiction over the waters where the fishing operations take place.
Article 11
Procedure for obtaining fishing authorisations of the third country
Upon receipt of the application or any additional information requested pursuant to paragraph 3 of this Article, the Commission shall conduct a preliminary examination to determine whether the conditions set out in points (a) to (c) of Article 10 are met. The Commission shall then:
send the application to the third country without delay and, in any event, before the expiry of the deadline for the transmission of applications laid down in the SFPA, provided that the deadline set out in paragraph 3 of this Article has been met; or
notify the Member State that the application is refused.
Article 12
Temporary reallocation of unused fishing opportunities in the framework of SFPAs
Within 10 calendar days of receipt of this information from the Commission, the Member States referred to in paragraph 1 may:
inform the Commission that they will use their fishing opportunities later in the relevant period of implementation by providing a fishing plan with detailed information on the number of fishing authorisations requested, the estimated catches, area and period of fishing; or
notify the Commission of the use of their fishing opportunities through exchanges of fishing opportunities, pursuant to Article 16(8) of the Basic Regulation.
The Commission shall inform the Member States of the Member States to which the reallocation has been made and the quantities reallocated.
The temporary reallocation of fishing opportunities shall be based on transparent and objective criteria including, where applicable, those of an environmental, social and economic nature. Those criteria may include:
the fishing opportunities available for reallocation;
the number of requesting Member States;
the share assigned to each requesting Member State in the initial allocation of fishing opportunities;
the historic catch and effort levels of each requesting Member State, where applicable;
the viability of the fishing plans provided by the requesting Member States, in light of the number, type and characteristics of vessels and gear used.
Article 13
Sub-allocation of a yearly quota broken down into several successive catch limits
Article 14
Applicable provisions
Article 15
Consultations with third countries in respect of Union fishing vessels
The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts, in accordance with Article 44, in order to supplement Article 10 by implementing in Union law the outcome of the consultations between the Union and third countries with which the Union has concluded an agreement, or of arrangements with coastal states with which fish stocks are shared, as regards the conditions for fishing authorisations.
Article 16
Scope
This Section shall apply to fishing operations carried out by Union fishing vessels in waters of a third country outside the framework of an agreement referred to in Section 1 or 2.
Article 17
Conditions for fishing authorisations by the flag Member States
A flag Member State may only issue a fishing authorisation for fishing operations carried out in third-country waters outside the framework of an agreement referred to in Section 1 or 2 if:
the eligibility criteria set out in Article 5 are fulfilled;
no SFPA or agreement on exchange of fishing opportunities or joint management with the third country concerned is in force or provisionally applied;
the operator has provided each of the following:
in the event that the fishing operations are to be carried out on species managed by an RFMO, the third country is a contracting party to that organisation; and
the operator has provided either:
Article 18
Procedure for obtaining fishing authorisations of the third country
Article 18a
Scope
This Section shall apply until 31 December 2019, by way of derogation from Section 3, to fishing operations carried out by Union fishing vessels in United Kingdom waters.
Article 18b
Definition
For the purposes of this Section, ‘United Kingdom waters’ means the waters under the sovereignty or jurisdiction of the United Kingdom established in accordance with international law.
Article 18c
Procedure for obtaining fishing authorisations from the United Kingdom
Article 18d
Monitoring
The Commission shall monitor the issuing of fishing authorisations by the United Kingdom for fishing operations carried out by Union fishing vessels in United Kingdom waters.
CHAPTER III
Fishing operations by Union fishing vessels under the auspices of RFMOs
Article 19
Scope
This Chapter shall apply to fishing operations carried out by Union fishing vessels fishing for stocks under the auspices of an RFMO, in or outside Union waters, insofar as their operations are subject to an authorisation regime put in place by the RFMO.
Article 20
Fishing authorisations
A Union fishing vessel the fishing operations of which are subject to an authorisation regime adopted by the RFMO shall not carry out fishing operations under the auspices of the RFMO unless:
the Union is a contracting party to the RFMO;
it has been issued with a fishing authorisation by its flag Member State;
it has been included in the relevant register or list of authorised vessels of the RFMO; and
where the fishing operations are carried out in third-country waters, it has been issued with a fishing authorisation by the relevant third country in accordance with Chapter II.
Article 21
Conditions for fishing authorisations by the flag Member States
A flag Member State may issue a fishing authorisation only if:
the eligibility criteria set out in Article 5 are fulfilled;
the rules laid down by the RFMO or the transposing Union law are complied with; and
where the fishing operations are carried out in third-country waters, the criteria set out in Article 10 or 17 are complied with.
Article 22
Registration by RFMOs
CHAPTER IV
Fishing operations by Union fishing vessels on the high seas
Article 23
Scope
This Chapter shall apply to fishing operations carried out on the high seas falling outside the scope of Chapter III by Union fishing vessels exceeding 24 metres in overall length.
Article 24
Conditions for fishing authorisations by the flag Member States
A flag Member State may issue a fishing authorisation for fishing operations on the high seas only if:
the eligibility criteria set out in Article 5 are fulfilled;
the planned fishing operations are:
Article 25
Procedure for obtaining fishing authorisations
CHAPTER V
Chartering of Union fishing vessels
Article 26
Principles
Article 27
Management of fishing authorisations under a chartering arrangement
When issuing a fishing authorisation to a vessel in accordance with Article 17, 21 or 24, and when the relevant fishing operations are carried out under a chartering arrangement, the flag Member State shall verify that:
the chartering State’s competent authority has officially confirmed that the arrangement is in line with its national law; and
the details of the chartering arrangement are specified in the fishing authorisation including time period, fishing opportunities and fishing area.
▼M2 —————
CHAPTER VII
Observation and reporting obligations
Article 29
Observer programme data
If data are collected on board a Union fishing vessel under an observer programme, related reports shall be sent, in accordance with the transmission rules specified in the observer programme, without delay to the competent authority of the flag Member State.
Article 30
Information to third countries
TITLE III
FISHING OPERATIONS BY THIRD-COUNTRY FISHING VESSELS IN UNION WATERS
Article 31
RFMO membership requirements
A third-country fishing vessel may only carry out fishing operations in Union waters on stocks managed by an RFMO if the third country is a contracting party to that RFMO.
Article 32
General principles
Article 33
Conditions for fishing authorisations
The Commission may only issue an authorisation to a third-country fishing vessel for fishing operations in Union waters if:
there is a surplus of allowable catch that would cover the proposed fishing opportunities as required under Article 62(2) and (3) of UNCLOS;
the conditions set out in the relevant fisheries agreement are complied with and the fishing vessel is eligible under the fisheries agreement with the third country concerned and, where relevant, is on the list of vessels under that agreement;
the information required under the agreement for the fishing vessel and the associated support vessel(s) is complete and accurate, and the vessel and any associated support vessel(s) have an IMO number when so required under Union law;
the fishing vessel is not included in an IUU vessel list adopted by an RFMO and/or by the Union pursuant to the IUU Regulation;
the third country is not listed as non-cooperating pursuant to the IUU Regulation or as allowing non-sustainable fishing pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 1026/2012.
Article 34
Procedure for obtaining fishing authorisations
Article 35
Management of fishing authorisations
The Commission shall immediately inform the third country concerned in the event that it refuses, suspends or withdraws the authorisation in accordance with the first subparagraph.
Article 36
Closure of fishing operations
Article 37
Overfishing of quotas in Union waters
Article 38
Control and enforcement
TITLE IIIa
FISHING OPERATIONS BY UNITED KINGDOM FISHING VESSELS IN UNION WATERS
Article 38a
Scope
This Title shall apply until 31 December 2019, by way of derogation from Title III, to fishing operations carried out by United Kingdom fishing vessels in Union waters.
Article 38b
Fishing operations by United Kingdom fishing vessels
United Kingdom fishing vessels may carry out fishing operations in Union waters, in accordance with the conditions set out in Council Regulations (EU) 2019/124 ( 2 ) and (EU) 2018/2025 ( 3 ) establishing the fishing opportunities.
Article 38c
General principles
The Commission may issue a fishing authorisation to United Kingdom fishing vessels if:
the fishing vessel has a valid fishing licence issued by the United Kingdom authority;
the fishing vessel is listed by the United Kingdom in a fleet register accessible to the Commission;
the fishing vessel and any associated support vessel apply the relevant IMO ship identification number scheme insofar as is required under Union law;
the fishing vessel is not included in an IUU vessel list adopted by an RFMO and/or by the Union pursuant to the IUU Regulation;
the United Kingdom is not listed as non-cooperating pursuant to the IUU Regulation or as allowing non-sustainable fishing opportunities pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 1026/2012;
fishing opportunities are available to the United Kingdom.
Article 38d
Procedure for obtaining fishing authorisations
Article 38e
Management of fishing authorisations
The Commission may refuse to issue authorisations or suspend or withdraw any authorisation issued to a United Kingdom fishing vessel in any of the following cases:
where a fundamental change of circumstances has occurred;
in the event of a serious threat to the sustainable exploitation, management and conservation of marine biological resources;
where it is essential in order to prevent or suppress IUU fishing;
where the Commission deems it appropriate on the basis of its findings resulting from its monitoring activities pursuant to Article 18d;
where the United Kingdom unduly refuses, suspends or withdraws the authorisation of Union fishing vessels to United Kingdom waters.
Article 38f
Closure of fishing operations
Article 38g
Overfishing of quotas in Union waters
When the Commission establishes that the United Kingdom has exceeded the quotas it has been allocated for a stock or group of stocks, the Commission shall operate deductions from other quotas allocated to the United Kingdom. The Commission shall endeavour to ensure that the amount of the deduction is consistent with deductions imposed on Member States in similar circumstances.
Article 38h
Control and enforcement
Article 38i
Quota transfers and exchanges
TITLE IV
DATA AND INFORMATION
Article 39
Union database for fishing authorisations issued under this Regulation
The Commission shall set up and maintain an electronic Union fishing authorisation database containing all fishing authorisations granted in accordance with Titles II and III, made of a public part and a secure part. That database shall:
record all information submitted in accordance with the Annex and other information submitted to the Commission for the purpose of issuing fishing authorisations under Titles II and III, including the name, city, country of residence of the owner and of up to five main beneficial owners, and display the status of each authorisation as soon as possible;
be used for data and information exchange between the Commission and a Member State; and
be used for the purposes of sustainable management of fishing fleets as well as for the purposes of control only.
The list of all fishing authorisations issued under Titles II and III in the database shall be publicly accessible and contain all of the following information:
the name and flag of the vessel and its CFR and IMO numbers where required under Union law;
the type of authorisation including target species or species group(s); and
the authorised time and area of fishing operation (start and end dates; fishing area).
Article 40
Technical requirements
Article 41
Access to data
Without prejudice to Article 110 of the Control Regulation, the Member States or the Commission shall grant access to the secure part of the Union database for external fishing fleets’ fishing authorisations referred to in Article 39 of this Regulation to the relevant competent administrative services involved in the management of fishing fleets.
Article 42
Data management, protection of personal data and confidentiality
Data obtained under this Regulation shall be handled in accordance with Articles 112 and 113 of the Control Regulation, Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Directive 95/46/EC and its national implementing rules.
Article 43
Relations with third countries and RFMOs
TITLE V
PROCEDURES, DELEGATION AND IMPLEMENTING MEASURES
Article 44
Exercise of the delegation
Article 45
Committee procedure
TITLE VI
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 46
Repeal
Article 47
Transitional provisions concerning the temporary reallocation of fishing opportunities under existing protocols
If a Member State concerned objects to that reallocation, the Commission shall, by means of implementing acts, decide on the reallocation taking into account the criteria laid down in paragraph 8 of this Article, and shall notify the Member States concerned thereof. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 45(2).
For the reallocation of fishing opportunities under this Article, the Commission shall take into account, in particular:
the date of each of the requests received;
the fishing opportunities available for reallocation;
the number of requests received;
the number of requesting Member States; and
if fishing opportunities are fully or partly based on amounts of fishing effort or catches, the fishing effort expected to be deployed or the catches expected to be made by each of the vessels concerned.
Article 48
Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
ANNEX
List of data to be provided
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I |
APPLICANT |
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1 |
Name of the economic operator |
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2 |
|
|
3 |
Address |
|
4 |
Fax |
|
5 |
Telephone |
|
6 |
Name of the owner |
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7 |
|
|
8 |
Address |
|
9 |
Fax |
|
10 |
Telephone |
|
11 |
Name of association or agent representing the economic operator |
|
12 |
|
|
13 |
Address |
|
14 |
Fax |
|
15 |
Telephone |
|
16 |
Name(s) of master(s) |
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17 |
|
|
18 |
Address |
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19 |
Fax |
|
20 |
Telephone |
|
II |
FISHING VESSEL |
|
21 |
Vessel name |
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22 |
Vessel identifier (IMO number, CFR number, etc.) |
|
23 |
Method of fish preservation on board |
|
24 |
Vessel type FAO code |
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25 |
Gear type FAO code |
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III |
FISHING CATEGORY FOR WHICH AUTHORISATION IS REQUESTED |
|
26 |
Type of authorisation (direct authorisation; high seas; support) |
|
27 |
Fisheries area (FAO Area(s), Subarea(s), Division(s), Subdivision(s) as appropriate) |
|
28 |
Area of operation (high seas; third country — specify) |
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29 |
Landing ports |
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30 |
Target species FAO code(s) (or fishing category for SFPA) |
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31 |
Authorisation period requested (start and end dates) |
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32 |
List of support vessels (vessel name; IMO number; CFR number) |
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IV |
CHARTERING |
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33 |
Vessel operating under chartering arrangement (Y/N) |
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34 |
Type of chartering arrangement |
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35 |
Period of chartering (start and end dates) |
|
36 |
Fishing opportunities (mt) allocated to vessel under chartering |
|
37 |
Third country allocating fishing opportunities to the vessel under chartering |
( 1 ) Regulation (EU) No 1026/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on certain measures for the purpose of the conservation of fish stocks in relation to countries allowing non-sustainable fishing (OJ L 316, 14.11.2012, p. 34).
( 2 ) Council Regulation (EU) 2019/124 of 30 January 2019 fixing for 2019 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks, applicable in Union waters and, for Union fishing vessels, in certain non-Union waters (OJ L 29, 31.1.2019, p. 1).
( 3 ) Council Regulation (EU) 2018/2025 of 17 December 2018 fixing for 2019 and 2020 the fishing opportunities for Union fishing vessels for certain deep-sea fish stocks (OJ L 325, 20.12.2018, p. 7).
( 4 ) Directive 2007/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 2007 establishing an Infrastructure for Spatial Information in the European Community (INSPIRE) (OJ L 108, 25.4.2007, p. 1).