Council Regulation (EU) 2024/257 of 10 January 2024 fixing for 2024, 2025 and 2026 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks, applicable in Union waters and, for Union fishing vessels, in certain non-Union waters, and amending Regulation (EU) 2023/194

ANNEX IC

ANNEX ID

ANNEX IE

The TACs set out in this Annex are not allocated to the Contracting Parties of SEAFO and hence the Union’s share is undetermined. Catches are monitored by the SEAFO Secretariat which will communicate to the SEAFO Contracting Parties when fishing is to be ceased due to a TAC exhaustion.

ANNEX IF

ANNEX IG

ANNEX IH

ANNEX IJ

ANNEX IK

Interim Protected Areas

Atlantis Bank

Coral

Fools Flat

Middle of What

Walter’s Shoal

ANNEX IL

ANNEX IM

ANNEX II

CHAPTER I

General provisions

1. SCOPE

1.1.This Annex shall apply to Union fishing vessels of 10 metres length overall or more carrying on board or deploying beam trawls of mesh size equal to or greater than 80 mm as well as static nets, including gillnets, trammel nets and tangle nets, with mesh size equal to or less than 220 mm in accordance with Article 12(2) of Regulation (EU) 2019/472, and present in ICES division 7e.

1.2.Fishing vessels fishing with static nets with mesh size equal to or greater than 120 mm and with track records of less than 300 kg live weight of sole per year during the three previous years, according to their fishing records, shall be exempt from the application of this Annex subject to the following conditions:

(a) such fishing vessels caught less than 300 kg live weight of sole during the 2022 management period;

(b) such fishing vessels do not tranship any fish at sea to another vessel;

(c) by 31 July 2024 and 31 January 2025 each Member State concerned submits a report to the Commission on those fishing vessels’ catch records for sole in the three previous years as well as on catches of sole in 2024.

Where any of those conditions is not met, the fishing vessels concerned shall cease to be exempt from the application of this Annex, with immediate effect.

2. DEFINITIONS

For the purposes of this Annex, the following definitions apply:

(a) ‘gear grouping’ means the grouping consisting of the following two gear categories: (i) beam trawls of mesh size equal to or greater than 80 mm; and (ii) static nets, including gillnets, trammel nets and tangle nets, with mesh size equal to or less than 220 mm;

(b) ‘regulated gear’ means any of the two gear categories belonging to the gear grouping;

(c) ‘the area’ means ICES division 7e;

(d) ‘current management period’ means the period from 1 February 2024 to 31 January 2025.

3. LIMITATION IN ACTIVITY

Without prejudice to Article 29 of Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009, each Member State shall ensure that, when carrying on board any regulated gear, Union fishing vessels flying its flag and registered in the Union are present within the area for no more than the number of days set out in Chapter III of this Annex.

CHAPTER II

Authorisations

4. AUTHORISED FISHING VESSELS

4.1.A Member State shall not authorise fishing with regulated gear in the area by any fishing vessel flying its flag which has no record of such fishing activity in the area in the period from 2002 to 2022, excluding the record of fishing activities as a result of transfer of days between fishing vessels, unless it ensures that the equivalent capacity, measured in kilowatts, is prevented from fishing in the area.

4.2.However, a fishing vessel with a track record of using a regulated gear may be authorised to use a different fishing gear, provided that the number of days allocated to the different fishing gear is equal to or greater than the number of days allocated to the regulated gear.

4.3.A fishing vessel flying the flag of a Member State which has no quotas in the area shall not be authorised to fish in the area with regulated gear unless the fishing vessel is allocated a quota following a transfer carried out in accordance with Article 16(8) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 and is allocated days at sea in accordance with point 10 or 11 of this Annex.

CHAPTER III

Number of days present within the area allocated to Union fishing vessels

5. MAXIMUM NUMBER OF DAYS

During the current management period, the maximum number of days at sea for which a Member State may authorise a fishing vessel flying its flag to be present within the area when carrying on board any regulated gear is set out in Table I.

6. KILOWATT DAYS SYSTEM

6.1.During the current management period, a Member State may manage its fishing effort allocations in accordance with a kilowatt day system. Through that system, it may authorise any fishing vessel concerned by any regulated gear set out in Table I to be present within the area for a maximum number of days that is different from the number set out in that Table, provided that the overall amount of kilowatt days corresponding to the regulated gear is respected.

6.2.The overall amount of kilowatt days shall be the sum of all individual fishing efforts allocated to the fishing vessels flying the flag of the Member State concerned and qualified for the regulated gear. Such individual fishing efforts shall be calculated in kilowatt days by multiplying the engine power of each fishing vessel by the number of days at sea it would be granted, according to Table I, if point 6.1 were not applied.

6.3.Any Member State wishing to benefit from the system referred to in point 6.1 shall submit a request to the Commission, for the regulated gear set out in Table I, with reports in electronic format containing the details of the calculation based on:

(a) the list of fishing vessels authorised to fish by indicating their Union fishing fleet register number (CFR) and their engine power;

(b) the number of days at sea for which each fishing vessel would have initially been authorised to fish according to Table I and the number of days at sea from which each fishing vessel would benefit in application of point 6.1.

6.4.On the basis of that request, the Commission shall assess whether the conditions referred to in point 6 are complied with and, where that is the case, may authorise the Member State concerned to benefit from the system referred to in point 6.1.

7. ALLOCATION OF ADDITIONAL DAYS FOR PERMANENT CESSATION OF FISHING ACTIVITIES

7.1.An additional number of days at sea on which a fishing vessel may be authorised by its flag Member State to be present within the area when carrying on board any regulated gear may be allocated to a Member State by the Commission on the basis of permanent cessations of fishing activities that have taken place during the preceding management period in accordance with either Article 34 of Regulation (EU) No 508/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council (²⁵) or with Council Regulation (EC) No 744/2008 (²⁶). The Commission may consider permanent cessations resulting from any other circumstances on a case by case basis, following a written and duly reasoned request from the Member State concerned. Such a request shall identify the fishing vessels concerned and confirm, for each of them, that they shall never resume fishing activities.

7.2.The effort expended in 2003, measured in kilowatt days, of the withdrawn fishing vessels using a given gear grouping shall be divided by the effort expended by all fishing vessels using that gear grouping in 2003. The additional number of days at sea shall be calculated by multiplying the ratio so obtained by the number of days that would have been allocated according to Table I. Any part of a day resulting from that calculation shall be rounded to the nearest whole day.

7.3.Points 7.1 and 7.2 shall not apply where a fishing vessel has been replaced in accordance with point 4.2, or when the withdrawal has already been used in previous years to obtain additional days at sea.

7.4.A Member State wishing to benefit from the allocations referred to in point 7.1 shall submit a request to the Commission by 15 June 2024 with reports in electronic format containing, for the gear grouping as set out in Table I, the details of the calculation based on:

(a) lists of withdrawn fishing vessels with their Union fishing fleet register number (CFR) and their engine power;

(b) the fishing activity deployed by such fishing vessels in 2003 calculated in days at sea according to the grouping of fishing gear.

7.5.During the current management period, a Member State may reallocate any additionally granted days at sea to all or part of the fishing vessels remaining in its fleet and qualified for the regulated gear.

7.6.When the Commission allocates additional days at sea due to a permanent cessation of fishing activities during the preceding management period, the maximum number of days per Member State and gear set out in Table I shall be adjusted accordingly for the current management period.

8. ALLOCATION OF ADDITIONAL DAYS FOR ENHANCED SCIENTIFIC OBSERVER COVERAGE

8.1.Three additional days on which a fishing vessel may be present within the area when carrying on board any regulated gear may be allocated between 1 February 2024 and 31 January 2025 to a Member State by the Commission on the basis of an enhanced programme of scientific observer coverage in partnership between scientists and the fishing industry. Such a programme shall focus in particular on levels of discarding and on catch composition and go beyond the requirements on data collection laid down in Regulation (EU) 2017/1004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (²⁷) and its implementing rules concerning national programmes.

8.2.Scientific observers shall be independent from the owner, the master of the fishing vessel and any crew member.

8.3.A Member State wishing to benefit from the allocations referred to in point 8.1 shall submit a description of its enhanced scientific observer coverage programme to the Commission for approval.

8.4.If an enhanced scientific observer coverage programme submitted by a Member State has been approved by the Commission in the past and the Member State concerned wishes to continue its programme without changes, it shall inform the Commission of the continuation of that programme four weeks before the beginning of the period for which the programme applies.

CHAPTER IV

Management

9. GENERAL OBLIGATION

Member States shall manage the maximum allowable effort in accordance with Articles 26 to 35 of Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009.

10. MANAGEMENT PERIODS

10.1.A Member State may divide the days present within the area set out in Table I into management periods of durations of one or more calendar months.

10.2.The number of days or hours for which a fishing vessel may be present within the area during a management period shall be fixed by the Member State concerned.

10.3.Where a Member State authorises fishing vessels flying its flag to be present within the area for a given number of hours, the Member State shall continue measuring the consumption of days as specified in point 9. Upon request by the Commission, the Member State concerned shall demonstrate that it has taken precautionary measures to avoid an excessive consumption of days within the area due to a fishing vessel terminating presences in the area before the end of a 24-hour period.

CHAPTER V

Exchanges of fishing effort allocations

11. TRANSFER OF DAYS BETWEEN FISHING VESSELS FLYING THE FLAG OF A MEMBER STATE

11.1.A Member State may permit any fishing vessel flying its flag to transfer days present within the area for which it has been authorised to another fishing vessel flying its flag within that area, provided that the product of the number of days received by a fishing vessel and its engine power in kilowatts (kilowatt days) is equal to or less than the product of the number of days transferred by the donor fishing vessel and its engine power in kilowatts. The engine power in kilowatts of the fishing vessels shall be that recorded for each vessel in the Union fishing fleet register.

11.2.The total number of days present within the area transferred in accordance with point 11.1, multiplied by the engine power in kilowatts of the donor fishing vessel, shall not be higher than the donor fishing vessel’s average annual days track record in the area as verified by the fishing logbook in the years 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 multiplied by the engine power in kilowatts of that fishing vessel.

11.3.The transfer of days in accordance with point 11.1 shall be permitted between fishing vessels operating with any regulated gear and during the same management period.

11.4.Upon request by the Commission, Member States shall provide information on the transfers that have taken place. The Commission may adopt implementing acts establishing spreadsheet formats for the collection and transmission of that information. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 57(2) of this Regulation.

12. TRANSFER OF DAYS BETWEEN FISHING VESSELS FLYING THE FLAG OF DIFFERENT MEMBER STATES

Member States may permit transfer of days present within the area for the same management period and within the area between any fishing vessels flying their flags provided that points 4.1, 4.3, 5, 6 and 10 apply. Where Member States decide to authorise such a transfer, they shall notify the Commission, before the transfer takes place, of the details of the transfer, including the number of days to be transferred, the fishing effort and, where applicable, the fishing quotas relating thereto.

CHAPTER VI

Reporting obligations

13. FISHING EFFORT REPORT

Article 28 of Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009 shall apply to fishing vessels falling within the scope of this Annex. The geographical area referred to in that Article shall be understood as the area defined in point 2 of this Annex.

14. COLLECTION OF RELEVANT DATA

Member States shall collect on a quarterly basis information about total fishing effort deployed within the area by fishing vessels using towed gear and static gear, effort deployed within the area by fishing vessels using different types of gear, and the engine power of those fishing vessels in kilowatt days, on the basis of information used for the management of fishing days present within the area as set out in this Annex.

15. COMMUNICATION OF RELEVANT DATA

Upon request by the Commission, Member States shall make available to the Commission a spreadsheet with the data specified in point 14 and in the format specified in Tables II and III by sending it to the appropriate electronic mailbox address, which shall be communicated to the Member States by the Commission. Member States shall, upon request by the Commission, send detailed information to the Commission on the effort allocated and consumed, covering all or parts of the 2022 and 2023 management periods and using the data format specified in Tables IV and V.