Undersize catch

Undersize catch counts as half of the catch limit if the undersize catch does not exceed 10% of the species in question in a fishing trip.

By law since 1996 it has been mandatory to land all catches that come into the fishing gear of fishing vessels, discard ban.  The undersize rule was present by government as one of the ways  to reduce the chance of small fish being discarded. On the other hand, this preference can create temptations in the direction of classifying larger fish as undersize catch.

• Registration of undersize catch

• The captain of a fishing vessel must ensure that correct and sufficient information on the catch is given to the port weigher.

• Undersizecatch is to be kept separate from other catches of the ship and is to be weighed separately by an authorised weigher.

Length standards for undersized fish vary by species, specified in the table below.

The Directorate of Fisheries regularly monitors landings of undersize catch and verifies that undersize catch is below the threshold, if not, catch registration is corrected.

Response to violations of this rule depends on the seriousness of the violation, repeated violations may lead to temporary invoke of vessels  license to fish for commercial purposes.