EU Sets 2026 Fishing Quotas for Atlantic, Skagerrak

Today, the European Commission has adopted its proposals for 15 Total Allowable Catches (TACs), in EU waters of the Atlantic and the Skagerrak-Kattegat waters, for next year. Some are extending into 2027 and 2028. These proposals, based on scientific advice from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), aim to ensure the long-term economic sustainability of EU fisheries.

Proposed fishing opportunities

This year, the ICES provided scientific advice following the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) for 11 out of the 15 proposed total allowable catches. The Commission proposes to follow this advice in most cases, with limited exceptions for certain mixed fisheries where strictly following MSY could lead to early closures of fisheries. For the remaining 4 TACs, ICES's recommendations are in line with precautionary approach. The Commission proposes to follow these recommendations. Out of these 15 proposals, 6 are multiannual.

See table in our explanatory memorandum under "Detailed explanation of the specific provisions of the proposal".

To ensure the economic viability of fisheries without compromising the protection of the environment, the Commission proposes to decrease the TACs for pollack by-catches in the Bay of Biscay, in the Cantabrian Sea and in Iberian waters. By decreasing TACs for pollack by-catches, pollack fish stocks are preserved and fisheries can remain open.

The objective is to avoid an early closure of mixed fisheries that could negatively impact the respective Member States' fleets and is guided by an analysis of fisheries and socio-economic data by the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee on Fisheries (STECF) and recent catch levels.

Delegating quota setting to Member States

For seabass in the Bay of Biscay, the Commission proposes to maintain the current approach, delegating to respective Member States the task of setting quotas. The Commission also proposes to align the joint limit for those quotas with the lowest value of the MSY range, which is the maximum number of fish that can be caught without compromising the stock, to protect pollack which is accidentally caught when fishing for seabass.

Preserving European eel stocks

Given the continued critical state of the European eel, the Commission proposes to maintain the existing protection measures for eel . They include a 6-month ban on all eel fishing activities and a prohibition of recreational eel fisheries in EU marine and brackish waters of the north-east Atlantic.

Next steps

Fisheries Ministers will discuss the Commission's proposal during the AGRIFISH Council on 11 and 12 December in view of reaching a political agreement on the EU-managed TACs for 2026, and in some cases also for 2027 and 2028. The Council regulation should apply as of 1 January 2026.

Background

TACs for fish stocks managed by the EU are set by EU member states, following a Commission proposal, and apply to most commercial fish stocks either exclusively fished by the EU or shared with the United Kingdom under agreed EU management.

Under the common fisheries policy (CFP), EU countries are legally bound to manage fish stocks in line with MSY and the precautionary approach, in addition to rebuilding depleted stocks. That ensures that EU fishers continue to have healthy fish stocks to rely on for their economic activities. That ensures that EU fishers continue to have healthy fish stocks to rely on for their economic activities.