Overseas
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry has updated the framework governing vessels authorised to fish for albacore tuna, swordfish and dolphinfish in the Mediterranean. Although the three measures are distinct and species-specific, they share a common foundation: they define the lists of eligible vessels and confirm a management system based on specific authorisations, controls and alignment with European and international rules.
For Mediterranean albacore tuna, the decree establishes, within the Directorate-General for Maritime Fisheries and Aquaculture, the list of vessels authorised to conduct targeted fishing with longline and purse seine systems, namely drifting longline and purse seine gear. The measure states that the administration reserves the right to revise the list annually and provides that, pending the release of special authorisations, vessels included in the list may begin fishing activity from 1 April 2026. Actual operations, however, remain subject to the inclusion of the vessels in the relevant international list.
For Mediterranean swordfish, the decree sets up the list of vessels authorised to carry out targeted fishing with longline gear. The same act also provides that, for the 2026 fishing year only, the vessels traditionally known as feluche will also be included, provided they are authorised to target swordfish exclusively by harpoon and that this method is duly indicated on the fishing licence or temporary certification. Here too, the Ministry reserves the right to revise the list annually and makes actual operability conditional on the inclusion of the vessels in the corresponding international register. Vessels entered on the list may begin fishing activity from 1 April 2026.
The measure concerning dolphinfish is more detailed. In this case, the Ministry establishes the national list of vessels authorised to fish using fish aggregating devices (FADs) and assigns the authorisation a three-year validity covering 2026, 2027 and 2028. The decree specifies that renewal will be granted automatically only if, during the authorised period, dolphinfish catches and landings are reported through the e-logbook system.
The same measure also introduces precise operational requirements. Until 31 December 2026, it is prohibited to target, retain on board, tranship, transfer, land, transport, store, display or sell dolphinfish specimens with a total length of less than 35 centimetres. A derogation allows a maximum 5 percent share of accidental undersized catches, calculated either by weight or by number of specimens per landing in relation to the vessel’s total dolphinfish catch. The decree also states that, pending the release of special authorisations, vessels included in the list may begin fishing activity from 10 August each year.
The dolphinfish decree also contains a second annex listing the vessels removed from the register. For these units, the Ministry grants interested parties ten days from the entry into force of the measure to submit written observations, potentially accompanied by supporting documents, to the certified email address indicated in the text.
Taken together, the three measures do not create a single unified regime, but rather update three separate authorisation systems applying to different species. Albacore and swordfish are governed through decrees establishing the lists of vessels authorised for 2026. Dolphinfish, by contrast, falls within a three-year framework combining a national register, renewal conditions and specific requirements regarding minimum size and accidental catches.
Across all three cases, the key principle remains unchanged: fishing activity is subject to formal authorisation through inclusion in an official list and operates within a control system that strengthens the administrative oversight of some of the Mediterranean’s main species. The underlying logic has not changed, but the framework further consolidates an approach in which access to the resource, catch traceability and verification of compliance have become central elements of fisheries management.
