UK seafood trade primed and ready to meet new EU imposed changes to seafood exports 

9 January 2026  

The UK’s Fish Export Service has been successfully updated overnight to ensure exporters can create export documents which comply with the new EU Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing Regulation.  

This includes making all of the new fields mandatory, including fishing gear and catch area ahead of the changes coming into force tomorrow (Saturday 10 January).  

Nicholas Greenwood, Head of Marine Protection and Operation Services, Marine Management Organisation, said: “This is a significant milestone to have achieved. Overnight we have seen evidence of industry generating the documentation they need to trade, and the updated service is running well so far.  All UK fishing administrations would like to pass on their sincere gratitude to industry for their patience and willingness to get on board with the changes. 

“However, we recognise its early days, and we want to support industry as much as possible, especially as snagging problems can occur. This is why we have extended our helpline hours over the weekend and have support materials on our Fish Trace Ship campaign site to help everyone to navigate the changes.” 

The EU has informally indicated that they expect a pragmatic approach to enforcement by member states while all parties work to accommodate the new requirements.  This follows UK Government repeatedly raising UK industry concerns about the new EU IUU requirements. However, they have not committed to any formal delay or position. That is why the UK has prepared the service to go live in time for the legal deadline and worked extensively with the sector on readiness over the last 12 months. 

In the past 24 hours we have become aware of unverified information indicating that the EU has agreed to an informal grace period of six months for specific data fields required in the EU catch certificate: fishing gear, catch area, and signature of a master or fishing license holder (the latter is not a new requirement for UK exporters and is auto populated based on vessel details). 

To date there has been no formal confirmation from the EU about any relaxation of the IUU requirements. Enforcement of the new requirements is also at the discretion of the individual import authorities.  

Given the unconfirmed nature of the reported grace period, and the fact that the specific fields mentioned are not those highlighted by UK industry as particularly concerning, we plan to proceed making these fields mandatory for creation of a UK catch certificate in the Fish Export Service.  

This will support the rollout of the new service as planned and previously communicated to industry, avoiding any confusion and ensuring compliance with new rules to safeguard the continued smooth movement of goods.