Publication
Access to UK Waters
From Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Published on
Last updated on
Application for Access to UK Waters: UK Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) 12 - 200 Nautical Miles and Northern Ireland 0 - 6 Nautical Mile Zone
Please complete the application form linked below if you wish to make an application for your sea-fishing boat to access:
• the UK EEZ, 12-200 nautical miles only, and/or
• the 0-6 nautical mile zone of Northern Ireland.
Please be advised that the Department can only process application forms subject to the following criteria:
• Completed forms must be emailed to dafmqm@agriculture.gov.ie
• A valid working email address must be provided on the application form for all owner(s) of the boat.
• The name of the operator and the operators email address must be provided on the application form (must be a valid working email address)
• An IMO (International Maritime Organization) number must be provided on the application form for any boat equal to or greater than 12 metres in length overall.
• If you do not have an IMO number for your boat, you can register for same at: https://imonumbers.ihs.com/ . There is also a FAQ page for queries at: https://imonumbers.ihs.com/Home/Help .
The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) provides access for EU vessels to the UK 6-12 nautical mile zone and for UK vessels to the EU 6-12 nautical mile zone in ICES divisions 4c and 7d-g (which does not cover the waters around Northern Ireland). By way of derogation, Article 502 of the TCA allows EU vessels access to the waters around Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man where a track record of fishing activity can be demonstrated that is more than 10 days in any of the three 12 month periods beginning on 1st February 2017 and ending on 31st January 2020. If you wish to progress an application in respect of the 6-12 nm zone around the Isle of Man, please contact BrexitFisheriesGroup@agriculture.gov.ie .