The European Union Can Curb Illegal Fishing by Closing Vessel Registration Loopholes

A ship with bright lights and a large net stretched into the water is surrounded by seabirds at sunset. The reddened sky is striped with purple clouds above dark blue water. — Seabirds fly around a fishing vessel off the coast of France.

Article April 13, 2026

Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing robs the ocean of millions of metric tons of fish each year, depleting fisheries, damaging the marine ecosystem and denying economies billions of dollars in potential revenue – largely at the expense of coastal fishers and their communities. And because illegal operators often cut corners on safety, IUU fishing also can result in death and injury on the water.

Now, a new study from the nongovernmental organization Oceana has analyzed the European Union’s high seas fishing fleet and found that EU citizens and companies own at least 105 large-scale fishing vessels that are at high risk for IUU fishing and employ hidden ownership structures and dubious registrations to evade oversight and taxation. According to the report, these include vessel registrations in countries that have been issued a “yellow card” – a formal warning to improve fisheries governance or risk receiving a “red card,” which bans a country from exporting seafood to the EU, among other sanctions – under the EU’s robust enforcement system for noncompliance with fisheries rules.

Also in the report, Oceana – which, along with The Pew Charitable Trusts is a member of the EU IUU Fishing Coalition – offers solutions to close the governance gaps that enable obscure and evasive vessel registration schemes.

“Flags of noncompliance” and hidden ownership enable IUU fishing

The country to which a fishing vessel is registered, or flagged, is responsible for monitoring that ship’s fishing activities wherever they occur throughout the global ocean. These flag State responsibilities are a core part of fisheries management.

Flags of noncompliance, often called flags of convenience, are vessel registrations to States that are well known for making it easy to register vessels there, for providing little monitoring and oversight of its registered ships, and for having lax fishing regulations and few taxes. In many such cases, no genuine link exists between the vessel and the flag State. Vessels registered in this way are high-risk for IUU fishing and other violations of international agreements.

Open registries, in which a State accepts vessels regardless of which country the ship’s owners live in, are another hallmark of flags of noncompliance. Open registries often do not require the reporting of a vessel’s ultimate beneficial owner (UBO) – the person, people, or entity controlling and reaping the bulk of the profits from a company or vessel – enabling UBOs to profit from IUU fishing largely undetected and without repercussions, while the on-the-water fishers they direct can be jailed or fined.

Despite the EU’s commitment to robust fisheries management, and even with its carding system in place, effective oversight of its member States remains lacking, and profits from illicit fishing activity are still making their way into the EU. In 2026, the European Commission studied flag State responsibilities and open registries and found that these unregulated and opaque registries undermine EU policy objectives, including advancing sustainable development, safeguarding biodiversity and enhancing global maritime governance. According to the Commission, “the depletion of fish stocks due to IUU fishing caused by [flags of convenience-registered] vessels is directly linked to broader environmental deterioration caused by overfishing and unsustainable management practices.” Likewise, lax enforcement of flag State responsibilities puts the maritime labor force at risk by allowing unethical ship owners to skimp on critical employment protections and vessel safety measures. This can also cause unfair competition with vessel owners who comply with fisheries rules and labor standards.

EU leadership can reduce illegal fishing opportunities

In light of Oceana’s and the European Commission’s findings, it’s time for the EU to do more to limit the power of open registries and bring more transparency to UBOs. Member States and the commission should:

Strengthen implementation and enforcement of flag State responsibilities by encouraging States, especially those with open registries, to demonstrate the capacity and willingness to enforce fisheries regulations, exercise effective control and oversight over their fleets' activities, and promote cross-border information exchange on vessel activities. In addition to using its carding process for noncompliant vessels and countries, the European Commission should work with like-minded partners – for instance, the IUU Fishing Action Alliance – to help countries improve their fleet monitoring and rule enforcement capacity. The Commission should also advocate for development of an international UBO definition that aligns with global standards, such as those used by the Financial Action Task Force, an intergovernmental organization that tracks money laundering and the funding of organized crime around the world.
Improve UBO transparency by requiring clear and consistent reporting of all vessel owners at the time of registration and licensing and by championing mandatory UBO disclosure across all regional fisheries management and oversight bodies, including those that do not yet have reporting requirements. Countries should also upload all available information about UBOs and their vessels to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s Global Record of Fishing Vessels, Refrigerated Transport Vessels and Supply Vessels.
Close regulatory and market loopholes by developing measures that prevent vessels with flags of noncompliance from accessing markets and by creating mandatory disclosure and enforcement mechanisms to keep IUU-caught fish from reaching the EU market.

Even in the EU, which takes its fisheries management seriously, flags of noncompliance, open registries and opaque UBO practices enable major gaps that allow disreputable fishing vessels and their owners to operate with impunity.

But with a coordinated effort, EU Member States and the global community can hold illegal operators accountable. Increased transparency, universal definitions and consistent mandatory reporting of UBO; stronger implementation of existing oversight, enforcement tools and seafood import controls; and collaboration among governments can all reduce the prevalence of flags of noncompliance, meaningfully slowing IUU fishing and bringing covert activities into the light.

Nikolas Evangelides works on The Pew Charitable Trusts' international fisheries project.