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As of January 10, 2026, the declaration obligation for recreational sea anglers that was due to come into force has officially been postponed to a later date in France.âeuros
Technical difficulties
Due to technical difficulties, the European RecFishing application is not operational at this time.âeuros
As a result, the annual registration and daily catch declaration obligations planned from January 10, 2026 are suspended, and will only come into force when the application is actually launched.âeuros
During this transitional phase, sea anglers are not required to register or declare their catches via this system.âeuros
What remains mandatory in the Mediterranean
In certain marine parks in the Mediterranean, specific declaration systems (such as Catchmachine) remain in force for fishermen already concerned by these local regulations.âeuros
Anglers who already have obligations specific to these areas (national parks, regulated areas) must therefore continue to respect these local declaration rules.âeuros
Continued calendar
An updated timetable for the launch of the RecFishing application and the effective entry into force of the obligations will be communicated at a later date by the authorities, in liaison with the European Commission.âeuros
The year 2026 has been announced as the first year of implementation, with controls intended to be more of an educational tool when the system actually gets underway.
