Home » Blog » Flags of convenience: a threat to fisheries transparency

March 16, 2026

Flags of convenience: a threat to fisheries transparency

 

As one of the world’s biggest importers of seafood products, the European Union has become a global leader in the efforts to combat illegal fishing. Yet an important gap remains unaddressed by European authorities. EU citizens and companies own fishing vessels that operate under non-EU flags, including Flags of Convenience (FoC). These are issued by states with weak fisheries monitoring, control, and surveillance mechanisms.   

What are flags of convenience? 

A flag of convenience is a practice that allows fishing vessel owners to register in countries with lax rules, and weak labour and fisheries oversight, often enabling the creation of shell companies that hide the true profiteers of fishing activities. EU citizens use these opaque ownership structures to mask their identity, evade public scrutiny, and circumvent EU rules. While the use of FoCs is legal, FoC vessels often exhibit characteristics that make them particularly suited to being linked to illegal fishing practices. 

Consequences of the use of Flags of Convenience  

Seafood supply chains are highly globalised, with fish often caught, processed, and sold across multiple countries, creating opportunities for illegal catches to be mixed with legal products and making traceability difficult. The use of FoCs makes it easy to conceal illegal fishing, , undermining enforcement mechanisms and the effectiveness of conservation and management efforts. This threatens the fight for seafood transparency and makes it difficult for consumers in the EU to make ethical choices when purchasing seafood.  

In a recent analysis, Oceana found that at least 105  large-scale fishing vessels owned by EU citizens or companies operate under flags of convenience, tax havens, or countries facing EU warnings for failing to tackle illegal fishing. These arrangements can allow economic profits from potentially illegal fishing to flow back to the EU market, despite the EU’s stated zero-tolerance policy against this practice. Spanish, Portuguese, and Lithuanian operators account for the highest numbers of EU owners operating under high-risk flags.   

Furthermore, overfishing by FoC vessels contributes to the collapse of local fishing industries and harms coastal communities that are dependent on fisheries. FoC flagged vessels owned by European companies fish for small pelagic species in West Africa. This dwindles the resources available to locals and averts the quota restrictions set under official EU agreements, weakening regional efforts to sustainably manage these resources.  

Oceana’s urges European Member States to:  

  • Require their citizens and companies to report any legal, beneficial, or financial interests in fishing vessels flagged to nonEU countries, to ensure proper implementation of the prohibition on supporting illegal fishing and on owning fishing vessels flagged to countries subject to an EU seafood trade ban.   
  • Strengthen monitoring and enforcement mechanisms and investigate ownership links between their nationals and foreign-flagged vessels, prioritising those operating under flags of convenience or associated with illegal fishing risks.   

 

Up Next: