Recreational bluefin tuna fishing: the 2026 quota allocated among federations

The Ministry of Ecological Transition, Biodiversity, and International Negotiations on Climate and Nature published in the Official Journal of the French Republic (Journal officiel de la République française) No. 0207 of September 5, 2026, a decree dated August 4, 2026 (NOR TECM2617647A) modifying the conditions for recreational bluefin tuna fishing. This text distributes the French quota of 80.3 tonnes allocated to recreational fishing for the year 2026 among recreational fishing federations.

The decree replaces Annexes 1 and 2 of the decree of March 24, 2026, which had already specified the conditions for this fishing within the framework of the multiannual management plan for bluefin tuna in the East Atlantic and the Mediterranean.

A national quota of 80.3 tonnes

The French bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) quota allocated to recreational fishing for 2026 amounts to 80.3 tonnes. This volume is part of the global quota of 8,067 tonnes assigned to France for the Atlantic Ocean zone east of longitude 45° West and the Mediterranean, the majority of which is reserved for professional fishing.

The distribution among recreational fishing federations is as follows:

• “Mer et Liberté” Confederation: 72.91 tonnes;
• Collective of Professional Operators and Sailors of the Côte d’Azur (COMPA): 4.59 tonnes;
• French Federation of Sport Freediving Fishing (FFPSA): 0.491 tonne;
• Non-federated: 2.29 tonnes.

The “Mer et Liberté” Confederation in the lead

The largest share, 72.91 tonnes, goes to the “Mer et Liberté” Confederation, which brings together five recreational fishing federations:

• the National Federation of Boating and Sea Fishing (FNPP);
• the French Federation of Sea Fishermen (FFPM);
• the French Federation of Sport Fishing (FFPS);
• the French Federation of Underwater Studies and Sports (FFESSM);
• the National Federation of Pleasure Boaters’ Associations (FNANP).

Implementation procedures

The decree of August 4, 2026, signed on August 4, 2026, entered into force upon its publication in the JORF on September 5, 2026. The Director General of Maritime Affairs, Fisheries, and Aquaculture and the competent regional prefects are responsible, each within their respective jurisdiction, for the execution of this decree.

This text is part of the continuity of the multiannual management plan for bluefin tuna in the East Atlantic and the Mediterranean, which regulates the catches of this species to ensure its sustainability. It specifies the conditions for recreational fishing resulting in bluefin tuna catches for the year 2026.

Scope for recreational fishers

For recreational fishers and their federations, this decree establishes the precise framework for the 2026 season: each federation has a sub-quota that it must manage, and catches outside of federations are capped at 2.29 tonnes. The fishers concerned must therefore contact their federation to learn about the procedures for declaring and monitoring their catches, in compliance with the allocated quotas.

Official source: Decree of August 4, 2026, amending the decree of March 24, 2026, specifying the conditions for exercising recreational fishing resulting in catches of bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) within the framework of the multiannual management plan for bluefin tuna in the East Atlantic and the Mediterranean for the year 2026, NOR TECM2617647A, published in the Official Journal of the French Republic No. 0207 of September 5, 2026.