26. The system of individual catch certificates will be particularly onerous for fish caught by small scale artisanal fisheries, often located in developing countries. As a result a simplified catch certificate has been made available for exports from certain third country fishing vessels.
27. The details of the simplified certificate, including the criteria under which it can be used by exporters are included at Article 6 the Commission Regulation (1010/2009).
28. The simplified catch certificate can be used for vessels meeting any one of the following criteria:
- overall length of less than 12m without towed gear, or
- overall length of less than 8m with towed gear, or
- without a superstructure, or
- of less than measured 20 GT
29. In all cases, catches must only be landed in the flag state and make up one consignment.
30. Rather than complete a catch certificate for each vessel, exporters will be able to list all the vessels which caught the fish for a consignment, and include the quantities by provided by each vessel.
31. The simplified catch certificate can be found at Annex IV the Commission Regulation (1010/2009).
Other Catch Certificate Schemes
32. As well as the standard, country specific and simplified IUU catch certificates, the European Commission has approved the catch certificate schemes of three Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs) as complying with the requirements of the regulation. These documents may be accepted as an alternative to the standard IUU catch certificates for the species concerned. The eligible schemes are set out at Annex V of the Commission Regulation (1010/2009), and currently include:
- CCAMLR Toothfish scheme
- ICCAT Bluefin tuna Catch Documentation Programme
- CCSBT (Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna) catch document scheme: but must also include the transport details, as specified in Appendix I of the IUU catch certificate.
Fish caught before 1 January 2010
33. The regulation applies only to catches made from 1 January 2010. Therefore fish caught prior to 2010, but imported after 1 January will not require catch certificates. However, where appropriate, UK authorities may ask importers to provide documentary evidence to prove that the catch was made prior to 1 January 2010. There is no set format for the information that can be supplied - it could include:
- the date of shipping
- the date of freezing
- periods of quarantine or storage
- information on production dates
34. In addition, a letter from the processing plant on headed paper which states the catching date of the raw material, the date of processing, and the description of the product, and signed by the person responsible would also be acceptable.
35. NOTE: It is not a requirement to submit such a letter. However, importers may wish to do so to facilitate the checking process. The letter does not need to be endorsed by the relevant authorities in a third country. UK authorities may also request additional evidence (as specified above) where appropriate.
An example template of this letter is set out at Annex 3.
36. If breaches and false declarations under the IUU Regulation are detected, it will be the importer who is held responsible.