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Traceability documentation can be completed and submitted only electronically, via the Fisheries Data Information System (FDIS).
Log on to FDIS here.
According to Article 299, pt. 4 and pt. 7 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the Republic of Lithuania, a violation of traceability requirements, applicable to fishery products at the stages of production, storage, transportation, processing, sale and purchase entails a fine from 90 to 290 Eur. In certain cases of administrative offences, the fish or fishery products may be confiscated.
Reference to the legislation is available here.
A traceability document must be issued for each fishery product batch, where the value of the transaction(s) between the same economic entities (the buyer and the seller) exceeds 50 Eur. Information on each batch of fishery products, unloaded in the territory of the Republic of Lithuania, must be entered into the Fisheries Data Information System no later than in 24 hours since the submission of the first-sale fishery product sale certificate. Each batch of the fishery products is also then labelled with a QR code, which contains all the information submitted.
Reference to the legislation is available here.
According to the Council Regulation (EU) No. 1380/2013 of 11 December 2013, the landing obligation applies to species subject to catch limitations, i.e. fish quotas (cod, sprat, Baltic herring, salmon, European plaice).
The landing obligation does not apply in the following cases:
a) species in respect of which fishing is prohibited and which are listed in the EU legislation, adopted in the field of Common Fisheries Policy;
b) species for which scientific evidence demonstrates high survival rates, taking into account the characteristics of the gear, of the fishing practices and of the ecosystem;
c) catches falling under de minimis exemptions.
An exemption, based on survival, is established in the Council Regulation (EU) No. 2018/306 of 18 December 2017. By way of derogation from the Council Regulation (EU) No. 1380/2013, Art. 15, pt. 1, the landing obligation does not include the catches of cod and plaice, caught during net fishing for herring, sprat and cod, crab and lobster traps and (or) traps, entangling nets and trammel nets. The fish, caught under specified conditions, caught with no quota or the size of which is below the minimum conservation reference size, must be released back into the sea.
According to Art. 291, pt.7 of the Code of Administrative Offences, violation of the measures and conditions governing limited fishing for salmon, sea trout, brown trout and smelt entails a fine of between 250 and 550 Eur, possibly including confiscation of tools and equipment. Persons, whose illegal activities have caused damage to fish stocks in marine waters, must compensate for the estimated damage. Damage caused to migratory (anadromous and catadromous) fish species (i.e. applies to both salmon and sea trout) caught in marine waters is calculated according to the Description of the Procedure for Calculating Damage to Fish Resources in Inland Waters, approved by the Minister of Environment of the Republic of Lithuania, which states that the basic price for the damage done to the trout or salmon resources is 970 Eur per specimen.
Sea trout fishing beyond four nautical miles from the base lines in subdivisions 22-32 for fishing vessels is prohibited from 1 January 2022 to 31 December. Longline fishing beyond four nautical miles from the base lines in subdivisions 22-31 is prohibited. According to the Council Regulation (EU) No. 2021/1888 of 27 October 2021, the salmon quota for Lithuania is 989 specimens. Directed salmon fishing is prohibited.
Reference to the legislation is available here.
According to the Council Regulation (EU) No. 2021/1888 of 27 October 2021, Art. 9, pt. 1, as of 1 January 2022, recreational Atlantic salmon fishing in the subdivisions 22-31 (i.e. both the Lithuanian territorial waters and the exclusive economic zone of the Baltic Sea) is forbidden. All Atlantic salmon specimens caught must be immediately released back into the sea.
By way of derogation from Art. 9, pt. 1, recreational salmon fishing is allowed under the following cumulative conditions:
a) no more than one specimen of adipose fin-clipped salmon may be retained per fisherman per day;
b) all specimens of any fish species retained must be landed whole.
Reference to the legislation is available here.
According to the Council Regulation (EU) No. 2019/1838 of 30 October 2019, as of 1 January 2020, commercialised cod fishing is forbidden, except for unavoidable by-catches. Recreational cod fishing in the Lithuania territorial waters and exclusive economic zone of the Baltic Sea is prohibited.
In such case:
- if the sales certificate is related to the catch, caught in the high seas, you should write an e-mail to [email protected] or call +370 700 14 933;
- if the sales certificate is related to the catch, caught in the Baltic Sea or coastal regions, you should write an e-mail to [email protected] or call +370 700 14922 933
and submit an application to cancel the sales certificate (indicate the number of the certificate to be cancelled).
In such case:
- if the sales certificate is related to the catch, caught in the high seas, you should write an e-mail to [email protected] or call +370 700 14 933;
- if the sales certificate is related to the catch, caught in the Baltic Sea or coastal regions, you should write an e-mail to [email protected] or call +370 700 14922 933
Report the problem and provide the missing data that has not been saved, so that the officer could edit your sales certificate.
A natural or legal entity, planning to fill out electronic first-sale fishery product sale certificates, transfer declarations, shipping documents and submit traceability information for fishery products, must fill out an application for access to the FDIS and an application regarding personal data, and submit them to the Fisheries Service under the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania. Application forms and detailed information are available here.
Before starting first-sale fishery product purchase business, natural or legal entities, aiming to engage in this activity, must provide the Fisheries Service with a Notice of the Commencement of Activity with a personal identification document (a copy) in case of natural persons, or a registration certificate of a legal entity (a copy) in case of legal entity. If the original language of the documents is not the state language, the Fisheries Service must be provided with their translation into Lithuanian language, signed by the translator. The documents mentioned above may be submitted remotely, by electronic means via the contact centre or by addressing the Fisheries Service directly. An economic entity can engage in first-sale fisheries product purchase on the following working day since the submission of the Notice of the Commencement of Activity to the Fisheries Service. The Notice of the Commencement of Activity form and detailed information is available here.
In the event of a breakdown or failure of the vCatch electronic fishing logbook, the master of the fishing vessel must provide information on the current day's activities (even if not fishing) to the following contacts of the Fisheries Service:
– masters of the fishing vessels, fishing in the high seas: Fisheries Monitoring and Control Division Phone: +370 700 14935, +370 700 14937, e-mail: [email protected];
– masters of the fishing vessels, fishing in the Baltic Sea: Baltic Sea Fisheries Control Division Phone: +370 700 14949; Mobile phone: +370 614 93659, e-mail: [email protected].
The master of the fishing vessel must immediately report a technical failure or malfunction of satellite communication equipment or electronic fishing logbook system to the following contacts of the Fisheries Monitoring Centre under the Fisheries Service:
Fisheries Monitoring and Control Division Phone: +370 700 14935, +370 700 14937 Mobile phone: +370 684 42408 e-mail: [email protected].
Yes, if the transmitter is a state property, issued to the economic entity under a loan agreement, it must be returned. The transmitter must be returned in accordance with the provisions, established in the loan agreement.
Yes, if the flag state of the vessel, calling to port to unload the fishery products, is not a member of the European Union. The master of the third country vessel (personally or through the agent of the vessel, or another authorised person), calling to Klaipėda State Seaport and intending to unload (tranship) fishery products, must submit a prior notice to the Fisheries Service under the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Lithuania no later than in 3 business days prior the expected arrival to Klaipėda State Seaport. The form of the prior notice, is established in the Regulation (EC) No. 1010/2009, Art. 2, pt. 1, annex A, and it may be submitted to
- the Freight and Goods Information System for goods transported via Klaipėda State Seaport (KIPIS);
- e-mail: [email protected];
- fax: +370 700 14912.