Commission seeks feedback on potential simplification of the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund

The European Commission is seeking feedback in view of a possible targeted amendment of the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF). The objective is to make the fund simpler, more flexible and easier to implement while implementing also in EU law the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies. The call for evidence is open for a four-week period on the Commission's Have Your Say portal.

The Commission asks EU countries, the fishing and aquaculture sector, the wider value chain, civil society, academia and citizens to share evidence on where the fund's rules are holding back investment and how they could be streamlined for the rest of the programming period. The deadline to submit feedback is 21 July.

The EMFAF is the EU's main financial instrument for fisheries and aquaculture, supporting the common fisheries policy (CFP), the EU's maritime policy and its international commitments on ocean governance.

The EMFAF mid-term evaluation, together with feedback from Member States and Advisory Councils, outlines that halfway through the 2021–2027 period some rules are difficult to apply, and certain funding opportunities are perceived as too rigid to unlock the investments the sector needs.

Through this consultation, the Commission is seeking evidence and practical suggestions on how to reduce administrative burden and improve the uptake of EMFAF funding while remaining consistent with the CFP and its objectives.

The second strand of this call for evidence concerns trade rules, in order to complete the transposition into EU law of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies. The WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies entered into force on 15 September 2025. It is the first binding global framework to curb subsidies that drive overfishing, prohibiting public support for illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, for fishing of overfished stocks, and for fishing on the unregulated high seas.

The EU ratified it in June 2023 and completing its implementation requires aligning the EU legal framework via the EMFAF Regulation so that EU funding cannot contribute to any prohibited activity.

Have your say

The call for evidence runs for four weeks and is available in all 24 official EU languages, with replies accepted in any of them. The deadline to submit feedback is 21 July.

Contributions are welcome from national, regional and local authorities; actors across the value chain (fisheries, aquaculture, processors, importers, retailers, ports, infrastructure and shipbuilding); civil society organisations, including businesses, NGOs and trade unions; academia and research institutions; and citizens.

(PM European Commission)

Further information: oceans-and-fisheries.ec.europa.eu