NOAA Fisheries Southeast For-Hire Electronic Reporting Account Set-Up and Reporting : For Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic/Atlantic Federal Charter and Headboat Permits

This NOAA Fisheries Bulletin is provided as a courtesy:

Key Message:

This is a reminder: fishermen with Federal Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic/Atlantic For-Hire charter/headboat permits are required to comply with the Southeast For-Hire Electronic Reporting program.  Fishermen with these permits are required to create an account and begin reporting electronically through one of the approved reporting applications.

More Information:

Fishermen with Gulf of Mexico reef fish or Gulf of Mexico coastal migratory pelagic Federal charter/headboat permits are required to:

• Submit an electronic declaration each time the vessel leaves the dock
• Report logbooks electronically at the end of each trip before offloading any catch

Gulf of Mexico Federal charter/headboat holders will be required to have an active position reporting unit always transmitting the vessel’s location. The effective date for this will be announced in the future, with an anticipated start date for the end of 2021.

Fishermen with South Atlantic snapper-grouper, Atlantic coastal migratory pelagic, or Atlantic dolphin wahoo Federal charter/headboat permits are required to submit an electronic fishing report weekly (on Tuesday) following a fishing week.  For those weeks with no fishing activity, South Atlantic/Atlantic Federal charter/headboat permit holders are required to submit no fishing reports.

Accurate and timely reporting of logbooks is a requirement for maintaining and renewing your Federal charter vessel/headboat permits.

Please refer to the toolkit mailed in early December 2020 for information on the program and how to set up your account. You may also find information on the program requirements, electronic copies of the toolkit, and account set up on our website:  https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/southeast/recreational-fishing-data/southeast-hire-electronic-reporting-program

If you have any questions or if you have not received a toolkit, please contact the Southeast Electronic Reporting Customer Service line at (833)707-1632 or send an email to [email protected].