Council Comment Letters on Exempted Fishing Permits (EFPs) - Library

An Exempted Fishing Permit (EFP) is a permit issued by the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO, Regional Office) that authorizes a fishing vessel to conduct fishing activities that would otherwise be prohibited under the regulations.

Generally, EFPs are issued for activities in support of fisheries-related research, including:

Landing undersized fish or fish in excess of a possession limit for research purposes;
Seafood product development and/or market research;
Compensation fishing; and
The collection of fish for public display.

The GARFO Regional Administrator reviews each application and makes a preliminary determination on whether the application contains all of the required information and constitutes an activity appropriate for further consideration. If the Regional Administrator determines that an application warrants further consideration, notification of receipt of the application is published in the Federal Register with a brief description of the proposal and an associated 15- to 45-day comment period.

A complete description of the EFP application process and related information is posted on the NOAA Fisheries website at Scientific Research and Exempted Fishing Permits.

The New England Fishery Management Council often submits written comments on EFP applications. Here are the Council’s comment letters from 2020 to the present.

2024 EFP Comment Letters

2023 EFP Comment Letters

2022 EFP Comment Letters

2021 EFP Comment Letters

2020 EFP Comment Letters