Alert: The EU CATCH system will enter into force on 10 January

As of 10 January 2026, the CATCH system will be applied to all imports of fishery products into the European Union (EU). CATCH is an EU-wide real-time IT system designed to manage the procedures linked to the EU catch certification scheme under the Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing Regulation. The system is intended to allow the submission, validation, and management of catch certificates and related documents that accompany fishery products imported into the EU. It aims to provide a fully digital workflow to support the exchange of data between trading parties and control authorities and facilitating administrative processes related to catch certification.

Although legal responsibility for compliance will formally rest with importers under this system, in practice, it is expected that freight forwarders and customs intermediaries are likely to handle most import formalities, including the preparation and submission of catch certificates. This reflects concerns that the current design of CATCH may not fully account for their operational role. In addition, the absence of a formal delegation mechanism currently does not permit importers to authorise freight forwarders to complete and submit certificates on their behalf.

As a result, the following operational challenges for freight forwarders are to be expected: 

• Increased workload: Handling large volumes of certificates can be time-consuming, especially for operators processing hundreds of shipments per month. Many authorities are not yet able to issue electronic certificates in CATCH, requiring EU operators to manually enter data from paper certificates.
• Liability and compliance: Freight forwarders are required to perform compliance-critical tasks without holding the corresponding legal authority or formal mandate, which may in turn result in legal uncertainty regarding the liability.
• Impact on supply chains: Additional administrative steps may affect the timing and flow of goods, particularly for perishable seafood products.

Members are encouraged to review internal processes, assess staffing and technical requirements, and ensure that workflows are adapted to meet the new CATCH requirements. This preparation is crucial to maintain operational efficiency and ensure compliance once the system becomes mandatory. FIATA continues to monitor the situation and invites members to send any questions or feedback to [email protected].

For further information, please refer to the European Commission FAQ.