Marine Park Permit

Fisheries Management in Marine Parks and Marine Reserve

No person shall fish by any means in a marine reserve.

For the marine parks, only holder of a valid marine park fishing permit granted in accordance with the Marine Parks and Marine Reserves Regulation (Cap. 476A) (the Regulation) may fish in marine parks. Pursuant to the power granted under the Regulation, the Director of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation may grant a marine park fishing permit to a bona fide fisherman¹ or a person who ordinarily resides near the marine park² . The permit allows the holder to conduct fishing activities in the specified marine park.

Please note that the Marine Parks and Marine Reserves (Amendment) Regulation 2019 came into effect on April 1, 2020 for implementation of the new fisheries management strategy in marine parks (the new strategy). Under the new strategy, commercial fishing by local fishing vessels registered under the Fisheries Protection Ordinance (Cap. 171) is allowed to continue in The Brothers Marine Park, Southwest Lantau Marine Park, South Lantau Marine Park and new marine parks to be designated in the western waters through the marine park fishing permit system. To protect coral communities as well as to enhance the overall fisheries resources in Hong Kong, commercial fishing has been banned in four specified marine parks, namely the Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park (HHWMP), Yan Chau Tong Marine Park (YCTMP) and Tung Ping Chau Marine Park (TPCMP) in the eastern waters and the Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine Park (SCLKCMP) in the western waters.

<sub>Remarks:
1. Bona fide fisherman generally refers to a person who involves in the fisheries industry and owns a local fishing vessel registered under the Fisheries Protection Ordinance (Cap. 171).
2. Person who ordinarily resides near the marine park generally refers to a person whose residence is in close proximity to the marine park, and who resided near the marine park prior to the designation of the subject marine park, and is currently residing near the marine park.</sub>

 

 

Commercial Fishing Ban in Four Specified Marine Parks
A transitional period of two years was provided under the commercial fishing ban on the four specified marine parks for fishermen to adapt. The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) no longer grants new fishing permits for the HHWMP, YCTMP, TPCMP and SCLKCMP since April 1, 2020. No fishing permits were renewed with validity periods beyond the transitional period, i.e. by March 31, 2022. The abovementioned commercial fishing ban is not be applicable to fishing permits granted to local residents.

Arrangement for ex-gratia allowance to fishermen affected by new fisheries management strategy in marine parks has been completed.

 

Marine Parks Fishing Permit

Marine parks fishing permit for fishermen in The Brothers Marine Park, Southwest Lantau Marine Park and South Lantau Marine Park is now open for application. There is no deadline for the application, and fishermen can apply according to the operation situation of their fishing vessels.

	Application Criteria Applicant MUST meet the following criteria: 1. Hong Kong resident aged 18 or above and involved in the fisheries industry; and 2. Owner of a fishing vessel, the fishing vessel must obtain: valid certificate of registration of local fishing vessel issued by the Director of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation under the Fisheries Protection  Ordinance (Cap. 171);    and valid certificate of ownership and operating licence of Class III vessel issued by the Director of Marine under the Merchant Shipping (Local Vessels) (Certification and Licensing) Regulation (Cap. 548D), and comply with the relevant requirements of the Marine Department on vessel navigation.
	Application Procedure 1. Please complete the application form and deliver it, together with the supporting documents required, to the Planning and Development Section, Marine Parks Division, Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Deparment by mail, email or fax; may also choose to make appointment booking by telephone (reservation hotline: 3468 3446 / 3468 3472) and visit the Office of the Marine Parks Division of the AFCD in person at the appointment time for delivery. (Address: Unit 2209, 22/F, CDW Building, 388 Castle Peak Road, Tsuen Wan, N.T.; Email: marineparks_permit@afcd.gov.hk; Fax No.:3468 3015) New Application of Marine Parks Fishing Permit for Fishermen  Applicant should read the following guideline before submitting the application(Chinese verion only):    Microsoft Word Form Fillable PDF Form e-Form Marine parks fishing permit for fishermen – Application Form  (Chinese version only) (32KB) (377KB) Marine parks fishing permit for fishermen – Supplementary information for Application Form  (Chinese version only) (30KB) (236KB)     Exchange of Marine Parks Fishing Permit for Fishermen (for existing permit holers only)   Microsoft Word Form Fillable PDF Form e-Form Exchange of marine parks fishing permit for fishermen - Application Form (Chinese version only) (36KB) (366KB) Legend of file format: Adobe Acrobat Word e-Form Download Acrobat Reader to open the PDF document: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html
	2.  For enquiries, please contact the Marine Parks Division of the AFCD during office hours (Tel: 3468 3446 / 3468 3472).   Collection of Permit Applicant may choose to collect his/her fishing permit by registered mail or in person at the Office of Marine Parks Division. Applicant may choose to collect an electronic copy of the fishing permit by email in addition to the original fishing permit. The applicant should provide a valid personal email address. The electronic copy of the fishing permit will be issued to applicant by email after verification of the email address.