Protection of fish species
Some fish species are so rare that they are protected year-round. Other species are protected only during the spawning season. You will encounter protection in various ways in legislation and regulations.
European and international rules
International treaties and EU rules protect fish. Those rules are implemented in national law. Below you will find the main instruments briefly explained.
Habitats Directive
The Habitats Directive applies in all EU member states. The directive protects species and their habitats. The Netherlands implemented this directive in the Nature Conservation Act (Wet natuurbescherming).
European eel regulation
The European eel regulation governs recovery measures for eel (anguilla). Member states draw up eel management plans. These plans must ensure that a sufficient number of adult eel can migrate back to the sea. The regulation also sets percentage and effort targets to reduce eel catches.
Rhine Convention, Meuse Convention and Benelux decision on free fish migration
These treaties promote fish migration. The Netherlands makes migration barriers, such as weirs and locks, passable for fish.
National protection
The Nature Conservation Act (Wet natuurbescherming) has protected fish in the Netherlands since 1 January 2017. This act replaced earlier nature laws. It regulates species protection and area protection.
Area protection (Natura 2000)
The minister designates special protection zones (Natura 2000). These zones protect species listed in Annex II of the Habitats Directive. The following species are subject to designation requirements:
- beekprik
- bittervoorn
- elft
- fint
- grote modderkruiper
- houting
- kleine modderkruiper
- rivierdonderpad
- rivierprik
- Atlantische steur
- zalm
- zeeprik
The province sets conservation objectives and a management plan for a Natura 2000 area. Once an area is designated, activities or projects may not adversely affect the area.
Species protection
The Nature Conservation Act also protects species independently of areas. The rules mainly derive from the Habitats Directive.
- Article 3.5 provides strict protection for the Atlantische steur and the houting. You may not intentionally capture, kill, or disturb these fish in their natural habitat. You may not damage their resting or breeding sites.
- Article 3.7 allows for additional rules for species in Annex V of the Habitats Directive. For the elft, fint, and zalm there are year-round closed seasons. For the rivierprik there is a closed season from 1 March to 30 April and from 1 November to 31 January.
- Article 3.10 prohibits the intentional capture or killing of the following species, and the intentional disturbance or destruction of their fixed breeding or resting places:
Article 1.11 imposes a general duty of care. If you know or can reasonably suspect that your actions will cause adverse effects, you must stop or limit those actions. This duty of care does not apply if you act under the Fisheries Act 1963 (Visserijwet 1963). If you have the right to fish somewhere, you may kill a fish for consumption under that act.
Immediate release
When you catch protected species, you must immediately return them alive to the same water. This applies to both commercial and recreational fishers. The Nature Conservation Act applies across the entire Dutch territory. At sea the law applies up to 12 nautical miles from the low-water line.
Eel (paling) is also covered by the Nature Conservation Act. The Nature Conservation Regulation (Regeling Natuurbescherming, article 3.20) provides an exemption if you can demonstrate that an eel:
- was caught in accordance with the Fisheries Act 1963, or
- was legally imported or obtained.
For recreational fishers this exemption rarely applies. Written permissions usually require immediate release. Holders of a (Youth)VISpas or Kleine VISpas must always return caught eel immediately. Temporary retention is not allowed.
Minimum sizes
The minister sets minimum sizes under the Fisheries Act 1963 and the Internal Fisheries Regulation (Reglement voor de binnenvisserij). If you catch an undersized fish of one of these species, you must return it immediately. Temporary retention is not allowed, unless you have a permit for fisheries research.
Current minimum sizes (Fisheries Implementation Regulation, art. 5b):
- Aal/Paling (eel): 28 cm
- Baars (perch): 22 cm*
- Barbeel (barbel): 30 cm
- Bot (flounder): 20 cm
- Beekforel (brook trout): 25 cm
- Kopvoorn (chub): 30 cm
- Rivierprik (river lamprey): 20 cm
- Snoek (pike): 45 cm
- Snoekbaars (zander): 42 cm
- Zeelt (tench): 25 cm
*For perch, except on the IJsselmeer, two exceptions apply when fishing with a rod:
- You may have unlimited undersized perch in your possession if you keep them alive in a keepnet or bucket and return them alive to the same water.
- You may transport a maximum of 20 dead undersized perch if it is reasonably likely that you use them as bait fish. According to the Joint List of Dutch Fishing Waters, of those 20 perch a maximum of 10 specimens may be larger than 15 cm.
Note: a rightsholder for fishing may set higher minimum sizes or take-away limits in their written permission.
There is also a filleting ban for species subject to a minimum size rule. Filleting makes it difficult or impossible to determine the size. Storing or transporting filleted fish is covered by this ban.
Closed seasons, bait types and gear
-> Read more here about closed seasons, bait types and permitted gear.
Ban on using live bait fish
The Decree on Keepers of Animals (Besluit houders van dieren) prohibits the use of live fish as bait in inland and coastal fishing. This ban also applies to other vertebrate animals. Worms and maggots are allowed as bait. Certain crustaceans and shellfish (such as North Sea shrimp and shore crab) are also considered "fish" under the rules. Which animals these are exactly is listed in Annex 1 of the Fisheries Implementation Regulation.
The decree does not prohibit possession of live fish. If you keep live fish, respect minimum sizes and closed seasons. Ensure fish have sufficient space and oxygen. Otherwise you may commit animal cruelty (art. 2.1 Animal Act).
Pay attention to the rules for catching and returning protected species. Always follow them strictly.