How Our Commercial Fishing Sites Helps Commercial Fishing Pros

The fishing industry plays an important role in the world economy in general and the United States in particular. As with every other industry that brings money to the country, the government makes sure to regulate and ensure a healthy level of competition and a safe environment for commercial fishermen. Occasional pieces of paperwork will, however, warrant your attention. You will probably need the corresponding commercial fishing permits for the species you are willing to catch and the space in which you intend to catch them. If you fish on federal waters (from 3 nautical miles past the shore up to 200 nautical miles) you will need to comply with the United States Coast Guard (USCG) documentation as well.

Keeping these two types of licenses current will prove essential to your daily operations. If you want to avoid costly fines, valid registration and the proper fishing licenses will be required to be on board at all times. Stay with us in this article that will tell you how our site, the Commercial Fishing Permits Center (CFPC) helps you to stay up to date with the documentation.

An Introduction to USCG Documentation

Every commercial vessel with a net weight over five tons needs to be registered with the US Coast Guard if they engage in commercial activity in a designated Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). This area normally includes the 200 nautical miles we mentioned before, so if you plan to engage with commercial fishing, you will probably need it.

You can get your Certificate of Documentation (also called CoD, or initial if it is the first time you get it) by completing the form CG-1258. This form, along with the proof of ownership document, will facilitate your CoD, which will be valid for 1 year. Note that recreational vessels have the option of extending it for up to 5 years. 8 weeks before your CoD’s expiration date the US Coast Guard will send you a notice and ask you if you want to renew the documentation.

Furthermore, there are other types of Coast Guard Documents you may need, like a change of address or a replacement of a mutilated CoD. Either way, the Commercial Fishing Permit Center can help you with any of them.

Federal and State Commercial Fishing Permits

As we previously said, on top of your USCG documentation there are specific commercial fishing permits you will need. The fishing permits are regulated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on one hand and by each state’s Department of Natural Resources on the other.

At a federal level, the permits are divided into five regions: The Atlantic, The Pacific, Alaska, and the South and West Coasts. Within those regions, there are many different individual permits and endorsements. All of them can be found at the Commercial Fishing Permits Center. If you want to switch between federal and state permits, you only need to press the correspondent button at the top of our site.

The Commercial Fishing Permits Center can Help you Out

As we have been saying, our site helps fishermen to get their permits. You only need to complete the form, which can be done fully online from the comfort of your house, instead of having to download the documentation and send it via postal mail. Furthermore, having an extra pair of eyes overlooking your licenses will also help in reducing the risk of failure: nobody likes to have to pay costly fines.

If you want to get started now, just fill out our forms or get in touch with us by any of the means stated on our website and we will take care of the rest!