Annual Report on Transhipment Reporting

Path 5
Page updated: 27 Aug 2026

Key Messages & Vital Statistics

888
High Seas Events
Total events in 2025. Activity is roughly 60% of the 2019 peak (1,469 events).
56%
Authorised Fleet
Of 3,143 RFV vessels, 56% hold high seas transhipment authorisations.
28%
Active Vessels
28% of vessels authorised to tranship were involved in reported events.

 

Fleet Operations & Historical Trends

Transhipment Fleet Operations

Longline vessels continue to dominate high seas transhipment activity. The composition of the authorised fleet remains relatively consistent year-on-year.

Longliners
83.8%
Carriers
13.0%
Pole and Line
1.4%

Transhipments are now more focussed in the central and eastern Pacific. 495 vessels were involved in reported events (32 receiving vessels and 463 offloading vessels).

Historical Transhipment Events (2016-2025)

Reported high seas transhipment activity peaked in 2019 at 1,469 events. Since then, operations have gradually declined to 888 events.

Species Composition & Catch Volumes

Estimated Proportion of Catch Transhipped

A substantial proportion of key longline catch within the WCPFC Area is transhipped. Chart maps the estimated percentage of the total raised catch transhipped.

Volumes by Species (2025)

Albacore, Bigeye, and Yellowfin tuna make up the bulk of species transhipped on the high seas.

Monitoring, Verification & Compliance Issues

VMS Verification Discrepancies

Analytical tools detect spatial reporting anomalies by comparing transhipment declarations to VMS positions.

Also noted: A monitoring gap exists where FFA VMS data is not transferred to the Commission VMS for operations in the IATTC Convention Area.

Compliance Case File System (CCFS) Records

Outcomes for the 24 compliance cases raised relating to CMM 2009-06 since 2016

The majority concern failures to carry ROP observers or to submit declarations within specified timeframes.

Observer Reporting Coverage Gaps (2024-2025)

Observer reporting is currently insufficient for full independent verification. The chart below maps Transhipment E-Reporting (TSER) Carrier Declarations against matching Pacific Community (SPC) Observer Reports for 2024 and 2025. These figures specifically reflect observer deployments for monitoring high seas longline-to-carrier transhipments.

Further compliance risks involve cross-observer issues where offloading vessel observers act as carrier observers, undermining Regional Observer Programme (ROP) data independence.

Fleet Declarations Trends (Offloading vs Receiving by Flag)

Comparison of notifications across primary flag States (2018–2025). The data tracks self-reported declarations for the primary fleets operating in the WCPFC convention area.

China

Panama - Carriers Only

Korea

Chinese Taipei