UK secures fisheries agreements with Norway and Faroe Islands
UK secures bilateral fisheries agreements for 2026
The UK government has finalised bilateral fisheries agreements with Norway and the Faroe Islands for 2026. Together the deals are worth about £8 million in historic UK landing prices and preserve access and quota continuity for UK vessels into next year.
Key provisions
The agreements maintain the same tonnage for Arctic stocks in Norwegian waters and for valuable stocks in Faroese waters as in 2025. They transfer more than 1,000 tonnes of Arctic stock quota and over 2,000 tonnes of quota in Faroese waters to the UK, and also include additional North Sea herring quota.
UK-Norway arrangements
The Norway deal, valued at roughly £3 million on historic landing prices, secures continuity of access for UK boats to whitefish stocks in Norwegian waters—up to 30,000 tonnes—and establishes a longer-term arrangement for Atlanto-Scandian herring of up to 20,000 tonnes in each party's waters.
UK–Faroe Islands arrangements
Negotiations with the Faroe Islands yielded over 2,000 tonnes of quota across key species, worth about £5 million by historic prices. The Faroese agreement preserves access to haddock, cod, saithe, blue ling, ling, redfish, flatfish and other species, mirroring 2025 arrangements to support fleet stability amid mixed scientific advice for some North Sea stocks.
Next steps and transparency
The agreements reinforce the UK commitment to sustainable fisheries management and co-operation on monitoring, control and surveillance. Agreed Records for both bilateral deals are published on GOV.UK and the Secretary of State will publish the 2026 fishing opportunities for UK boats in due course.