Review of fishery sustainability measures – October 2026 round

Update: 22 September 2026

Minister's decisions released

Following consultation, the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries has made decisions on sustainability measures for selected fish stocks as part of the October 2026 sustainability round.

The minister's decision letter provides further details and reasons for each of these decisions.

Minister for Oceans and Fisheries decision letter [PDF, 1.5 MB]

The advice papers for each of the stocks reviewed in the October 2026 sustainability round and submissions received during public consultation will be released in the coming weeks.

Consultation background

Fisheries New Zealand sought feedback on proposed changes to sustainability measures for a range of fish stocks as part of the 2026 October sustainability round. We invited feedback from tangata whenua, stakeholders, and the public on these proposed changes.

About the proposed changes

Fisheries New Zealand reviews catch limits for selected stocks twice a year. This is consistent with the purpose of the Fisheries Act 1996 to allow for sustainable utilisation.

Fisheries New Zealand reviewed:

Catch limits and allowances for:
- East Coast tarakihi (TAR 1E, 2, 3, 7E) – East Coast North and South Island
- West Coast tarakihi (TAR 1W, 7W, 8) – West Coast North and South Island
- Ling (LIN 1) – Northland, Auckland, Waikato, and Bay of Plenty
- Snapper (SNA 2) – East Cape, Hawke’s Bay, and Wellington
- Trevally (TRE 2) – East Cape, Hawke’s Bay, and Wellington
- Stargazer (STA 7) – West Coast and Top of the South Island
- Butterfish (BUT 7) – West Coast and Top of the South Island
- Shortfin eel (SFE 13) – Te Waihora (Lake Ellesmere)
- Pāua (PAU 7) – Marlborough
- Leatherjacket (LEA 3) – East Coast South Island, Southland
- Elephant fish (ELE 3, 5) – East Coast South Island, Southland, and Sub-Antarctic
- Pāua – (PAU 5D) – Southland and Otago
- Blue mackerel (EMA 7) – West coast North Island, west coast South Island
- Ling (LIN 7) – West Coast and Top of the South Island
- Gemfish (SKI 3) – East Coast South Island, Chatham Islands
- Frostfish (FRO 3) – East Coast South Island
- Scampi (SCI 3) – East Coast South Island, western Chatham Rise
- Alfonsino (BYX 3) – East Coast South Island, Chatham Islands
Deemed value rates for:
- East Coast tTarakihi (TAR 1, 2, 3, 7) – East Coast, North and South Island
- West Coast tarakihi (TAR 1, 8, 7) – West Coast North and South Island
- School shark (SCH 3, 5) – East Coast South Island, Southland
- Parore (PAR 1, 9) – East and West Coast upper North Island
- Yellow-eyed mullet (YEM 1, 9) – East and West Coast upper North Island

All of the proposals in this round were assessed:

in the context of the relevant statutory requirements
using the best available information, including the latest scientific information on the status of the stocks and tangata whenua and stakeholder input.

Full details were provided in the consultation documents.

Summary of changes and consultation documents

The arrows in the 'Proposal' column indicate whether the proposed allowance was increasing (an up arrow) or decreasing (a down arrow).

TAC is an abbreviation of 'total allowable catch' and DV is an abbreviation of 'deemed values'.

Species	Stock/area	Proposal	Consultation document
Tarakihi (eastern and western stocks)	TAR 1, TAR 2, TAR 3, TAR 7, TAR 8	TAC ↓ Recreational changes DVs ↑	Review of sustainability measures for tarakihi for 2026/27 [PDF, 2.6 MB] Appendix – Supporting information tarakihi [PDF, 2.3 MB] Review of sustainability measures for Tarakihi for 2026/27 – summary [PDF, 1.6 MB] Submission form - tarakihi [DOCX, 66 KB]
Ling	LIN 1	TAC ↓	Review of sustainability measures for ling (LIN 1) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1000 KB]
Snapper	SNA 2	TAC ↑	Review of sustainability measures for snapper (SNA 2) and trevally (TRE 2) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.5 MB]
Trevally	TRE 2	TAC ↑
Stargazer	STA 7	TAC ↓	Review of sustainability measures for stargazer (STA 7) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.4 MB]
Butterfish	BUT 7	TAC ↓ Recreational changes	Review of sustainability measures for butterfish (BUT 7) for 2026/27 [PDF, 931 KB]
Shortfin eel	SFE 13	TAC ↓	Review of sustainability measures for shortfin eel (SFE 13) for 2027/28 [PDF, 1 MB]
Pāua	PAU 7	TAC ↓	Review of sustainability measures for pāua (PAU 7) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.1 MB]
Leatherjacket	LEA 3	TAC ↑	Review of sustainability measures for leatherjacket (LEA 3) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.1 MB]
Elephantfish	ELE 3, ELE 5	TAC ↓	Review of sustainability measures for elephantfish (ELE 3 & ELE 5) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.4 MB]
Pāua	PAU 5D	TAC ↓	Review of sustainability measures for pāua (PAU 5D) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.2 MB]
Blue mackerel	EMA 7	TAC ↑	Review of sustainability measures for blue mackerel (EMA 7) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1 MB]
Ling	LIN 7	TAC ↓	Review of sustainability measures for ling (LIN 7) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.6 MB]
Gemfish	SKI 3	TAC ↑	Review of sustainability measures for gemfish (SKI 3) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.2 MB]
Frostfish	FRO 3	TAC ↑	Review of sustainability measures for frostfish (FRO 3) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.2 MB]
Scampi	SCI 3	TAC ↑	Review of sustainability measures for scampi (SCI 3) for 2026/27 [PDF, 2.1 MB]
Alfonsino	BYX 3	TAC ↓	Review of sustainability measures for alfonsino (BYX 3) for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.1 MB]
Parore, Yellow-eyed mullet, School shark	PAR 1, PAR 9, YEM 1, YEM 9, SCH 5	DVs ↑	Review of deemed value rates for selected stocks for 2026/27 [PDF, 1.9 MB]
Parore, Yellow-eyed mullet, School shark	SCH 3	DVs ↓

Supporting document

Legal overview [PDF, 397 KB]

Related information

Fisheries Act 1996 – NZ Legislation 

Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Act 2000 – NZ Legislation

About the Quota Management System (QMS)

The Harvest Strategy Standard

Operational Guidelines for New Zealand's Harvest Strategy Standard [PDF, 843 KB]

The Deemed Values Guidelines [PDF, 896 KB]

Glossary of relevant terms

National Fisheries Plan for deepwater and middle-depth fisheries [PDF, 1.4 MB]

Regional plan provisions and policy statements [PDF, 324 KB]

Fisheries Infosite

Fisheries Assessment Plenary

National Inshore Finfish Fisheries Plan

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Official Information Act 1982 – NZ Legislation

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