Faroe Islands
Europe · Northern Europe
Recreational spearfishing (underwater hunting) is practised and not prohibited in the Faroe Islands. There is no spearfishing-specific Faroese statute found in public sources; activity falls under the general framework for living marine resources (Act on Management of the Marine Resources, no. 161/2017) and the general rules for recreational/coastal sea fishing. Coastal and shore sea fishing is generally permitted without a permit, but local exceptions may apply. A commercial spearfishing operator (Spearfishing.fo, Tórshavn) operates legally, and the national tourism board promotes diving and spearfishing. Two general rules clearly apply to all recreational fishing: fish under 30 cm may not be kept (catch-and-release), and any fish caught must be consumed within the Faroe Islands (it may not be taken/exported home). No explicit spearfishing licensing, gear or catch-limit regime specific to underwater hunting was located, so confidence is low; divers should confirm local exceptions and protected-area boundaries before diving.
Sidst opdateret Juni 15, 2026
Overordnet lovramme
- §Act on Management of the Marine Resources (Løgtingslóg um at umsita livandi tilfeingi), no. 161/2017, in force 1 January 2018 (parts from 1 January 2020)
- §General recreational/coastal sea-fishing rules as published by Visit Faroe Islands (national tourism board) and the Faroese Fishing Association
- Licens påkrævet
- Ikke påkrævet
- Spydpistol
- Tilladt
- Udlændinge
- Velkommen
Loven, ordret
Lovtekster
De præcise lovbestemmelser og reguleringsforskrifter, der regulerer harpunfiskeri her, citeret som offentliggjort, med et link til hver officiel kilde.
Minimum size and catch-and-release rule for recreational fishing
Recreational fishing rules (Faroe Islands)
it is not permitted to take any kind of fish under 30cm, and in this case, 'catch and release' is to be practised.
Catch must be consumed in the Faroe Islands; equipment disinfection
Recreational saltwater fishing rules (Faroe Islands)
Any fish caught must be consumed in the Faroe Islands. ... All equipment, including rods, reels, rubber waders, or lures, must be disinfected to kill fish pathogens [before arrival]. ... Coastal fishing is generally permitted, but please enquire about local exceptions.
Property of marine resources (governing fisheries reform)
Act on Management of the Marine Resources, no. 161/2017
All living marine resources in Faroese waters and those to which the Faroe Islands have rights are the property of the people of the Faroe Islands; they may never become private property and they may not be traded privately.
Hvornår du kan dykke
Sæsoner og tidsbegrænsninger
Lukkede, åbne og begrænsede perioder over året. Bekræft altid artsspecifikke lukkede perioder lokalt.
Ingen sæsonlukkede perioder registreret — bekræft lokalt inden du dykker.
Tilladelse til at fiske
Licens
Hvad du skal have for at må være i vandet, hvad det koster, og hvordan du får det.
- Type
- No permit required for recreational coastal/shore saltwater fishing (no spearfishing-specific license located). Freshwater angling requires a permit purchased locally.
- Pris
- unknown
- Gyldighed
- unknown
- Sådan får du licensen
- For coastal sea fishing no permit is needed. For specific freshwater lakes leased by the Faroese Fishing Association (Leynavatn, Mjóuvøtn, Saksunarvatn) a fishing licence must be purchased locally; some lakes/rivers are privately owned and require the owner's permission.
- Myndighed
- Faroese Fishing Association (freshwater); Ministry of Fisheries / Vörn (sea fisheries)
Udstyr og teknik
Udstyrskrav
Hvilket udstyr er tilladt, hvordan det må bruges, og hvilke betingelser der er knyttet hertil.
Restriktioner
- All fishing/diving equipment (rods, reels, rubber waders, lures, and by extension wetsuits/gear) must be cleaned and disinfected before arrival in the Faroe Islands to prevent the spread of fish diseases; no veterinary certificate is required.
- No spearfishing-specific equipment rules (e.g. speargun type, scuba-while-spearfishing) were located in public Faroese sources.
Spearfishing with a speargun is practised by local and commercial operators (e.g. Spearfishing.fo, Tórshavn); no statutory prohibition on spearguns was found. Whether scuba-assisted spearfishing is permitted is unknown from available sources.
Hvad du må tage
Fangstbegrænsninger og fredede arter
Daglige kvoter, minimumsstørrelser og arter, der aldrig må fanges.
Dagsgrænse
unknown
General recreational rule: no fish under 30 cm may be kept (catch-and-release below this size). Anglers/divers are encouraged to catch only what they intend to eat. No spearfishing-specific bag or per-species size limits were located. Salmon, sea trout and other anadromous species are managed separately under freshwater/fishing-association rules and conservation measures.
Hvem må fiske
Besøgende og fastboende
Hvordan reglerne adskiller sig for udenlandske besøgende og lokale fastboende.
Udenlandske besøgende
TilladtKrav
- Disinfect all fishing/diving equipment before arrival.
- Consume any catch within the Faroe Islands; catch may not be taken/exported out of the country.
- Obtain a local permit for freshwater angling where required.
Restriktioner
- Fish under 30 cm must be released.
Tourists may take part in recreational sea fishing and spearfishing; the national tourism board markets diving and spearfishing experiences to visitors. No foreigner-specific spearfishing licence was identified.
Fastboende
Same general recreational sea-fishing rules apply; no spearfishing-specific resident licence located.
unknown
Hvor langs kysten
Tilladte og forbudte zoner
Navngivne områder der er åbne for eller lukket for harpunfiskeri. Se det fulde billede på det interaktive kort.
Forbudte områder
- Nólsoy Ramsar Site (seabird reserve, incl. surrounding sea)marine reserve / Ramsar wetland of international importance
Ramsar site no. 2052 (designated 31 May 2012), covering Nólsoy island and its surrounding sea. Internationally important breeding/feeding habitat for European storm-petrel (~50,000 pairs). A marine buffer applies: from 15 April to 31 August boats may not exceed 8 knots within 500 m of land and unnecessary noise / jet-skis are prohibited. Not a spearfishing-specific ban, but a legally delimited bird-protection area with a marine component; divers should treat the 500m breeding-season zone as restricted. Area ~2,197 ha.
- Mykines Ramsar Site (seabird reserve, incl. surrounding sea)marine reserve / Ramsar wetland of international importance
Ramsar site no. 2051 (designated 31 May 2012), ~2,300 ha, comprising Mykines/Mykineshólmur grassy slopes, sea cliffs and the surrounding sea. Breeding/feeding habitat for an estimated 250,000 pairs of seabirds of 15 species (incl. the Faroes' largest Atlantic puffin colony). Marine buffer: 15 April–31 August boats limited to 8 knots within 500 m of land; jet-skis and unnecessary noise prohibited. Bird-protection MPA with a marine component, not an explicit spearfishing ban; the 500m breeding-season zone should be treated as restricted by divers.
- Skúvoy Ramsar Site (seabird reserve, incl. surrounding sea)marine reserve / Ramsar wetland of international importance / Important Bird Area
Ramsar site no. 2053 (designated 31 May 2012), ~1,790 ha, comprising Skúvoy grassy slopes, coastal sea cliffs and surrounding waters; a BirdLife International Important Bird and Biodiversity Area with up to 280,000 pairs of breeding seabirds. Marine buffer: from 15 April to 31 August boats limited to 8 knots within 500 m of land, jet-skis and unnecessary noise prohibited. Legally delimited bird-protection area with a marine component (not a spearfishing-specific ban); the 500m breeding-season zone should be treated as restricted by divers.
Forhold på vandet
Live forhold
Live hav- og vejrøjebliksbillede nær et kystreferencepunkt i Faroe Islands, fra Open-Meteo. Forholdene varierer langs kysten — brug som vejledning.
Live hav og vejr nær Nólsoy Ramsar Site (seabird reserve, incl. surrounding sea).
Hvem du kan spørge
Myndigheder
De officielle organer, der er ansvarlige for fiskeri og licensudstedelse.
Ministry of Fisheries (Fiskimálaráðið)
fisheries ministry
Vörn (Faroese Fisheries Inspection / Fisheries Authority)
fisheries authority
Visit Faroe Islands (national tourism board)
tourism authority
Faroese Fishing Association (freshwater angling permits)
angling association
Hvor dette kommer fra
Kilder
Hvert udsagn på denne side kan spores tilbage til én af disse referencer.
- [01]
Diving in the Faroe Islands - Visit Faroe Islands (national tourism board)
Officielvisitfaroeislands.comTilgået jun 15 - [02]
Saltwater fishing in the Faroe Islands - Visit Faroe Islands
Officielvisitfaroeislands.comTilgået jun 15 - [03]
Freshwater angling in the Faroe Islands - Visit Faroe Islands
Officielvisitfaroeislands.comTilgået jun 15 - [04]
Sports Fishing in Faroe Islands (30 cm minimum size rule; permitted lakes) - Guide to Faroe Islands
Sekundærguidetofaroeislands.foTilgået jun 15 - [05]
Faroe Islands - Fishery Legislation and Administration (Act on Marine Resources, Ministry of Fisheries) - Faroese Seafood
Officielfaroeseseafood.comTilgået jun 15 - [06]
The Faroese Fishery Reform of 2018 (Act on Management of the Marine Resources no. 161/2017) - Faroese Seafood
Officielfaroeseseafood.comTilgået jun 15 - [07]
Oceans, Fisheries and Maritime Affairs - The Government of the Faroe Islands
Officielgovernment.foTilgået jun 15 - [08]
Spearfishing.fo - commercial spearfishing operator (Tórshavn)
communityspearfishing.foTilgået jun 15
Forskernoter
The Faroe Islands is a self-governing nation within the Kingdom of Denmark with its own fisheries legislation, distinct from Denmark and the EU (it is outside the EU). No spearfishing-specific Faroese law, marine-protected-area diving ban, season, or catch-limit document was retrievable from public sources, so data_confidence is set to low. What is firmly established from official/secondary sources: (1) recreational coastal sea fishing is generally allowed without a permit; (2) spearfishing is practised and not prohibited (active commercial operator + tourism-board promotion); (3) no fish under 30 cm may be kept (catch-and-release); (4) any catch must be consumed within the Faroe Islands and may not be exported; (5) all equipment must be disinfected before arrival; (6) freshwater angling requires a local permit (named association lakes: Leynavatn, Mjóuvøtn, Saksunarvatn). The umbrella legal framework is the Act on Management of the Marine Resources (no. 161/2017), administered by the Ministry of Fisheries with enforcement by Vörn. The full verbatim Faroese statutory text was not retrieved; law_texts entries are precise English excerpts from the cited pages, with the marine-resources property clause marked translated=true. Coordinates for protected/prohibited diving zones were not found and are intentionally omitted rather than guessed. Divers should verify local exceptions and any site-specific nature-reserve or seabird-protection restrictions before spearfishing.
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