SpearfishingMap

Samoa

Oceania · Polynesia

Recreational and subsistence spearfishing is generally permitted in Samoa (independent Samoa, not American Samoa) and is a long-standing traditional fishing method. No national licence is required for non-commercial fishing from small craft, but spearfishing is subject to several layers of restriction: (1) the Fisheries Management Act 2016 empowers regulations to 'regulate or prohibit' the use of self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA) and of spear guns; (2) it prohibits the use of explosives, poisons and other noxious substances; (3) village Fono can make enforceable fisheries bylaws over their declared village fisheries management areas, commonly creating no-take reserves and banning destructive methods; and (4) fishing of any kind is prohibited inside gazetted marine reserves/MPAs such as Palolo Deep, and within the nine new fully-protected MPAs announced under the 2024 Marine Spatial Plan. Local village bylaws and protected-area boundaries are the decisive constraint in practice, so rules vary significantly by location.

Restricted
Confianza de los datosConfianza media

Última actualización junio 15, 2026

Marco regulador

  • §Fisheries Management Act 2016 (No. 8 of 2016)
  • §Village Fono Act 1990 (referenced for village bylaw penalties)
  • §Marine Spatial Plan 2024 (operational pending the Biological Diversity Management and Conservation Bill 2024)
Licencia obligatoria
No obligatoria
Fusil de pesca
Permitido
Extranjeros
Bienvenidos

La ley, literal

Textos legales

Las disposiciones legales y reglamentarias exactas que regulan la pesca submarina aquí, citadas tal como están publicadas, con un enlace a cada fuente oficial.

01Section 92(1)(m)-(n)Samoa · national

Regulation-making power over SCUBA and spear guns

Fisheries Management Act 2016 (No. 8 of 2016)

ENOriginal

92. Regulations and approved forms-(1) The Head of State, acting on the advice of Cabinet, may make regulations to give effect to the provisions or for the purposes of this Act, and in particular may make the following regulations: ... (m) regulating or prohibiting the use of self-contained underwater breathing apparatus; (n) regulating or prohibiting the use of spear guns or other similar devices;

02Section 23(2) and (4)Samoa · national

Licence exemption for sport, recreational and subsistence fishing

Fisheries Management Act 2016 (No. 8 of 2016)

ENOriginal

23. Samoan fishing vessels in fishery waters-(1) A person must not operate a Samoan fishing vessel in the fishery waters for: (a) fishing; or (b) related activities; or (c) any other activity regulated under this Act, unless the vessel is licensed to do so under this Act. (2) A fishing vessel used solely for sport, pleasure, recreational or subsistence fishing does not require a licence unless any fish to be caught under the sporting activity is intended to be sold. ... (4) This section does not apply to a vessel less than 8 meters in length.

03Section 42(1)Samoa · national

Prohibition on fishing with explosives or poisons

Fisheries Management Act 2016 (No. 8 of 2016)

ENOriginal

42. Fishing with explosives or poisons-(1) A person commits an offence who: (a) permits to be used, uses, or attempts to use an explosive, poison, or other noxious substance for the purpose of killing, stunning, disabling, or catching fish, or in any way rendering fish more easily caught; or (b) permits to be carried, carries or has in the person's possession or control any explosive, poison, or other noxious substance in circumstances evidencing an intention of using the explosive, poison, other noxious substance for any of the purposes referred to in paragraph (a), and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding 1,000 penalty units or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both.

04Section 86(1)Village fisheries management areas · regional

Village Fono power to make fisheries bylaws (no-take reserves, method and size limits)

Fisheries Management Act 2016 (No. 8 of 2016)

ENOriginal

86. Making of fisheries bylaws-(1) A village Fono may make village fishery bylaws, consistent with this Act, for the purpose of conserving, protecting, managing, developing and sustaining harvest of fish in the village fisheries management area, including any or more of the following matters: (a) prohibit harvest of certain type of fish; (b) prohibit fishing methods that are destructive or damaging; (c) provide periodic closure of fishing in certain areas; (d) restrict or limit size of fish to be caught or harvested; (e) restrict mesh size fishing nets; (f) restrict importation or exportation of fish; (g) regulate any activity that would cause adverse effects on marine environment and coastal fisheries; (h) provide any other matter necessary to protect coastal fisheries.

05Section 88(1)Village fisheries management areas · regional

Offence and penalty for breach of village fisheries bylaws

Fisheries Management Act 2016 (No. 8 of 2016)

ENOriginal

88. Breach of bylaws-(1) A person who breaches a village fisheries by-law commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding 1,000 penalty units or to 12 months imprisonment, or both.

06Section 92(1)(x)-(y)Samoa · national

Protection measures power for trochus, turtles, clams, lobsters; lagoon fishing controls

Fisheries Management Act 2016 (No. 8 of 2016)

ENOriginal

(x) prescribing measures for the protection of trochus, pearl and pearl-shell, turtles, green snails, clams and lobsters; (y) regulating or prohibiting fishing of all kinds within a lagoon or a part of any lagoon, the time or times of year during which the fishing may occur or is prohibited, and approving, restricting or prohibiting the equipment or methods which may be used in connection with fishing;

Cuándo puedes bucear

Temporadas y restricciones horarias

Periodos de veda, de apertura y restringidos a lo largo del año. Confirma siempre localmente las vedas específicas de cada especie.

  • VedaVillage fisheries management areas with periodic closuresunknown – unknown

    Under section 86(1)(c) of the Fisheries Management Act 2016, village Fono may make bylaws providing for periodic closure of fishing in certain areas. Specific closure dates are set locally per village and are not published in a single national register.

Permiso para pescar

Licencia

Qué necesitas para poder estar en el agua, cuánto cuesta y cómo conseguirlo.

No se requiere licenciaa través de Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (Fisheries Division)
No se requiere licencia
Tipo
No licence for recreational/subsistence fishing; licence required only if catch is sold or for vessels engaged in commercial fishing
Coste
unknown
Validez
Commercial fishing vessel licences valid up to 12 months (s31)
Cómo obtenerla
Commercial licences issued by the Minister on advice of the Chief Executive Officer; recreational/subsistence spearfishing requires no permit but is subject to village bylaws and protected-area rules.
Autoridad
Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (Fisheries Division)

Equipo y técnica

Normas de equipo

Qué equipo está permitido, cómo puede usarse y las condiciones asociadas.

Fusil de pescaPermitido

Restricciones

  • Spear guns and SCUBA are not banned nationally, but the Fisheries Management Act 2016 s92(1)(m)-(n) empowers Cabinet to make regulations regulating or prohibiting SCUBA and spear guns.
  • Explosives, poisons and other noxious substances are prohibited for taking fish (s42).
  • Village fisheries bylaws may prohibit destructive or damaging fishing methods in village fisheries management areas (s86(1)(b)).
  • SCUBA-assisted spearfishing is strongly discouraged regionally due to overfishing impacts; check local village rules before diving.

There is no published national regulation under s92(1)(m)-(n) confirmed in this research that imposes a blanket SCUBA-spearfishing or speargun ban in independent Samoa (unlike American Samoa, a separate US territory, which bans SCUBA spearfishing). The practical constraint is local village bylaws and reserve boundaries.

Lo que puedes capturar

Límites de captura y especies protegidas

Cuotas diarias, tallas mínimas y especies que nunca deben capturarse.

Límite diario

unknown

Especies protegidas — no capturar

  • ProtegidaSea turtles (including hawksbill, Eretmochelys imbricata)
  • ProtegidaSpinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris)
  • ProtegidaBlue sharks (Prionace glauca)
  • ProtegidaHumpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)
  • ProtegidaTrochus, pearl/pearl-shell, green snails, clams and lobsters subject to protective regulations under s92(1)(x)

Marine mammals and sea turtles are protected; the 2024 MPAs additionally protect hawksbill turtles, dolphins, sharks and whales. Specific recreational daily bag limits and minimum sizes for spearfishing are set locally by village bylaws (s86(1)(a),(d)) rather than by a single national table, so they vary by village fisheries management area.

Quién puede pescar

Visitantes y residentes

Cómo difieren las normas para los visitantes extranjeros y los residentes locales.

Visitantes extranjeros

Permitido

Requisitos

  • Respect village fisheries management area bylaws and obtain village permission where fishing grounds are customarily owned.
  • Do not fish or spearfish inside gazetted marine reserves (e.g. Palolo Deep) or the fully-protected MPAs.

Restricciones

  • No selling of catch without a licence (s23(2)).
  • Same prohibitions apply as to residents: no explosives/poisons, no fishing in no-take reserves.

No nationality-specific spearfishing permit was identified. Tourists typically free-dive spearfish on the reef; courtesy and permission from the local village are expected because inshore fishing grounds are customarily managed by villages.

Residentes

No licence required for subsistence/recreational fishing (s23(2))

Requisitos

  • Comply with the bylaws of the village fisheries management area where fishing.
  • Do not use explosives, poisons or other noxious substances (s42).

Ventajas

  • Customary and subsistence fishing rights are recognised; village Fono manage local fishing grounds and reserves under the Fisheries Management Act 2016 and Village Fono Act 1990.

Spearfishing (free-diving) is a traditional subsistence method widely practised by Samoan villagers.

Dónde en la costa

Zonas permitidas y prohibidas

Áreas concretas abiertas o cerradas a la pesca submarina. Consulta el panorama completo en el mapa interactivo.

Áreas permitidas

  • Recreational and subsistence spearfishing is broadly permitted in Samoa's coastal waters where no village bylaw closure, designated fishery management measure, or gazetted marine reserve applies. A licence is not required for non-commercial fishing (s23(2)), and there is no national ban on free-diving spearfishing or spear guns (the Act only empowers, but has not enacted, such a ban under s92(1)(m)-(n)).

    No explosives or poisons (s42). Local village bylaws may impose method, species, size and seasonal restrictions. Catch may not be sold without a licence.

Áreas prohibidas

  • Gazetted marine reserve and protected biodiversity area approximately five minutes' walk east of central Apia at Vaiala Beach. Managed as a snorkelling/diving conservation reserve with an entry fee; fishing and spearfishing are not permitted within the reserve.

  • Aleipata Marine Protected Areamarine protected area (community co-managed, multiple no-take reserves)

    Large community co-managed MPA on the eastern end of Upolu containing multiple village no-take fish reserves established under the village fisheries management and bylaw framework. Destructive fishing methods are banned and no-take zones prohibit fishing.

  • Safata Marine Protected Areamarine protected area (community co-managed, no-take reserves)

    Large community co-managed MPA on the southern coast of Upolu, part of Samoa's network of locally managed marine areas with village-declared no-take fish reserves where fishing is prohibited.

  • Nine fully-protected MPAs under the 2024 Marine Spatial Planfully-protected marine protected area network (offshore/EEZ)

    Samoa's Marine Spatial Plan, released 24 October 2024, establishes nine new fully-protected Marine Protected Areas covering about 36,000 sq km (around 30% of the EEZ). Per reporting on the plan, 'Fishing, mining and drilling are outlawed' in these MPAs, which protect species including critically endangered hawksbill turtles, spinner dolphins, blue sharks and humpback whale migration routes. The plan becomes legally operational pending passage of the Biological Diversity Management and Conservation Bill 2024.

Condiciones en el agua

Condiciones en vivo

Instantánea en vivo del mar y el tiempo cerca de un punto de referencia costero en Samoa, de Open-Meteo. Las condiciones varían a lo largo de la costa; tómalo como orientativo.

Estado del mar y el tiempo en vivo cerca de Palolo Deep Marine Reserve.

Condiciones

A quién preguntar

Autoridades

Los organismos oficiales responsables de la pesca y las licencias.

  • Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (Fisheries Division)

    fisheries authority

    maf.gov.wsApia, Samoa
  • Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE)

    environment ministry

    mnre.gov.wsApia, Samoa

De dónde proviene

Fuentes

Cada afirmación de esta página se remonta a una de estas referencias.

  1. [01]

    Fisheries Management Act 2016 (No. 8 of 2016) - full text (official, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries)

    Oficial
    maf.gov.wsConsultado Jun 15
  2. [02]

    Fisheries Management Act 2016 (No. 8 of 2016) - ECOLEX legislation record

    Oficial
    ecolex.orgConsultado Jun 15
  3. [03]

    Fisheries - Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (Samoa)

    Oficial
    maf.gov.wsConsultado Jun 15
  4. [04]

    Palolo Deep Marine Reserve - Samoa Tourism Authority

    Oficial
    samoa.travelConsultado Jun 15
  5. [05]

    Safata MPA, Samoa - Pacific Islands Protected Area Portal (SPREP/PIPAP)

    Oficial
    pipap.sprep.orgConsultado Jun 15
  6. [06]

    Aleipata Marine Protected Area Management Plan 2008-2012 (BIOPAMA RRIS)

    Oficial
    rris.biopama.orgConsultado Jun 15
  7. [07]

    Samoa releases plan to fully protect 30% and sustainably manage 100% of ocean by 2030 - Conservation International

    Secundaria
    conservation.orgConsultado Jun 15
  8. [08]

    Samoa's new marine spatial plan protects 30% of the country's ocean - Mongabay

    Secundaria
    news.mongabay.comConsultado Jun 15

Notas del investigador

Scope: this record covers the independent state of Samoa (ISO WSM), NOT American Samoa (ASM), which is a separate US territory with its own SCUBA-spearfishing ban under Executive Order. Verbatim law texts are taken from the official Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries PDF of the Fisheries Management Act 2016, extracted with pdftotext and verified against the section structure. Key finding: spearfishing is legal and traditional in Samoa, with no confirmed national speargun or SCUBA ban; instead s92(1)(m)-(n) of the 2016 Act gives Cabinet the POWER to regulate or prohibit SCUBA and spear guns, and the binding day-to-day restrictions come from (a) village Fono fisheries bylaws over declared village fisheries management areas, and (b) no-fishing marine reserves/MPAs (Palolo Deep, Aleipata, Safata, plus nine new 2024 Marine Spatial Plan MPAs). Confidence is medium rather than high because: precise locally-set bag/size limits and closed-season dates are not centrally published; coordinates for Palolo Deep, Aleipata and Safata are approximate locality centroids, not surveyed reserve boundaries; and the 2024 Marine Spatial Plan's MPA boundaries are pending the Biological Diversity Management and Conservation Bill 2024. PacLII and several PDFs returned HTTP 403 to the fetch tool; the Act text was obtained from the official MAF PDF instead.

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