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The tables below summarise catch limits established by the IOTC for the principal tropical tuna species in the IOTC Area of Competence. These limits are adopted by the Commission through binding management measures and are allocated to CPCs in accordance with the relevant IOTC Resolutions.
For yellowfin tuna and bigeye tuna, the limits presented here are derived from the provisions of IOTC Resolution 19/01 and IOTC Resolution 21/01 for yellowfin tuna, and IOTC Resolution 23/04 and IOTC Resolution 25/04 for bigeye tuna. These measures establish total allowable catch levels and/or reduction requirements and define the catch limits applicable to CPCs for the relevant management periods.
Catch limits for skipjack tuna are established under IOTC Resolution 25/03 and will be presented once the revised calculation methodology adopted by the Commission has been reflected in the official tables.
Catch data used to derive the limits correspond to the IOTC best scientific estimates of catches, derived from the data review procedure proposed by the Working Party on Data Collection and Statistics (see Appendix V of IOTC–2014-WPDCS10-R) and endorsed by the Scientific Committee (IOTC-2014-SC17-R).
Table 1. Catch limits (metric tonnes; t) applicable in 2025 and 2026 for CPCs subject to IOTC Resolution 23/04 and IOTC Resolution 25/04 for Indian Ocean bigeye tuna (IOTC Circular 2025-44)
| Fleet code | Fleet | Catch limit 2025 | Catch limit 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| CHN | China | 3,785 | 4,353 |
| EUR | European Union | 17,010 | 19,562 |
| IDN | Indonesia | 18,605 | 21,396 |
| IRN | I.R. Iran | 2,105 | 2,421 |
| JPN | Japan | 3,684 | 4,237 |
| LKA | Sri Lanka | 4,772 | 5,488 |
| SYC | Seychelles | 11,882 | 13,664 |
| TWN | Taiwan,China | 11,488 | 13,211 |
Table 2. Catch limits (metric tonnes, t) applicable in 2025 (calculated) and 2026 (estimated) for CPCs subject to IOTC Resolution 21/01 for Indian Ocean yellowfin tuna. The limits for 2026 are estimated on the assumption that catches in 2025, which are not yet available, will not exceed the applicable limit for that year (IOTC Circular 2025-44)
| CPC code | CPC | Base annual catch limit | Catch limit 2025 | Catch limit 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUS | Australia | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| BGD | Bangladesh | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| CHN | China | 10,557 | −2,423 | 3,083 |
| COM | Comoros | 5,279 | 5,279 | 5,279 |
| EUR | European Union | 73,078 | 73,078 | 73,078 |
| FRAT | France OT | 500 | 500 | 500 |
| GBR | United Kingdom | 500 | 500 | 500 |
| IDN | Indonesia | 45,426 | 45,426 | 45,426 |
| JPN | Japan | 4,003 | 4,003 | 4,003 |
| KEN | Kenya | 3,654 | 3,654 | 3,654 |
| KOR | Korea | 9,056 | 9,056 | 9,056 |
| LKA | Sri Lanka | 33,245 | 32,958 | 33,123 |
| MDV | Maldives | 47,195 | 47,195 | 47,195 |
| MOZ | Mozambique | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| MUS | Mauritius | 10,490 | 10,490 | 10,490 |
| MYS | Malaysia | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| PAK | Pakistan | 14,468 | 14,468 | 14,468 |
| PHL | Philippines | 700 | 700 | 700 |
| SDN | Sudan | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| SYC | Seychelles | 39,577 | 39,577 | 39,577 |
| THA | Thailand | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
| TZA | Tanzania | 3,905 | 3,872 | 3,872 |
| YEM | Yemen | 26,262 | 10,685 | 16,474 |
| ZAF | South Africa | 2,000 | 2,000 | 2,000 |
Table 3. Catch limits (metric tonnes, t) applicable in 2026 (calculated) for CPCs subject to IOTC Resolution 25/03 for Indian Ocean skipjack tuna (IOTC Circular 2026-18)
| Fleet code | Fleet | Catch limit 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| EUR | European Union | 129,124 |
| IDN | Indonesia | 141,387 |
| IRN | I.R. Iran | 71,419 |
| LKA | Sri Lanka | 38,000 |
| MDV | Maldives | 123,504 |
| SYC | Seychelles | 78,856 |
Management Procedures (MPs) (also called Harvest Strategies) are rules that determine fishery regulations to ensure long-term sustainability of fish stocks. MPs are developed in a collaborative manner, with stakeholder engagement and feedback a key part of the process. A suitable MP for a particular fishery will be based on scientific advice, and scientific analyses such as Management Strategy Evaluation (in the below section), and quantitative stock assessments. The final MP for a fishery will be agreed based on the scientific advice, but taking into account other aspects of fishery management such as social and economic variables, and stakeholder objectives for the fishery. MPs provide details on how the fishery is to be managed, when action needs to be taken, and what the action should be, at particular "trigger" reference points. Using MPs to guide sustainable fisheries management is recognised as the "gold standard" in sustainable fisheries management.
At the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission, we have MPs in place for key tuna species: skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis, SKJ); Indian Ocean swordfish (Xiphias gladius, SWO); and bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus, BET). You can read more about these here:
To provide people with a foundation in understanding MPs, and their role in sustainable fisheries, the FAO has developed, as part of the Common Oceans Program in conjunction with HarvestStrategies.org, The Ocean Foundation, The Pew Charitable Trusts, and the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation, a series of courses on MPs for Sustainable Tuna Fisheries via the FAO ELearning Academy.
These can be found on the FAO eLearning platform.
Management Strategy Evaluation (MSE) is a model-based analysis that includes simulations of as many possible scenarios that could affect a fishery. This process allows scientists to test the potential scenarios that could occur within a fishery, to ensure that any MPs implemented for the fishery are robust to uncertainties in data linked to the fishery (e.g. commercial catch and effort, abundance indices, biological parameters, social and economic parameters), while accounting for uncertainties in environmental variables that impact fishery management variables (such as sea surface temperature, chlorophyll α concentrations etc.).
MSE is usually carried out on a fishery as part of the development of a Management Procedure, and requires input from all stakeholders within a fishery. For more information on MSE, including a worked example in the IOTC context, the FAO partnered with an external consultant to develop educational tools that work through an Indian Ocean swordfish example.
Materials are available in three different formats via the links below.
Visit the MSE webpages | Explore via the Shiny app | Download the PDF handout
