The Balearic Islands adds up 16.653 new licenses of recreational marine fishing in 2023

The General Directorate of Fisheries of the Regional Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Natural Environment has released the data from the report on recreational sea fishing licenses issued in 2023, data which, in the words of the Director General of Fisheries, Antoni M. Grau, says that "recreational fishing remains a popular leisure activity in the Balearic Islands, which is growing year after year. The number of licenses issued, new or renewed, proves it".

For this reason, in a matter of weeks the Order creating the Commission for the Co-management of Recreational Fishing in the Balearic Islands will be published in the BOIB, a public participation body that will include representatives from the recreational fishing sector, the affected administrations and other relevant actors, "because everyone must feel identified, involved and informed in the management of recreational fishing in the Balearic Islands, to ensure its sustainability and the conservation of marine resources," added Grau.

In this sense, last year a total of 16,653 licenses were issued, an increase of 8.45% compared to 2022, when 15,355 were issued. In addition, of this total, more than seven thousand were processed electronically. It should be remembered that most licenses are valid for three years, which means that in the Balearic Islands there are about 43,000 recreational sea fishing licenses up to date today.

In detail, in 2023, 10,988 individual recreational fishing licenses were issued; 3,714 recreational boat fishing licenses; 1,425 underwater fishing licenses and 526 sport fishing licenses.

By islands, in Mallorca 7,931 individual licenses were issued, 2,373 boat licenses and 976 spearfishing; in Menorca 1,471 individual licenses were issued; 657 boat licenses and 202 spearfishing. In Ibiza, 1,437 individual fishing licenses, 569 boat licenses and 216 spearfishing were issued in 2023. In Formentera, 149 individual, 115 boat and 31 spearfishing licenses were issued.

"Analyzing the report, we can conclude that younger people are the ones who apply for the most land and underwater fishing licenses, while boat license holders are generally older," says director general Antoni M. Grau.

Another aspect to highlight is the increase in the number of nationalities of citizens applying for licenses, where a total of 82 nationalities have been registered, a figure higher than the 72 registered in 2022.

In this sense, regarding the new individual recreational fishing licenses issued in 2023, the nationalities with more than 100 licenses are: 7,698 Spanish nationals; 1,491 German nationals; 313 British nationals; 184 Italians; 105 French nationals; 168 Moroccans and 121 Romanians. In terms of recreational boat fishing licenses, 3,616 are of Spanish nationality; 45 are of German origin; 26 from France and 17 from Italy. Regarding spearfishing licenses, 1,300 applicants are Spanish, 39 are Italian, 33 are French and 15 are from Germany.