1. A Union fishing vessel shall be marked with the name of the vessel, if available, and a unique vessel identifier (UVI) as follows:
(a)
the letter(s) of the port or district in which the Union fishing vessel is registered, where applicable, and the number(s) under which it is registered shall be painted or displayed on both sides of the bow or on one side of the bow and the other side of the stern, as high above the water as possible to be clearly visible from the sea and the air, in a colour contrasting with the background on which they are painted;
(b)
for Union fishing vessels over 10 metres length overall and less than 17 metres length overall, the height of the letters and numbers shall be at least 25 centimetres with a line thickness of at least 4 centimetres. For Union fishing vessels of 17 metres length overall or more, the height of the letters and numbers shall be at least 45 centimetres, with a line thickness of at least 6 centimetres;
(c)
the flag Member State may require the international radio call sign (IRCS) or the external registration letters and numbers to be painted on top of the wheelhouse and to be clearly visible from the air, in a colour contrasting with the background on which it is painted;
(d)
the contrasting colours shall be white and black;
(e)
the external registration letters and numbers painted or displayed on the hull of the Union fishing vessel shall not be removable, effaced, altered, illegible, covered or concealed.
2. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) ship identification number scheme, as adopted by Resolution A.1117(30) on 6 December 2017 and as referred to in Chapter XI-1, Regulation 3 of the 1974 SOLAS Convention shall apply to:
(a)
Union fishing vessels or fishing vessels controlled by Union operators under a chartering arrangement, of 100 tons of GT or 100 tons of Gross Registered Tonnage and above, or 24 metres length overall and above, operating exclusively inside Union waters;
(b)
Union fishing vessels or fishing vessels controlled by Union operators under a chartering arrangement of 12 metres length overall and above, operating outside Union waters;
(c)
third-country fishing vessels authorised to carry out fishing activities in Union waters.
Vessel identification documents to be carried on board a Union fishing vessel
1. The master of a Union fishing vessel shall carry on board or have digital access to documents issued by a competent authority of the Member State in which it is registered, showing at least the following characteristics of the fishing vessel:
(a)
the name of the fishing vessel, if available;
(b)
the letters of the port or district in which it is registered, and the number(s) under which it is registered;
(c)
the common fleet register (CFR) number or, if not applicable, the IMO number or other unique vessel identifier of the fishing vessel;
(d)
the IRCS, if available;
(e)
the names and addresses of the owner(s) and, where applicable, the charterer;
(f)
the length overall in metres, engine power in kW, gross tonnage in GT and, for Union fishing vessels which entered into service from 1 January 1987 onwards, date of entry into service, as defined in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/1130 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 7 ) .
2. Masters of Union fishing vessels of 17 metres length overall or more with at least one fish room shall keep on board or have digital access to accurate drawings with description of all fish rooms and fish storage locations, including the indication of all access points and of their storage capacity in cubic metres.
3. Masters of Union fishing vessels with seawater tanks, including chilled or refrigerated tanks, shall keep on board or have digital access to an up-to-date document indicating the calibration of the tanks in cubic metres at 10-centimeter intervals.
4. Where applicable, masters of Union catching vessels authorised to conduct on-board weighing under Article 60(3)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009 shall keep on board or have digital access to the relevant authorisation documents, along with certification documents for the weighing systems used for weighing fishery products on board.
5. The documents referred to in paragraphs 2, 3, and 4 shall be issued or certified by the competent authority of the flag Member State. Any modification of the characteristics contained in the documents referred to in paragraphs 1 to 4, shall be certified by a competent authority of the flag Member State.
6. The documents referred to in this Article shall be presented for the purposes of control and inspection at the request of the officials.
