Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities continue to express a desire to have more economic opportunities around fishing, particularly in their own sea country.

This revised policy aims to support economic development opportunities for Indigenous peoples and communities by providing pathways for Indigenous peoples and communities to enter or take part in fishing-related businesses. This policy sets overarching principles, including setting aside an access allocation (Indigenous commercial allocation) for economic development opportunities.

Key findings:

• An appropriate Indigenous commercial allocation will be considered for each fishery. This allocation will be identified in the harvest strategy for an individual species, management region or fishery. An amount of up to 10 tonnes may be set aside as an Indigenous commercial allocation. It will be either by species, or groups of species.
• Access to the Indigenous commercial allocation will be through a non-transferable fixed-term Indigenous fishing permit under section 54 of the Fisheries (General) Regulation 2019 for a period of up to three years (depending on the application). Extensions may be considered on a case-by-case basis.
• Traditional Owners and native title holders will be consulted about the areas where the fishing operation is proposed through the future acts notification process under the federal Native Title Act 1993.

This policy does not apply to traditional fishing or native title fishing rights.