Blue crab fishery

Management plan consultation

A draft Management Plan for the South Australian Commercial Blue Crab Fishery has been released for comment. Consultation closes on 3 March 2024.

Notice to fishers (PDF) More about the consultation

Fishery overview

The blue crab fishery takes blue crabs. Other species may be landed and sold as by-products or used as personal bait.

The blue crab fishery uses crab pots and bait nets. Most of the South Australian commercial catch is sold to Sydney and Melbourne markets.

Licensing

Expiry

Fishery licences are issued for the term of the management plan. The current management plan will expire 30 June 2024.

Fees

Commercial licence fees must be paid each financial year. Invoices are issued annually in June.

Payments can be made:

  • up-front
  • in a lump sum
  • in quarterly installments.

Transfer licence or quota

Blue crab fishery licences and quota entitlements are fully transferable. Quota units may also be transferred between blue crab fishery and the marine scalefish fishery licences.

Use the forms below to transfer a licence or quota:

Boat registration and de-registration

Every boat that is used for commercial fishing must be registered.

Use the application to vary a boat registration endorsement (PDF 152.6 KB) to register or de-register a boat.

Boat master registration

All people who act as a commercial fishing boat master must be registered by the licence holder. Multiple boat masters can be registered using the form below.

Application to change registration of a master/s (PDF 188.7 KB)

Blue crab fishery management

Management plan:

Stock assessment report:

Economic indicator reports:

Department of Environment

The Commonwealth Department of the Environment requires that all commercial fisheries that export product be assessed under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

For more information, go to the South Australian fisheries page on the Department of the Environment website.

Regulations

The blue crab fishery is regulated by:

Determinations

More information

See information about blue crab:

See the Blue Crab Fishery Operator User Guide (PDF 755.2 KB) for more information on:

  • permitted species
  • size limits
  • commercial limits
  • gear rules
  • closures
  • licence transfers
  • demerit points.

Contact

Sam Stone – Community Fisheries Manager
Phone: (08) 8429 2101
Email: sam.stone@sa.gov.au

Page last reviewed: 10 Jan 2024

 


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