Fishing levy trails rising mackerel prices

There are no concrete plans to change the fishing levy system, which adjusts charges after prices have moved, KVF reports. Finance Minister Aksel V. Johannesen said the issue had not been discussed politically and that the Finance Ministry was aware of the system’s advantages and disadvantages.

Johannesen was responding to MP Fróði Magnussen, who asked whether the levy could be based on actual landing prices. One advantage of the current system, the minister said, is that fishers know the levy before they go fishing. Its drawback is that it is based on older prices.

Landing prices are measured from July 1 to June 30, while the levy period runs from August 1 to July 31. As a result, the levy lags behind developments in the industry, Johannesen said.

The price of mackerel has risen from six or seven kroner per kilo to 30 kroner. Although the price doubled from 2023 to 2024, the fishing levy did not increase until the following year.