Fisheries Administrative Order No. 260 S. 2018 establishing Rules and Regulations on the Implementation of Vessel Monitoring Measures (VMM) and Electronic Reporting System (ERS) for Commercial Philippines Flagged Fishing Vessels Targeting Straddling and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks.

This Fisheries Administrative Order, consisting of 29 sections divided into six Chapters, establishes Rules and Regulations on the Implementation of Vessel Monitoring Measures (VMM) and Electronic Reporting System (ERS) for Commercial Philippines Flagged Fishing Vessels Targeting Straddling and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks. This order has the following objectives: a) enhance monitoring of fishing operations for fisheries management through the implementation of vessel monitoring measures; b) enhance law enforcement to regulate the capture fisheries sector towards achieving long term resource sustainability; c) implement vessel monitoring measures to track fishing behavior for scientific research and data; d) establish a system that will facilitate law enforcement and aid in case building and prosecution of fisheries law violations; e) gather data on fishing effort and catch databy means of an electronic reporting system which will serve as basis for fisheries management measures; f) aid in the seafood traceability and catch documentary requirements of the government; g) ensure safety for fishers thru a tracking device that would monitor the vessels' location during accidents and disasters; h) implement policies embodied in Republic Act 8550, as amended by RA 10654 and its implementing rules and regulations, which refers to the vessel monitoring requirements of fishing vessels.
No commercial vessel shall engage in fishing activity without the vessel monitoring measures as established herein. For this purpose, VMM shall apply to licensed Philippine flagged fishing vessels targeting straddling and highly migratory fish stocks within and outside Philippine waters. The VMS shall apply to all licensed Philippine flagged commercial fishing vessels authorized by the BFAR to operate in the high seas and those fishing vessels with access rights to fish in other countries' exclusive economic zones. However, all catcher fishing vessels operating within Philippine waters which includes the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), the VMS shall be implemented in phases as follows: Vessel Tonnage and Schedule of Implementation from effectivity of this FAO: (50 to 99 GT) = Within one year; (30 to 49 GT) = Within two years. The Fisheries Information Management Center (FIMC) shall implement these rules and regulations.