SAFIS eTrips Users Can Report Atlantic HMS via eTrips Mobile and Online
If you hold either an HMS Angling Permit, or HMS Charter/Headboat Permit, you must report swordfish and billfish landings and bluefin tuna catch (landings and dead discards) within 24 hours of returning from a trip. Atlantic Tunas General Category and Harpoon Category permit holders must also report bluefin tuna catch (landings and dead discards) within 24 hours of returning from a trip. NMFS provides multiple options for permit holders to submit these reports, including the reporting portal on the NMFS Permit Shop website, an HMS Catch Reporting smartphone app, and options for reporting via telephone. Fishermen in North Carolina and Maryland are required to complete state HMS Catch Cards.
As part of an effort to streamline vessel reporting, vessel owners or operators using the SAFIS eTRIPS Mobile or Online system for state or non-HMS Federal permit reporting requirements can also use it for Atlantic swordfish, billfish, and bluefin tuna catch reporting. SAFIS eTrips users can submit one trip report, for both non-HMS and HMS species reporting, but must report swordfish, billfish, and bluefin tuna catch within 24 hours of ending a fishing trip.
You may now report swordfish and billfish landings and bluefin tuna catch through SAFIS eTrips if you have a permit with a state or Federal agency that uses SAFIS eTrips to collect vessel-reported data and also have one of the following open access permits below:
- Atlantic Tunas General Category
- Atlantic Tunas Harpoon Category
- Combination swordfish/tuna permits
- HMS Charter/Headboat
- HMS Angling
Fishermen in North Carolina and Maryland are still required to complete their state HMS Catch Cards.
The SAFIS eTrips mobile app must be updated/installed with the latest version (eTrip Mobile Version 2) before reporting Atlantic HMS. The updated app prompts users to answer additional questions when reporting HMS species that require 24-hour catch reporting.
NOTE: SAFIS eTrips reports must list each harvested swordfish, billfish, or bluefin tuna individually in pounds rather than number caught. This requires the reporter to change the ‘Unit of Measure’ from Count to Pounds, and submitting separate catch information for each HMS in the catch report.
The latest SAFIS eTrips versions for Android, iOS, and Microsoft applications can be found at:
Android
iOS
UWP
For technical assistance please call 800-984-0810 or email: mobile_support@accsp.org.
The information in this notice only applies to SAFIS eTrips and not to other state and federal reporting programs. NOAA Fisheries will notify permit holders as other options for HMS catch reporting become available. Permit holders should be advised that as of May 16, 2022, the commonly used GARFO FishOnline (eVTR) and Bluefin Data LLC “VESL” reporting platforms do not collect all the data needed to satisfy HMS Catch Reporting requirements. HMS permit holders using these platforms to meet other federal and state reporting requirements will also need to continue to report their catches of bluefin tuna, swordfish, and billfish separately via one of the reporting systems listed above.
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