Weekly Lockdown Update
We hope that you all had a safe and pleasant break over the long weekend. We would like to remind all our clients that FishServe continues to operate with little disruption to most of our services.
Our staff continue to work from home, but the FishServe office remains closed. Our helpline is available on 04 460 9555 to assist with any queries or you can use our online contact form to get in touch.
As we have highlighted in previous updates, our mail-handling procedures have been affected under lockdown. We have put in place a number of solutions to handle these disruptions in the meantime. If you would like to read more, please click here to view the relevant lockdown update. Despite these disruptions, we continue to operate as normal.
With the 15th of April approaching, we would like to take this opportunity to remind our clients that Monthly Harvest Returns (MHRs) must be completed and submitted on or before the 15th of each calendar month. If you have no catch to report in a calendar month, you are still required to submit a nil return.
All ACE Transfers for the April 2019/20 fishing year must be completed before midnight on the 15th of April 2020.
Furthermore, at midnight on the 15th of April 2020, end-of-year balancing processes will run for the April 2019/20 fishing year. Provided you have submitted all MHRs for the April 2019/20 fishing year, underfishing ACE will be allocated for eligible stocks after the end-of-year balancing processes have completed.
In this update, you will find links for our Quick Guides on generating and submitting your MHRs. We have also provided a brief summary of Underfishing ACE
ACE Transfers
All ACE transfers for the April 2019/20 fishing year (1 April 2019 – 30 March 2020) must be completed before midnight on the 15th of April 2020.
If you are having trouble with any of these transfers during normal business hours, please contact the helpline on 04 460 9555.
If you have any after-hours problems with these transfers, please contact John Olver on 04 460 9506.
Monthly Harvest Returns (MHRs)
If you are required to submit a Monthly Harvest Return (MHR) it must be completed and submitted on or before the 15th of each calendar month.
MHRs can be generated from your electronic reports, but you must save and submit the MHR yourself. The FishServe website will not automatically submit an MHR on your behalf. This is to allow you to make any necessary adjustments to your stock lines prior to submission. If no fishing has occurred within a calendar month, you are required to submit a nil return. You must be authorised in the Returns area to submit an MHR.
The following Quick Guides, which include visual aids, are available to download:
If you are unable to submit an MHR online yourself, you can authorise a Returns Manager to submit the MHR on your behalf. If you would like to authorise a Returns Manager, please complete a Details of Authorised Personnel form. You can download the form here.
Completed forms can be scanned and emailed to registry@fishserve.co.nz. Scanned documents must be clear, legible and signed by the appropriate person(s).
Underfishing ACE
In last week’s update, we outlined one example of how the underfishing allocation process will work, specific to rock lobster (CRA) ACE owners who may not have been too familiar with the process. If you would like to view last week’s update, please click here.
In brief, where underfishing rights apply, ACE owners will be allocated a carry forward of up to 10% of ACE holdings as at the end of the fishing year (31st March 2020) or all uncaught ACE, whichever is the lesser.
If you would like to view further information regarding ACE and underfishing entitlements, please consult the ACE information page here. You will also find a number of specific examples of how the underfishing calculation works on the ACE information page.
No action is required on your part to claim underfishing entitlements. At midnight on the 15th of April 2020 the end-of-year balancing processes will run. Provided you have submitted all Monthly Harvest Returns to date, any underfishing entitlements will be automatically allocated to eligible stocks.
Please note that stocks that have been subject to a TACC Decrease will not be eligible for underfishing allocation entitlements. As of 1st April 2020, there has been a variation to the TACC for a number of stocks. For further information, please click here.
Mail-Handling
Per our previous update, all mail received by FishServe on or after Thursday the 26th of March will not be processed until lockdown restrictions have been lifted and the Government has deemed it safe to return to work. Likewise, no mail will be sent from FishServe until lockdown restrictions have been lifted.
The following applies to inbound mail:
- Completed forms can be scanned and emailed to registry@fishserve.co.nz rather than by mail. Scanned documents must be clear, legible and signed by the appropriate person(s).
- We will not be able to process payments submitted by cheque. Therefore, payments submitted by cheque may not be reflected on your latest statement/s.
The following applies to outbound mail:
- Statements and/or notifications sent by FishServe and received by mail will not be sent. Digital copies of statements and/or notifications are available on our website.
- Original copies of certain documents will not be sent. Instead, we can arrange to send you, or a nominated person, a PDF copy of those documents. Originals will be mailed when lockdown restrictions have been lifted and it has been deemed safe to return to work.
For further information, please click here to view the relevant lockdown update.
Additional Resources
FishServe – Weekly Lockdown Update, Week 1
FishServe – Weekly Lockdown Update, Week 2
Seafood New Zealand – Covid-19 Information
New Zealand Government - Unite Against Covid-19