Temporary Grant Scheme for Fishers in the Oslofjord (Midlertidig tilskuddsordning for fiskere i Oslofjorden)

Temporary Grant Scheme for Fishers in the Oslofjord (Midlertidig tilskuddsordning for fiskere i Oslofjorden)

Funds temporary relief for Oslofjord fishers affected by new ecological restrictions and transition management.

The Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries (NFD) established a temporary one-time compensation scheme for commercial fishers affected by zero-fishing zones (nullfiskeområder) introduced in Oslofjorden from 1 January 2026. The total budget is 25 million NOK — an initial 15 million NOK state appropriation increased by 10 million NOK in the revised national budget — and the per-recipient maximum is 3.5 million NOK. Grants are taxable income and are distributed equally among qualifying applicants up to the per-recipient cap. The program is administered by Garantikassen for fiskere (the Guarantee Fund for Fishers), an NFD-affiliated entity.

Eligibility is highly specific: applicants must own a shrimp vessel (rekefartøy) under 11 meters registered on blad B of the fisher's register, demonstrate average annual fishing sales of at least 500,000 NOK over the preceding three years, have been born in 1958 or later, and show that at least 40% of their trawl activity occurred within the no-fish zones during the reference period 1 July 2023 through 31 December 2025. In exchange for the grant, recipients are prohibited from participating in shrimp and crab trawling in the affected Oslofjord zones for the duration of those restrictions.

The scheme is a one-time wind-down instrument, not an annually recurring grant program. Regulations were in the process of finalization at the time of research, and no formal application deadline had been published. Qualifying fishers should contact Garantikassen for fiskere directly to obtain the finalized application form and eligibility confirmation procedures, verify their blad B registration, and prepare documentation of their historical trawl-zone activity to support the 40% threshold claim.