East coast otter trawl fishery reporting changes

Training for fishers

One-on-one training sessions with our staff are available for the:

  • new trawl fishery logbook
  • new scallop reporting requirements
  • Qld eFisher app.

The sessions will cater to your individual operation and can be face-to-face, by telephone or online. You are welcome to bring any crew or family members with you.

If you would like to attend a training session, please submit a request and we will contact you directly to organise a time.

The following changes to reporting requirements for the east coast otter trawl fishery are due to start in February and March 2026:

  • new otter trawl logbook
  • new saucer scallop reporting requirements.

New otter trawl logbook

The new OT12 otter trawl logbook will replace the OT11 logbook—it must be used from 16 February 2026.

New paper OT12 logbooks with information sheets have been posted to all primary commercial fishing licence holders. The Qld eFisher app will also be updated, with the changes in effect from 16 February 2026.

Several industry-requested changes were made to simplify reporting and the new logbook has been tested by some trawl fishers at sea.

You can view and download the logbook templates.

Daily logbook form

The following fields have been removed from the daily logbook form:

  • ‘start shot’ and ‘end shot’ fields (effort section)
  • ‘number of containers’ field, except for saucer scallop (retained catch section)
  • ‘estimated weight’ field for slipper lobster, blue swimmer crab, three spot crab, Duncker’s pipehorse, pallid pipehorse and leader prawn (Penaeus monodon) (retained catch section)
  • ‘grade’ field for endeavour prawn and redspot king prawn (retained catch section)
  • ‘mixed prawn’ category (retained catch section) – you must report an estimated weight for each species of prawn, including when more than 1 prawn species is boxed together
  • ‘wet/dry boat’ question (effort section).

The following species have been added to the daily logbook form:

  • banana prawn and blue leg king prawn (target species list in effort section).

Gear description sheet

The following changes have been made to the gear description sheet:

  • The field ‘average trawl speed’ has been removed.
  • The following fields have been added:
    • ‘total net foot rope length’ – to be used in conjunction with the existing ‘total net head rope length’ to better understand the impact of lead ahead nets on fishing power
    • ‘computer mapping system version’ – to be used to better understand the impact of computer technologies on fishing power.
  • The reporting units have been changed from imperial to metric (to align with legislation) for the following fields:
    • ‘total net head rope length’ – fathoms to metres
    • ‘net mesh size’ – inches to millimetres
    • ‘otter board dimensions’ – feet to metres.

New scallop reporting requirements

Upcoming changes are anticipated to introduce quota reporting requirements for saucer scallops from 1 March 2026.

If you do not take saucer scallops during a fishing operation, you will be able to continue operating with no changes. However, you will still need to report discarded saucer scallops and mud scallops via the paper logbook or the Qld eFisher app.

Regional arrangements and reporting

New arrangements for the take of scallops are anticipated to commence from midday 1 March 2026.

The 5-year scallop rebuilding strategy recommends that commercial scallop fishing resume in some parts of the east coast otter trawl fishery under an adaptive management approach.

The strategy recommends that the:

  • central region is open for scallop fishing with a total allowable commercial catch (TACC) of 167,776kg
  • southern offshore region remains open with a TACC of 248,609kg
  • scallop fishery remains closed (no take) in the southern inshore region, as the 2025 survey revealed that the biomass was still low (below the 20% limit reference point for the fishery).

Under the proposed arrangements, you will need to report saucer scallop catches in the central and southern offshore regions against the relevant TACC.

Further information about reporting requirements will be provided soon.

Quota reporting process

Before landing, the commercial fisher in control must give a prior notice reporting the number of baskets of whole and/or half shell saucer scallops, by using the Qld eFisher app or calling 13 25 23.

Once all saucer scallops are fully unloaded and before returning to sea, the commercial fisher in control must give a weight notice (kilograms of whole and/or half shell scallops) by using the Qld eFisher app or calling 13 25 23.

Qld eFisher app

The Qld eFisher app is scheduled for an update on 1 March 2026 to support saucer scallop quota reporting, including prior and weight notices and quota balances.

If you use the app, you do not need to fill out paper logbooks and make multiple phone calls. The app:

  • automatically adds up the number of baskets of saucer scallop across your fishing operation (which can help you stay within possession limits where they apply)
  • prefills your prior notice for you.

Departures before 1 March 2026

Saucer scallop quota reporting will not be available in the Qld eFisher app before 1 March. If your fishing operations starts before then, you can still use the app for logbook reporting and must complete quota reporting by calling 13 25 23 for your first trip of the season. You will be able to use the app for all your reporting for subsequent fishing trips.

Enquiries and support