According to provisions set forth in Article 45 of Regulation (EU) No. 1380/2013 on the Common Fisheries Policy, Advisory Councils are made up of:
- a) “sector organisations”: organisations representing the fisheries sector (including employed fishers) and aquaculture operators, where appropriate, and representatives of the processing and marketing sectors.
- b) “other interest groups” affected by the CFP, e.g. environmental organisations and consumers associations.
Organisations potentially interested in becoming members shall send an application letter together with the agreement where the competent body confirms their application and the motivation and reasons why they wish to join as a member (download model), the application form (download model) and the articles of association of the organisation.
Once these documents are received, the admission process will have the following phases:
- Distribution of the documents received among the representatives appointed at the National Administrations where the organisation is based, as well as to any other stakeholders. In addition, the European Commission shall be informed. To this end, a minimum period of two weeks shall be granted.
- Documents shall be submitted to the LDAC Executive Committee granting a minimum period of two additional weeks.
During this period, the applicant may be requested to submit additional documents or to answer questions at the request of a party.
Once the deadline is reached, in the event that no objections or votes against are received based on justified reasons, the process will conclude with acceptance at the Annual General Assembly that is normally held in May each year. In exceptional cases, the possibility of bringing the admission forward will be considered. The representative of the organisation will have the opportunity to formally introduce his/her organisation before the GA members prior to their formal admission.
Once admitted, the members of the General Assembly shall pay an annual fee of EUR 300 (€), including their participation in the Working Group/s they choose.
The members of the Executive Committee shall pay an annual fee of EUR 600 (€) in addition to the annual fee of EUR 300, paying a total amount of EUR 900.
Application for membership in the Long Distance Fleet Advisory Council