Fish are currently in their spawning season. To protect fish populations in Ukraine, a spawning ban has been in effect since April 1; violating this ban can result in imprisonment for up to three years. However, year after year, poachers ignore fishing regulations—in 2025 alone, more than 2,800 people were held accountable.
The analytical portal "Slovo i Dilo" reported on statistics regarding fines for illegal fishing last year and the current regulations.
How much was collected from "illegal" fishermen
Analysts prepared an infographic based on data from the State Environmental Inspection’s annual report on state oversight in the field of environmental protection.
In 2025, 2,823 people were held administratively liable for illegal fishing. The highest numbers were in the following districts:
- 481 administrative violations were registered in the Carpathian District, which includes Chernivtsi and Ivano-Frankivsk regions. The total amount of fines collected was 62,700 UAH;
- 445 violations occurred in the Southern District, which comprises Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions. Here, 32,800 UAH in fines were collected while damages amounted to 366,600 UAH;
However, the “leaders” in calculated damages are other regions. Poachers caused the greatest harm in the Dnipro District – over 4.7 million UAH. In second place was the Southwestern District with damages totaling 4.2 million UAH.
Overall, the environmental harm is disproportionate to the fines paid by violators: 15.8 million UAH in damages versus only 296,000 UAH in collections.
Source: “Slovo i Dilo”Current fines
During the spawning period, a strict ban on fishing in spawning grounds is enforced. Their list is provided by the subdivisions of the State Fisheries Agency. Even outside spawning sites, fishing is allowed only from the shore and with no more than two hooks per angler.
There are also permanent catch restrictions in place. For example, one angler may not catch more than 3 kg of fish, 30 crayfish, or 1 kg of shrimp.
If fish are caught illegally or with quotas exceeded, compensation must be paid for each individual fish:
- 1,581 UAH per silver carp;
- 3,162 UAH per perch;
- 3,587 UAH per pike perch;
- 3,468 UAH per pike;
- 5,117 UAH per catfish.
Source: “Slovo i Dilo”Additionally, offenders will have to pay fines depending on the nature of the violation:
- from 17 to 170 UAH for minor offenses. These include catching undersized fish, fishing in spawning grounds, wintering pits, or in polluted areas;
- from 340 to 680 UAH for gross violations. In particular, additional penalties are imposed for the use of explosives or electric current for fishing, or for exceeding established catch limits;
- from 17 to 85,000 UAH or imprisonment of up to three years for criminal offenses. In this case, primarily, this concerns the activities of organized poaching groups.
In order for anglers to know at least the basic fishing rules, the State Fisheries Agency has compiled them in the “Angler’s Guide”.
EcoPolitic previously reported that since 1970, the global population of freshwater fish has decreased by 81%.
