Stella Maris joins call to strengthen protection for overseas fishers working in UK

Port Chaplain Peter Morgan - image Stella Maris

Source: Stella Maris

Stella Maris has joined the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) and four other organisations in calling on the Home Secretary to strengthen protections for overseas fishers working in the UK fishing industry.

In a letter coordinated by the ITF, the organisations raise concerns about the exploitation of overseas fishers and the systemic conditions that can leave them vulnerable to abuse.

It sets out ten key reforms covering immigration status, employment rights, recruitment and enforcement. These include a dedicated Fishing Worker Visa, based on sector-wide sponsorship, which would allow fishers to change employer when necessary and give them stronger access to employment protections.

Other recommendations include an urgent review of the continued misuse of the Transit Loophole and the publication of better data on how it is being used.

The Transit Loophole refers to the misuse of the UK transit visa by some UK companies to recruit overseas fishers to work on UK fishing vessels. Transit visas are designed for seafarers passing through the UK to reach their departing ship. UK transit visa holders do not get access to legal rights and protection; hence they are at increased risks of forced labour and modern slavery.

The letter also calls for stronger enforcement across the fishing industry, better regulation of recruitment agencies, meaningful access to the new Fair Work Agency and a bridging visa for fishers pursuing a claim or helping with an investigation.

Stella Maris said that there is a clear need to act now. Fishing occupations are due to lose access to the Skilled Worker visa route when the Immigration Salary List is abolished in December 2026. Without an appropriate alternative, the industry could become even more reliant on the Transit Loophole.

The recent sentencing of Thomas Nicolson Junior in a court in Scotland where he admitted to failing to provide adequate food and rest for foreign workers hired to work on board a scallop dredger has again drawn attention to the abuse overseas fishers can face. It is also a reminder of the need to address the wider conditions that allow exploitation to take place.

Tim Hill, Stella Maris CEO and National Director said: "Through our work with overseas fishers, Stella Maris has seen the lasting human cost when people are left vulnerable to exploitation.

"With access to the Skilled Worker visa route due to close for fishing occupations in December, the Government must put a fair and lawful alternative in place before more fishers are pushed into insecure arrangements.

"These reforms would protect workers while supporting a fishing industry in which responsible employers can recruit the people they need."

The full letter can be found here.

Stella Maris, (formerly known as Apostleship of the Sea), is a registered UK charity. It relies on voluntary donations to continue its work. The lives of fishers and seafarers can be dangerous and lonely. They spend time away from home, separated from their families and loved ones, often working in harsh conditions. Stella Maris' chaplains and ship visitors provide fishers and seafarers with practical and pastoral support, information and a listening ear in the UK and worldwide. Fishers, seafarers and their dependents know that they can turn to Stella Maris for support in times of need, emergency and bereavement.

For more information visit: www.stellamaris.org.uk

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