Spearfishing in Malta

The rules — no licence, but real limits

Malta has no spearfishing licence and no recreational shore-fishing licence, but the method and area rules are enforced and a spearo was prosecuted in 2024/25 — this is not a free-for-all.

• Freediving only — a speargun with any underwater breathing apparatus (scuba) is banned under EU Reg 2019/1241. Night spearfishing is prohibited, sunset to sunrise, and so is using an artificial light. Boats must stay ≥100 m from a diver-down flag.
• The big seasonal rule: from mid-June to 30 September Malta marks 87 official swimming zones with red-and-yellow buoys, and all fishing gear — including a speargun — is banned inside them. Plan around them in summer.
• Spearfishing and nets are also banned inside conservation areas, marine parks, commercial dive sites, seabed archaeological zones and the wreck-conservation areas (see below). Selling any recreational catch is illegal, and any object 50+ years old on the seabed is protected cultural heritage.

Protected species and the wreck-zone ban

Two things define Malta's conservation frame: the dusky grouper and the wreck-conservation notice.

• Spearfishing is completely prohibited in the five wreck Conservation Areas declared under Notice 025 of 2026: Ċirkewwa (P29, Rozi), Marsaskala, Qawra Point (Imperial Eagle), Wied iż-Żurrieq (Um El Faroud) and Xatt l-Aħmar (Karwela, Cominoland, Hephaestus, Xlendi). The limited 'trolling when no diver-down flag' exception is for trolling lines only and never applies in these five zones — it never legalises spearfishing anywhere. Ċirkewwa is additionally a full marine park under Legal Notice 51 of 2026.
• The dusky grouper (ċerna) is IUCN-vulnerable and heavily depleted region-wide; Malta protects it inside every MPA and it is strongly discouraged elsewhere — treat it as advise-release. Atlantic bluefin tuna (tonn) needs a recreational permit, minimum 30 kg / 115 cm, one fish per boat per trip, and may not be sold. EU Mediterranean minimum sizes apply (sea bass 25 cm, gilthead 20 cm).
• Sea-urchin harvesting is under a moratorium to July 2027 (Legal Notice 129 of 2025) — leave them.

Seasons, wind and the swimming zones

Tides are tiny (10–20 cm) — pressure and wind move the sea more than the moon, so read the wind. The prevailing wind is the Majjistral (NW), so the SE and S coasts (Marsaskala, Marsaxlokk, Delimara, Birżebbuġa, Għar Lapsi) and Gozo's sheltered Mġarr ix-Xini are the usual calm-water options. When the Sirocco (Xlokk, SE) blows it flips — then the NW coast (Ċirkewwa, Mellieħa, Gozo north) is sheltered. An E/NE Grigal favours the west (Dwejra, Għar Lapsi, Wied iż-Żurrieq). There is a lee for almost any wind.

Water runs from ~14–15 °C in February to ~26 °C in August, with spring and autumn around 18–22 °C and a sharp summer thermocline below 20–30 m. Visibility is among the best in Europe. Spring and autumn are the sweet spot — warm enough, calm, clear, and outside the mid-June-to-September swimming-zone lockout.

No-take zones and wrecks

Malta's Natura 2000 marine network covers about 35% of its fishing zone. The spots that matter to a spearo:

• Filfla is a full no-take nature reserve within 1 nautical mile, and a former bombing range with live-ordnance (UXO) risk — never route there. Rdum Majjiesa–Ras ir-Raħeb (NW Malta), Il-Baħar tad-Dwejra (Gozo W) and Xlendi are protected reserves where spearfishing is restricted or banned — give them a wide berth.
• The offshore bluefin-tuna farms — the SE zone off Delimara/Marsaxlokk and the north zone off Sikka l-Bajda — are buoyed exclusion areas. The Marsaxlokk and Birżebbuġa (Freeport) industrial harbours and the Grand Harbour are closed to diving and fishing.
• Every named wreck in Malta is a no-take zone — the Um El Faroud (Wied iż-Żurrieq), P29 and Rozi (Ċirkewwa), P31 (Comino), Karwela and the Xatt l-Aħmar cluster (Gozo), the Imperial Eagle (Qawra) and the Marsaskala group are all inside conservation areas. Deeper WWII wrecks are heritage-protected too (any object 50+ years old). Natural, unlisted debris in open water is fishable — but confirm it isn't heritage.

Safety

Dive with a buddy, one up and one down, and keep sight of each other. Fly a diver-down flag — boat traffic is heavy around the harbours and Comino in summer. Watch the wind: the Majjistral can build fast on the exposed NW coast, and Gozo's cliffs make some entries committing. The summer thermocline drops sharply below 20–30 m, so plan your depth. And be UXO-aware around harbours and Filfla — if you find ordnance, don't touch it, and report it.

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Συχνές ερωτήσεις

Rules current as of 2026 — Malta needs NO spearfishing licence, but scuba and night are banned; dusky grouper (ċerna) advise-release, bluefin tuna permit-only; avoid the 87 swimming zones mid-Jun–30 Sep; Filfla is a 1 nm exclusion. Always confirm locally.