EU Adopts Lead Restrictions For Fishing Tackle

The European Commission has adopted restrictions on lead in certain fishing tackle under REACH. Regulation (EU) 2026/2501, published on 13 November 2026, covers placing specified tackle on the market for both recreational and commercial fishing. Its restrictions on use apply to commercial fishing.

The regulation enters into force on 3 December 2026, with the restrictions applying in stages. It adds provisions to entry 63 of REACH Annex XVII for tackle containing at least 1% lead by weight, expressed as metal.

Different Dates For Different Tackle

The Annex sets three application dates:

• 3 March 2027 for fishing wires and drop-in sinkers, which are designed to be deliberately released during use.
• 3 December 2029 for other sinkers and lures weighing 50 g or less.
• 3 December 2031 for other sinkers and lures weighing more than 50 g and no more than 1 kg.

From 3 March 2027, retailers must display the prescribed warning at physical points of sale or in distance-sales offers for sinkers and lures containing at least 1% lead. That information requirement applies regardless of weight, subject to the exemptions below.

Exemptions And Existing Stocks

Copper-alloy lures containing less than 3% lead are exempt from both the restrictions and retailer information requirement. So are split shot weighing 0.06 g or less when marketed in spill-proof, child-resistant packaging. The Commission must review these exemptions after 3 December 2036.

The commercial-use restrictions for ordinary sinkers and lures do not apply to items placed on the EU market before their respective 2029 or 2031 deadlines. Weights enclosed, embedded or threaded in a net or line fall outside the regulation's definition of a sinker.

Member States may retain stricter national restrictions on use that are in force on 3 December 2026, subject to the conditions in the Annex.

Separate From The Ammunition File

The regulation's recitals explain that the earlier European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) restriction dossier covered both ammunition and fishing tackle. The Commission decided to address those subjects through separate regulations. This measure concerns fishing tackle.