If you’re in the Mediterranean for the summer season, pay attention to some new modifications within the French anchoring regulations and zones. These updates affect vessels of 45 meters and larger in French inland waters and the Med.

The French anchoring regulations went into effect in 2021 as a measure to protect the area’s Posidonia seagrass. The decree prohibits anchoring outside designated zones for all yachts over 24 meters. Outside of forbidden areas, yachts from 45 meters LOA must “declare their intention to anchor or stop” at least one hour before arrival on site to the relevant sémaphore. Yachts 80 meters or larger must have a permit and a pilot on board to anchor. 

Infringement fines can be as much as €150,000, and captains also face the possibility of being banned from French waters. This season, the French maritime authority has prosecuted infringements. As Professional Yachting Association (PYA) CEO Christophe Bourillon shared, at least 10 captains have been fined between €800 to €2,000, and one captain has been banned from French waters for violations. “It’s still hefty, given that it is not the boat that is prosecuted. It is the captain,” Bourillon said. Captains prosecuted are fingerprinted and photographed.

The French regulations are complicated, Bourillon said. New regulations in the past few months ban superyachts from anchoring off Corsica. “That’s a typical example of the French authorities not making it easy for captains to pick France as a destination.” 

Bourillon explained that infringements can be challenging to understand. The regulations draw a red line where vessels cannot anchor. However, “if your anchor is outside of the red line, but the AIS shows your boat as being inside the red line, you are guilty,” Bourillon said. “If your anchor is in the Posidonia and your boat is shown on the AIS as being outside, you are good.” 

The PYA issued its own recommendations to captains. The first is to supplement the usual means of navigation to find anchoring areas by using the application Nav & Co, which is the official application produced by the French maritime authorities. It’s constantly updated as new regulations are adopted.

“To make absolutely sure that you will be anchoring in the right area, we strongly encourage captains to speak to the relevant sémaphore (radio station) on Channel 16, or better still — on the phone — asking them to confirm that you are in the right area,” Bourillon said. “All sémaphore’s conversations are recorded and, just in case, it could be relevant for the captain to record the conversation as well.” 

“We are working hard with the authorities to make it easier for yachts to stay in our waters because a yacht that goes and doesn’t come back has serious economic implications for the local economy,” Bourillon said.