Highly Migratory Species Tournament Registration

All Atlantic recreational fishing tournaments that award points or prizes for the catch & release or landing of billfish, swordfish, sharks, or tunas are required to register with NOAA Fisheries at least 4 weeks prior to the start of the tournament. To register, the tournament operator/director must complete an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) tournament registration form (OMB 0642-0323) and submit it to the HMS Management Division. The form includes tournament name, date(s), location, and HMS for which points or prizes will be awarded, as well as the tournament operator's name, mailing address, phone number, fax number, and e-mail address. The form also gives the operator the option of ordering a specified number of Atlantic HMS recreational regulation booklets and other outreach materials for distribution at the tournament. All of the information is entered into the HMS tournament registration database, which produces a unique confirmation number that is provided to the tournament operator by the HMS Management Division for proof of registration.