BOAT-COMPARATOR Guide

Spearfishing from a Rental Boat: the French Rules

Mandatory signal buoy, no-go zones, protected species, an unloaded gun back on board: what to check before bringing a speargun on a rented boat in France.

A speargun tucked in a locker, a mask, long freediving fins: spearfishing on a single breath draws more and more renters who charter a boat to reach a rocky drop-off rather than a plain swimming cove. It is entirely legal in France, but tightly framed — and quite different from the rules covering line fishing or scuba diving already covered on this site. Here is what to check before setting out.

Freediving only, never on scuba

The founding principle of French regulation fits in one sentence: spearfishing is practised on a single breath, full stop. Any compressed-air source is banned during the hunt, and the law goes further by prohibiting carrying breathing apparatus and a speargun or harpoon on the same boat at the same time, barring an exceptional prefectural waiver. In practice, if your plan mixes scuba diving and spearfishing on the same outing, the two cannot share the same boat at the same moment: pick one, or split them strictly in time.

Age, insurance and the boat's own licence

The minimum age to spearfish is 16, with no exception. Liability insurance specifically covering the activity is also mandatory — check it is included in your annual policy or a one-off cover before you leave. That framework covers the hunter; it comes on top of, and does not replace, the rules for the boat that gets you there. A RIB under 6 hp can be driven license-free, but beyond that, the French coastal license is still required to helm the support boat yourself.

The signal buoy: your only shield against other boats

A spearfisher must stay tethered to a brightly coloured buoy or float that signals their presence at the surface. It is far from a formality: in the Mediterranean, every boat must slow to 5 knots maximum within 100 metres of that buoy or of a diver flag — the same precautionary spirit as the 5-knot rule near the shore. This buoy belongs with the rest of the mandatory safety equipment on board, and must stay visible at all times, including when you swim well away from the support boat.

No-go zones: harbours, channels, beaches and reserves

Spearfishing is banned in harbour approach channels, right next to marked swimming areas, and across many marine protected areas, with restriction levels that vary widely from one site to another: some reserves allow it under conditions, others ban it outright year-round. That is the case in the core of the Scandola reserve in Corsica, where all taking is forbidden. Before setting out, a quick look at the local zoning map — often available from the harbour office or the boat operator — avoids a fine and, more importantly, protects seabeds already under heavy summer pressure.

The dusky grouper, a symbol of real pressure

The dusky grouper (Epinephelus marginatus) has been fully protected in the French Mediterranean since 1993: any intentional catch carries heavy penalties, whatever the hunting method. That protection is not administrative overcaution. A study in the Bonifacio Strait Natural Reserve, in Corsica, measured a roughly 60% rise in catch per unit effort among local artisanal fishers between 2000 and 2007, after no-spearfishing zones were introduced — hard evidence that unregulated hunting pressure can strip a stretch of coast of its finest specimens within a few seasons, to the detriment of every sea user (Rocklin D., Tomasini J.-A., Culioli J.-M., Pelletier D., Mouillot D., Spearfishing Regulation Benefits Artisanal Fisheries, PLoS ONE, 2011, see the study on Google Scholar).

At night, the gun stays dry

Spearfishing is banned between legal sunset and sunrise, with no exception. Another point newcomers often miss: the speargun or harpoon must be unloaded the moment you climb back aboard, never carried loaded between hunting spots. A sea inspection by the maritime affairs authority can just as easily check the buoy, your age and insurance as the state of the weapon at the moment you come alongside.

Compare before booking the right support boat

A stable RIB with a wide, easy-to-climb gunwale suits a spearfishing trip better than a loaded-down sailboat. If the plan mixes spearfishing with plain line fishing on different days, confirm with the operator that both uses are accepted before you book. On Boat-Comparator, compare Boataround, SamBoat and Click&Boat offers in one search to find a boat suited to your trip, wherever you plan to hunt.

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