UK High Seas Treaty law Feb 2026: rules on genes

On 12 February 2026, the UK passed the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Act 2026 - the law that brings the UN ‘High Seas Treaty’ into UK practice. We’ve read the legislation.gov.uk text so you don’t have to, and here’s what changes for researchers, students and start‑ups.

Let’s pin down the basics. ‘Areas beyond national jurisdiction’ means the high seas and the seabed beyond any country’s exclusive economic zone. The treaty, opened for signature on 20 September 2023, is about conserving biodiversity there and ensuring that benefits from its use are shared fairly.

Two ideas run through the Act. ‘Marine genetic resources’ are biological materials from marine life - DNA, RNA or useful compounds. ‘Digital sequence information’ (DSI) is the digital code describing those materials, much like a recipe for a gene or protein. The exact legal meaning of DSI will be set by regulations from the Secretary of State.

If you plan to collect genetic material on the high seas using a UK craft, you must first give the Secretary of State a full pre‑collection notice covering the items listed in Article 12(2)(a)–(j) of the treaty. Then you wait at least seven months before collecting. The Secretary of State can shorten that period only if there is a compelling reason. The ‘relevant person’ is the lead scientist or technologist for the genetic‑resource part of the project.

After collection finishes, you must send post‑collection information as soon as it is complete - and no later than eleven months after the last day of collection in areas beyond national jurisdiction. This keeps UK records aligned with treaty rules and supports later sharing through the UN Clearing‑House.

Working in the UK with high‑seas material or its sequences counts as a ‘utilisation project’. The person in control must notify the Secretary of State in line with the Act’s Schedule. Physical samples must be placed in a publicly accessible repository, and any DSI must be recorded in a publicly accessible database, both run in line with current international practice anywhere in the world.

You have up to three years from the start of a utilisation project to make those deposits. Samples and datasets must be traceable using the treaty’s Article 12(3) standardised batch identifier so others can recognise they came from areas beyond national jurisdiction.

Repositories and UK‑based DSI databases have duties too. They must keep ABNJ material or data clearly identified, provide access so others can use it, and report to the Secretary of State every two years. Repositories report how often samples were provided; databases report how often DSI was viewed or downloaded, using the same Article 12(3) identifiers.

Access can be offered with conditions, but only ones that fit Article 14(4) of the treaty, for example to protect conservation aims or respect other arrangements. The two‑year reporting clock starts when the treaty enters into force globally, or, if later, for the UK. Reports are due within two months after each period unless the Secretary of State sets a different timetable to match the UN access‑and‑benefit‑sharing committee.

The Secretary of State may pass your submitted information to the UN Clearing‑House Mechanism created by Article 51, building a shared global record. Two guardrails apply: information protected by the National Security Act 2023 will not be shared, and anything the treaty does not require to be shared will be kept back.

Some activities are outside these collection and utilisation rules. Routine fishing done under a UK licence, work carried out to meet the Fisheries Act 2020 scientific evidence objective, warships and military activities, and anything done in Antarctica or involving Antarctic genetic resources are excluded. Different legal regimes apply there.

Fairness and money are built in. The UK can make detailed regulations to implement how monetary benefits from using high‑seas genetic resources are shared once the Conference of the Parties decides the mechanism under Article 14(7). This can include disclosure duties, payment requirements and civil sanctions such as monetary penalties, stop notices and compliance notices - with appeal rights. Rules can also be written to avoid forcing you to comply twice where another treaty party has equivalent laws. Comparable powers exist for Scottish Ministers and Northern Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, with consultation by UK ministers where devolved competence is engaged.

When the treaty’s governing body agrees a marine protected area or emergency measures, the UK must make them real at home. Ministers can make regulations - urgently if needed - apply them to UK vessels anywhere, charge fees, and create criminal offences with maximum penalties capped at a fine or up to two years’ imprisonment. The Secretary of State can also issue binding directions to specific UK craft in an emergency; failing to comply without reasonable excuse is an offence, and offences committed outside the UK can be tried here. Consultation with devolved administrations is required for most measures, except where urgency under Article 24 is certified.

Environmental assessment and licensing are updated to anticipate high‑seas projects under UK control. The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 and the Marine Works (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2007 now capture ABNJ activities. If a proposed activity may cause substantial pollution or significant and harmful changes to the marine environment - or if its effects are unknown or poorly understood - the regulator must require an environmental impact assessment. An equivalent assessment by another body can be accepted if it satisfies treaty requirements. Scotland’s Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 and the 2017 Scottish EIA Regulations are updated in parallel.

Future technical standards will slot straight into licensing. When the Conference of the Parties adopts standards or guidelines under Article 38, UK and Scottish Ministers can bring them into the marine licensing system by regulation. Changes that amend Acts are scrutinised by Parliament under the affirmative procedure.

Timing matters for planning. The Act became law on 12 February 2026, according to legislation.gov.uk. Most provisions started immediately, but sections 2 to 8 (collection and utilisation), 13, 21 and 24 will begin on dates set by future commencement regulations. The two‑year reporting periods for repositories and databases only start when the treaty enters into force globally or for the UK. The Secretary of State must also publish guidance, keep it updated and lay it before Parliament - expect practical checklists and timelines there.

If you publish, file a patent or hit a product‑development milestone using ABNJ material, extra one‑month deadlines apply. Within a month of those events listed in Article 12(8), you must send specified information to the Secretary of State. If you commercialise a product, report within one month of first making it available and then once every twelve months while it remains on the market. Deadlines can be extended by written notice, and you do not have to provide information you genuinely cannot obtain or, for DSI, where it is not reasonably practicable.

A few framing points help you recognise when the law applies. ‘UK craft’ includes British‑registered ships, government ships and other craft with a qualifying UK connection, such as being owned or operated by a UK person or deployed from the UK; the definition can be updated by regulation with parliamentary oversight. ‘UK person’ covers British citizens and bodies formed under UK law. Crown bodies are bound (though the Crown is not criminally liable). Relevant maritime zones of British overseas territories are treated like exclusive economic zones when interpreting the Act, and provisions can be extended to the Isle of Man or British overseas territories by Order in Council.

What this means for your course, lab or start‑up is straightforward to state but important to schedule. Build a seven‑month window into any high‑seas collection plan, design your data trail around the BBNJ batch identifier, choose a public repository and database early, assume an environmental impact assessment if effects are unknown or more than minor, and be ready for benefit‑sharing decisions that may add reporting and payment duties. We’ll keep watching for the commencement regulations and official guidance that set the day‑to‑day timetable.