eLandings Reporting
Frequently Asked Questions
Table of Contents
How to Use eLandings
How do I register for an account to use the eLandings system?
After you have your required State and Federal permits, go to the Internet site http:///elandings.alaska.gov. Under "How to Get Started" click on Register and follow the instructions. To expedite registration, you should have on hand the following ADF&G Processor License Code(s).
Federal Permit Number(s)
Registered Crab Receiver Nummber
Registered Buyer Number
NMFS can also assist you with this process during regular business hours. Contact Jennifer Hogan at (907) 586-7462.
Can I set up one account in the eLandings registration system, to be used by all my company's staff?
No. Individual users must have their own accounts. An Administrative User for your operation can add additional users to the operation. Then each individual user must read and sign the elandings User Agreement and send the signed copy to the address provided on the form. This form can be faxed to expedite the process.
For more information on adding users to your operation see the eLandings User's Guide section 4.3.3 or call Jennifer Hogan at (907) 586-7462.
Can I practice on eLandings without actually submitting a landing report?
eLandings has a training website http://elandingst.alaska.gov for user training and testing. You can do everything on the training system that you can do on the real system, except that reports are not officially submitted. Contact your local ADF&G or NMFS office, eLandings support personnel to let them know what you want to do, then register a user ID on the training system to allow you to use it for practice. Training materials have been developed to assist you with the training process.
What do I do when my Internet service is not operating?
Follow the Procedures for Temporary Disconnect from the Internet
What information do I need to have on hand, from the vessel operator, to begin the eLandings reporting process?
You will need:
- CFEC permit(s) appropriate to the fishery - the plastic card(s) provided to individuals by CFEC
- ADF&G vessel number
- Number of crew and observers on board.
- Dates when fishing began and ended
- Harvest-related information (such as statistical areas and number of pot lifts)
- CDQ identification number (if applicable)
- For Crab IFQ landings: IFQ and, if Class A IFQ, IPQ permit number(s) to be debited NMFS Person ID of the IFQ permit holder (if present) or his/her licensed Hired Master - if applicable
- For Halibut/Sablefish IFQ landings: IFQ permit number(s) to be debited NMFS Person ID of the IFQ permit holder (if present) or his/her licensed Hired Master - if applicable
What is the difference between an initial report and a final report in eLandings? If the initial report will not change, can I submit this report as the final report?
Initial reports are submitted, and show up on your report menu page when you log in to remind you to complete them and submit them as final reports. Reports that have been submitted as FINAL do not display, but are available from the Search for Reports section of the Reports Menu, under Status.
Both the initial reports and reports that have been submitted as final can be updated and resubmitted for up to three months. If the landing report date of landing is greater than 30 days old, you must first contact NMFS In-season management to modify the report. The only exception is with the IFQ portion of the landing report. Once you have submitted the IFQ report, you must contact NOAA Enforcement Data Clerks to request a modification to the submitted report. Prior to submission, the IFQ portion of the landing report can be edited.
If you have a modification to a landing report (non-IFQ landing or not related to the IFQ portion of the report) that was submitted as final, simply locate the section of the report that requires a corrective action, select the appropriate Add/Edit button, locate the data field and make the edit. Save your edits.
How do I locate a finalized landing report?
Finalized eLandings reports are easily located from the Search for Reports section of the Reports Menu web page. This is the first page that is displayed after you log on to the application.
If you know the Report ID number or fish ticket number, that is all that is required to locate a specific report.
You can search for and display all initial, final, and not submitted landing reports from STATUS:
You can also search for and display all reports by report type – crab or groundfish landing report, or shoreside production, or at-sea production report from REPORT TYPE:
I started a landing report but did not submit the report yet. Can I delete it?
The eLandings system allows you to easily delete an unsubmitted report. From the Reports Menu, select the link indicated with the arrow in the illustration below.
The link opens a web page that allows you to select the unsubmitted report you want to delete.
Note that all the fields have to match EXACTLY what is contained in the landing report you are deleting. If you get an error, then re-display the landing report and double check the values.
How do I remove an unsubmitted IFQ Report from my landing report?
There are several scenarios when you might need to remove an unsubmitted IFQ Report:
- If you generated the IFQ report, but then ended up doing a manual landing via the Data Clerks. In this case, you cannot finalize your landing report until you delete the unsubmitted IFQ repots.
- You need to edit the itemized catch or stat area worksheet on your landing report. In this case you need to remove the unsubmitted IFQ report, make your edits, and then re-generate the IFQ report for the second time.
To remove the report, scroll down to the bottom of the Report Display page. Click on the EDIT IFQ REPORTS button. Then click on the REMOVE UNSUBMITTED REPORTS button.
I am a hired skipper/master in an IFQ fishery. I am also simultaneously fishing my own IFQ quota. I want to provide the coop manager (or other quota owner) with a receipt of their portion of the catch, but I don’t want to give them a copy of my fish ticket. Can I have a second fish ticket created for this portion of the landing?
The eLandings system provides a printable report (PDF) of the landed catch for each IFQ permit. The report includes poundage and value. For the Rationalized Crab fishery, the poundage of deadloss is also documented. The off-load of each trip shall be documented as one landing report, unless the off-load documents a partial delivery to separate processing facilities.
The IFQ Permit Report is available once you have submitted the IFQ Reports. Scroll down the Report Display page until you find the IFQ Report section. Note that the IFQ report numbers are blue and you can click on them.
When you click on the link, it opens a PDF of the report. This report can be printed and provides a record of the catch for each IFQ permit holder.
I am having trouble distinguishing letters and numbers on the CFEC permit card. How can you differentiate the number zero (0) from the letter "O" and the number one (1) from the letter I?
To distinguish the number zero (0) from the letter “O” and the number one(1) from the letter “I” on CFEC permit cards, these characters are embossed with the following distinctive features:
Zero(0): Ø, stroke through the number zero Letter “O”: O, open capital character One(1): 1, one flag at the top of the number Letter “I”: I, horizontal bar at the top and bottom of capital character
This CFEC permit card illustrates the use of the letter I and the numbers zero(0) and one(1).
I am getting an error that the CFEC permit or vessel ADF&G number is invalid. It is the middle of the night and I need to complete this landing report. What can I do?
Because all data elements must be correctly entered in the eLandings application for successful submission of a landing report, critical data elements like the CFEC permit may fail validation and not allow you to complet the landing report. The interim values enable you to continue the reporting process. The interim value must be replaced within 72 hours with the valid ADF&G vessel number or the CFEC permit valid for the fishery and the year. These values are provided to aid processors when an otherwise valid CFEC permit or vessel permit number fails validation. During the 72 hours interim time period, you need to contact the local office of ADF&G or NMFS to obtain assistance.
Interim values:
ADF&G VESSEL NUMBER 99998 CFEC PERMIT FISHERY 9998 CFEC PERMIT NUMBER 00098A CFEC PERMIT SEQUENCE NUMBER 0000W MANAGEMENT PROGRAM OA
Another Processor would like us to custom process the fish they are purchasing. How do I complete a landing report in the elandings system as a custom processor?
To set up a custom processing relationship, the purchaser/owner of the catch must first establish the business relationship with the custom processor. It is very easy to document and establish this relationship in the eLandings System. The purchaser/owner of the catch must have an operation already set up for the plant or vessel that will be doing the actual processing. The purchaser/owner then authorizes the custom processor to act as their agent in receiving (and possibly processing) the catch.
The custom processor will need to provide to the purchaser/owner its identifying codes that are required to take possession of the catch. The codes include the ADF&G Processor Code, the Federal Permit Number, the registered Buyer Number for IFQ halibut or sablefish, and the Registered Crab Receiver Number for IFQ crab.
It is not necessary for the purchaser/owner of the catch to provide the custom processor with a metal code plate to complete the landing report. Once the business relationship operation is established, the eLandings system will automatically display the owner processor and the custom processor within the landing report web window.
Complete instruction on establishing a custom processing relationship is available in the eLandings User's Guide,section 4.4.6.
For more information on adding users to your operation see the eLandings User's Guide section 4.3.3 or call Jennifer Hogan at (907) 586-7462.
Why does eLandings show decimal’s on weights? We do everything rounded to whole pounds, why can’t eLandings do the same?
The eLandings system has to deal with multiple levels of splitting and allocating weights among permits. Particularly when generating IFQ reports on landings with many statistical areas entered on the statistical area worksheet, the weights, and (numbers of crab), are divided and subdivided, and are treated as fractions that can be added back together. If eLandings used a scheme to always divide out whole numbers then problems would occur if for example an itemized catch line had 50 pounds and 5 crab, with 6 statistical areas in the statistical area worksheet. One statistical area would get zero crab weighting 8.3 pounds (50 divided by 6), which makes no more sense than .83 crab. Handling divisions using fractions rather than by complex rules of where to put the remainders simplifies the system and avoids problems where the special rules are not right. If you want to see only pounds with no fractions you can always edit the itemized catch by hand, and avoid using the statistical area worksheet.
You can change the number of decimals that eLandings will display for your operation by going to your "User Profile." The link is located at the top of the eLandings screen.
Why are you asking for the number of crew on-board the vessel? Does this include processing crew for a Catcher Processor operation?
This information is needed for economic analysis of the fisheries. This number includes State of Alaska licensed crew only, not processing crew.
Why are you asking for the number of observers? Who are these observers?
This information assists in-season managers in evaluating harvest. In crab fisheries, observers are State of Alaska certified crab observers.
What if I do not have an observer on-board?
If you do not have an observer on board, report 0 observers.
What specifically do you want when you ask for the "number of days fished"?
The number of days that the gear was in the water, actively fishing. This would include soak days (times) for pots and longline gear. Days spent traveling to or from the grounds, if gear has been removed from the water, are not considered when calculating days fished.
I am a Hired Master for a cooperative or another IFQ permit holder for whom I'm authorized to fish. I have a NMFS ID number and the IFQ permit holder has a NMFS ID number. Which NMFS ID should be recorded for the landing report?
Record the NMFS ID for the individual who holds the CFEC permit and will sign the fish ticket.
Do I need to print out the ADF&G fish ticket from the eLandings system? Do I need to have these forms signed by the CFEC Permit holders? Do I need to imprint the CFEC Permit Card?
Yes to all of these questions.
Do I continue to complete an ADF&G paper fish ticket form, in addition to the eLandings system reporting?
No, all required reporting for both the ADF&G and NMFS RAM can be completed using the eLandings system. eLandings will generate a paper fish ticket that you must print, sign, and submit to ADF&G within 7 days of the end of the offload. Completed ADF&G fish tickets should be sent to your local ADF&G office
Local staff frequently will pick up fish tickets from processors, weekly. Please check with the local office to determine the preferred procedure.
What do I do if I receive an error message in the eLandings system and cannot submit my report?
The eLandings system provides you with error messages that indicate the problem and provide you with instructions on rectifying the problem.
When you get an error message you can click on the blue text of the error message to get more information. The Error Message details provides a description of the error, probable causes, and corrective action.
If you need additional assistance, contact the eLandings Help Desk at their toll free number: (888) 443-5726.
It is between midnight and 6 a.m. and I just received an IFQ Red Line error message, to contact NOAA Fisheries Enforcement. What do I do now?
NOAA Fisheries Enforcement provides Data Clerks that can assist you 6 a.m. to midnight. Call their toll-free number (800) 304-4846, option #1, during their business hours. If no one is available to assist you at other times, you will need to wait until 6 am.
If I need to amend submitted reports, why do I have to make separate amendments: both through the eLandings system; and for the IFQ portion, through NOAA Data Clerks?
All data reported through eLandings are received into large data collection repository, and from there it is distributed to the management agencies like NOAA and ADF&G. The "master" or "fish ticket" information may be amended through eLandings; but once NOAA receives the information, it is posted to your IFQ and IPQ permit accounts and is also used in computing vessels caps, etc. IFQ and IPQ accounts are subject to change through quota transfers and therefore must be carefully changed by hand if revisions must be made after the fact. This will help ensure, for example, that a report amendment does not trigger an apparent fishery violation when none has occurred.
How can I capture the electronic version of the landing report for our own operation/bookkeeping system?
eLandings has a feature that will allow you to export the data as an XML format file. On the report display page, right click on the landing report number and save as a file on your computer.
What is XML? How can I obtain the schema for the XML output?
XML is a type of text file that the eLandings system and many other systems recognize. The schema is available by email at: elandings@alaska.gov
Back to top
eLandings and Crab Rationalization
How do I report landings in the new rationalized crab fisheries? What reporting is required by NMFS? What reporting is required by ADF&G?
Registered Crab Receivers are required to report all CR crab fishery landings, and must do so electronically eLandings: http://elandings.alaska.gov/. To use the system you must have a computer and printer, and an Internet connection with email. Then, you must obtain required State and Federal permits, and establish a user account.
Am I required to use the Internet based reporting system, eLandings, to report rationalized crab landings?
Yes, you are required to report CR Crab electronically. The Internet URL is located at http://elandings.alaska.gov/. For the at-sea fleet that does not have Internet service, the seaLandings Processor Workstation can be used to generate files that you will submit via email. This can be obtained by contacting Jennifer Hogan at (907) 586-7462.
I am a Catcher Processor that will participate in the CDQ crab fishery. I do not have an Internet connection on board my vessel. Do I use the seaLandings Processor Workstation to report my catch? How often and when do I report?
For the at-sea fleet that does not have Internet service, the seaLandings Processor Workstation can be used to generate files that you will submit via email. This can be obtained by contacting Jennifer Hogan at (907) 586-7462. You must report once per week. Fish tickets are submitted to ADF&G when you report to port. Send the tickets to the local office of ADF&G. For the Rationalized Crab fisheries, the local office is Dutch Harbor.
ADF&G
Dutch Harbor Office
P.O. Box 920587
Dutch Harbor, Alaska 99692-0587
I will be receiving CDQ crab. Do I use the eLandings system to report this harvest? How do I report catch in the CDQ crab fishery, using the eLandings system?
Yes, CDQ crab other than Norton Sound king crab, is rationalized crab, and must be reported by Registered Crab Receivers, using the eLandings system. For reporting CDQ crab with eLandings, you will need to enter the CFEC CDQ permit, identify the management program, and the specific identification number issued to the CDQ group. You should not enter any information in the IFQ Permit Worksheet including: NMFS ID, IFQ Permit, Species, IPQ Permit, or use the Lbs. to max-out permit.
Screen shot from the eLandings Report page:
The eLandings system for the Rationalized Crab fishery requires price for sold product. Why is price required? Can I record the interim price paid to QS holders? If the price is adjusted up or down, how do I record this post-season adjustment?
Price data are requiredso that we can estimate the fishery value and the appropriate amount of cost recovery fees required by the Magnuson-Stevens Act (due by July 31 following each crab fishing year). If you do not know your final prices at the time of landing, you can provide interim prices. There is no regulatory requirement to later update your prices in eLandings, but you may wish to do so, so that RAM's fee statements will more accurately reflect total crab value and so that your own records will be more complete. Regardless of the prices reported and the dollar amount on RAM's fee statement, by regulation you must pay a percent of the total value (money, goods, and services) paid for the crab.
Discards of at-sea crab: As a participant in the directed crab fishery, do you expect me to document discarded at-sea undersized and female crab?
No, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game manages this fishery and does not require or desire documentation of discarded at-sea undersized or female crab. All other species, crab and non-crab, that are retained and sold, retained for personal use, or retained for bait must be documented on the eLandings Landing Report.
I am a Catcher Processor. I do not know the price per pound that I will receive. What price do I record in the eLandings system?
For crab processed at sea, record a price of $0.01. By regulation, your fee assessment will be based on the ex-vessel prices paid by other Registered Crab Receivers.
How do I record IFQ, CDQ and/or Adak CR Crab for the same trip in the eLandings system?
With eLandings, an entire offload should be recorded as a single landing report. CDQ fishing requires a special CFEC Permit as does IFQ. In other words, you will need to have two CFEC Permits to record both IFQ and CDQ harvests. For the IFQ portion of the report, enter all IFQ information and permits, including NMFS ID, IFQ and IPQ permit numbers, and species associated with that IFQ permit. For the CDQ portion, enter the CFEC permit, the CDQ management program and ID number, only. For a CDQ landing, you should not enter any information in the IFQ Permit Worksheet, including: NMFS ID, IFQ Permit, Species, IPQ Permit, or use the Lbs. to max-out permit.
Screen shot from the eLandings Report page:
Back to top
eLandings and Groundfish (including IFQ halibut/sablefish)
How can I max-out pounds when the IFQ quota is for more than one regulatory area?
A number of processors have reported problems using the eLandings system for some of the more complex deliveries. The problems that we have identified include:
- Multiple CFEC permits
- Simultaneous fishing for IFQ halibut and sablefish
- Harvest of halibut in more than one regulatory area
- Maxing out pounds for specific IFQ, in a specific regulatory area.
The complicating issue is that these situations can and are present for one delivery. Accurate documentation of the area of harvest and accurate debiting of IFQ by area can be challenging.
The eLandings Development Team are exploring long term solutions to address many of the issues that compound the reporting of IFQ sablefish and halibut. We hope to have some of the solutions to simplify reporting of complex deliveries within the next few months.
In the interim, we do have a few suggestions that should offer you some workable solutions.
The eLandings system does allow you to record multiple CFEC permits and multiple IFQ permits for one landing. If the permit holders making the delivery have fished in more than one IPHC regulatory area and would like to use the max out pounds function in the eLandings system, create separate landing reports for the harvest that took place in each of the regulatory areas.
Prior to beginning the landing report, determine if the fisher or fishers will be debiting harvest from more than one IPHC Regulatory Area. The eLandings systems maintains a statistical area codes table that translates each stat area to the federal reporting area and the IPHC Regulatory Area.
The eLandings system Stat Area Worksheet.
If the statistical area(s) is ambiguous, for example it is part of both 2C/3A, the specific management area can be identified in the Edit IFQ section of the eLandings system.
If the permit holder(s) have fished in more than one IPHC Regulatory Area and want to max out pounds for a specific quota area, then a separate landing report should be created for the harvest in each IPHC Regulatory Area.
You will still be able to record multiple CFEC permits when you create separate landing reports for each Regulatory Area and you will still be able to use the Stat Area Worksheet.
I am trying to record halibut and sablefish and by-catch for each species from multiple different stat areas. How do I record multiple species and non-proportional catch in multiple stat areas?
The second complex delivery type involves fishing during the same trip for both sablefish and halibut. It is not uncommon for the harvest of both the target species – the halibut and the sablefish, as well as the bycatch from this fishing, to come from distinctly different statistical areas.
The eLandings System Statistical Area Worksheet may be used to document the harvest from a single or multiple statistical areas if the species that were caught and retained or caught and discarded are equally distributed across all statistical areas fished.
Another alternative is to list the statistical area for the catch and bycatch in the itemized catch section of the eLandings system. In that case, the Stat Area Worksheet would NOT be used to document the area of harvest.
While we strongly prefer that you do not create two landing reports, it may be necessary. Our primary objective is to obtain accurate statistical areas of harvest. This information is used by fisheries management agencies staff for both in-season and long-term harvest assessment.
As a participant in a directed halibut fishery, do you expect me to document discarded at sea undersized halibut?
No, the International Pacific Halibut Commission manages this fishery and does not require or desire documentation of discarded at sea undersized halibut. All other species that are discarded at sea, retained and sold, retained for personal use, or retained for bait must be documented on the eLandings Landing Report.
The vessel that is landing fish has used both pelagic and non-pelagic gear for a single fishing trip. How do I document this in eLandings when only 1 gear code is allowed?
Separate landing reports are required when the vessel uses two separate gear types, even though it is on a single trip. Document the harvest from the portion of the trip for each gear type; and for both landing reports, check the Partial Delivery box.
How can I document after hours landings if we do not have office staff available?
The Interim Fish Ticket forms - groundfish and shellfish (crab) may be used to immediately document the landing after hours – but the landing information MUST be entered into the eLandings system by noon the day following the offload and submitted as either an initial and/or final report. The Interim Fish Ticket forms may not be used for IFQ landings unless the internet is unavailable, and with the authorization of NMFS Enforcement.
At the point of the initiation of the off-load, the vessel operator must provide the receiver/purchaser with the CFEC Permit Card, appropriate and valid for the catch being delivered. The CFEC permit card is embossed (imprinted) on the interim fish ticket form. All other information fields on the 'header' of the ticket are also completed. If off-load (scale) weights are available, all weights by species must be documented on the fish ticket. If off-load (scale) weights are not immediately available because the catch is being sorted, estimated or hailed weights can be documented. Please indicate estimated or hailed weights with the label, EST behind the poundage. The vessel operator and the receiver/buyer must both sign the interim fish ticket. The vessel operator may indicate that the signature is interim until final report documentation is provided. A copy of the completed interim fish ticket should be provided to the vessel operator.
By noon the day following the offload, the interim fish ticket MUST be entered into the eLandings System and submitted as an initial and/or final report. The copy of the interim fish ticket, and a copy of the final submission of the fish ticket should be stapled together and sent to the local office of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game within seven (7) days of the date of landing.
Revisions and corrections to landing reports and the individual fish ticket(s) that comprise the landing reports can be submitted, even after the landing report has been submitted as a final report. IFQ reports that have been submitted CANNOT be re-submitted. If a correction to a submitted IFQ report is required, you must contact the IFQ Data Clerks at 1-800-304-4846, Option #1.
Back to top
IFQ/IPQ Annual Account Information Questions
How can I check the IFQ balance within the eLandings system?
The IFQ balance for individual quota shareholders is confidential to the shareholder. IFQ balances should only be checked by the permit holder prior to fishing and prior to landing. We have established two links within the eLandings web application to allow the IFQ Permit Holder to check account balances. These links are 1) just below the IFQ Permit Worksheet, within the Vessel, Permit, Location Information section of the application, and 2) in the IFQ Reports section. These link locations allow for the review of IFQ account balances prior to documenting how many pounds to max-out the permit, as well as before and after submission of the IFQ report.
The direct URL to the NOAA web site to check halibut and sablefish IFQ account balances is: https://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/webapps/ifqaccounts/Login
The direct URL to the NOAA web site to check crab IFQ account balances is: https://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/webapps/crabaccounts/Login
What if my IFQ or IPQ balance does not match the NMFS RAM balance as displayed on the Internet site?
You should contact the NOAA Fisheries, Restricted Access Management (RAM) Program staff during business hours at 1-800-304-4846, option # 2.
I'm a harvesting cooperative manager, how do I obtain my cooperative's account balance?
A cooperative is an organized, NOAA-approved collection of Quota Share holders, each of whom agrees to assign his/her annual IFQ to a harvesting cooperative. The cooperative, and not the quota share holder, receives the annual IFQ permit for any IFQ pounds assigned to the cooperative. Each cooperative designates an individual to be its official representative. That individual has been notified of the password necessary to use the Internet to obtain account and vessel balances on line and can share that information with anyone they choose. Every IFQ permit holder (including cooperatives) and their Hired Masters can obtain their IFQ account balances on line.
Back to top
How to Get More Help?
For assistance with eLandings web application:
- See the eLandings User's Guide
- eLandings Help Desk: 1-888-443-5726 (available 24/7)
- Jennifer Hogan: (907) 586-7462 (business hours)
- Jennifer Mondragon: (907) 586-7010 (business hours)
For IFQ/IPQ information, permits, licenses, and fee collection call: NMFS RAM: (800) 304-4846, option # 2.
For assistance with seaLandings Processor Workstation call Jennifer Hogan: (907) 586-7462 or Patty Britza: (907) 586-7376 during business hours.
For red-line errors in the IFQ/IPQ reporting section of eLandings call: IFQ Data Clerks, toll-free at: (800)-304-4846, option #1.
More information on the Rationalized Crab Program:
- See the Crab Rationalization Frequently Asked Questions
- For information on crab regulations and federal permit applications go to: http://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/sustainablefisheries/crab/rat/forms.htm.
Back to top