The Government is proposing to extend the breadth of Norway’s territorial sea from 4 to 12 nautical miles and to establish a contiguous zone outside the territorial sea for certain control purposes. These proposals are part of a proposed new Act relating to Norway’s territorial sea and contiguous zone that today is being submitted to the Storting for adoption.

“This will be a historic decision. The new legislation will give Norway one of the world’s most modern regimes for coastal waters,” said Minister of Foreign Affairs Jan Petersen.

Extension of the territorial sea will put the Norwegian authorities in a better position to meet current environmental threats. For example, it will be possible to regulate international shipping further out from the coast than today, thus reducing the risk of maritime accidents.

A great deal of work lies behind the bill that is being submitted today, including a complete update and technical adjustment of the baselines along the entire coastline. Furthermore, legislation in a number of fields has been reviewed.

The Government also proposes that Norway, as one of the first countries in Europe, should establish a contiguous zone extending for a further 12 nautical miles beyond the territorial sea. This control zone will make it possible to enforce Norwegian legislation in certain fields over a wider geographical area, and will put Norway in a better position to deal with new problems related to smuggling of migrants, terrorism, drug trafficking and the protection of archaeological finds.

The proposal has been through a broad consultation process, and there was general support for the extension of Norway’s territorial sea to 12 nautical miles and for the establishment of a contiguous zone.

The new Act will also mean that one of Norway’s oldest pieces of legislation, a Government Decree from 1812, will cease to apply. The decree laid down that the limit of the territorial sea was to be “reckoned up to a distance of one customary marine league from the outer islet or reef from the land which is not washed over by the sea”, which corresponds to about four nautical miles.