2021/22 and 2022/23 Bristol Bay Red King Crab and Bering Sea Snow Crab Disasters

 

Updated
on 5/1/2026

Captains and Crew Members

  • Applications opened at 12:00 PM AKDT on September 29th, 2025
  • Applications closed at 11:59 PM AKST on December 31st, 2025
  • Late applications were not accepted

 

Initial relief checks for captains and crew were mailed Friday, May 1st, 2026.

 

Some captains and crew who were identified and sent applications did not apply. Normally, the money set aside for them would have gone back to the U.S. Treasury when the program ended. To prevent that, ADF&G added a rule directing PSMFC to redistribute unused, vessel-specific funds that were originally intended for certain captains and crew to other eligible captains and crew from that same vessel who did apply.

 

However, this approach did not account for certain situations, such as when only one or two people from a vessel applied, or when no one applied at all. If applied as written, it could have resulted in payments far larger than intended. For example, someone who was supposed to receive about $4,000 could have received around $91,000, an increase of more than 2,175%, which is inconsistent with the intent of the program.

 

To address this, the spend plan was modified. Each person’s original calculated payment was used to determine their share of the remaining funds. As a result, all eligible applicants will receive a second payment equal to 17.5% of their total award.

 

The second round of payments is currently expected to be mailed by May 8th, 2026. If this changes, updates will be posted here.

 

Please wait at least three weeks from the mailing date before contacting PSMFC about the status of your check. This allows time for delivery or for undeliverable mail to be returned.

  • For checks mailed May 1st, 2026, wait until at least May 28th, 2026.
  • For checks expected to be mailed May 8th, 2026, wait until at least June 1st, 2026.

 

For updates, please continue to check this website.

Quota Shareholders

Relief checks for quota shareholders were mailed on Friday, September 5th, 2025.

If you applied but have not received your check, please write to: AKFishDisaster@psmfc.org

Vessel Owners

Initial 75% payments to qualifying vessel owners were mailed on Monday, July 28th, 2025. 

A second payment (the remaining 25% ) was mailed along with captain and crew disbursements along with captain and crew payments, on Friday, May 1st, 2026. The purpose of issuing two payments was to ensure that vessel owners cooperate and assist in resolving any questions regarding crew eligibility and crew shares.

Processors

Due to the low number of qualifying processors (both active processors and processor quota shareholders), PSMFC was able to review and process those claims with minimal effort. Relief disbursement occurred in May 2025.