The deposit follows the recommendations of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf adopted in August 2016 under Article 76 of UNCLOS. The extension covers approximately 83,000 square kilometres of additional seabed and subsoil. Confirmed by the Uruguayan Ministry of Foreign Affairs via EFE, 14 August 2026, and by the 2016 CLCS and Presidencia records.

The rights are over the seabed and subsoil only. They do not change the legal regime of the water column above. Fishing remains governed by the exclusive economic zone, which stops at 200 nautical miles. The practical effect is jurisdiction over mineral and sedentary resources and over activities such as seismic survey of the shelf. Earlier this year a Norwegian seismic vessel operated inside the claimed 350-nm area without Uruguayan authorisation, arguing that the formal chart had not yet been deposited.

Maritime zones in brief

Baseline: the low-water line along the coast from which the zones are measured.

Territorial sea (up to 12 nm): full sovereignty over the water, seabed, subsoil and airspace. Foreign ships enjoy the right of innocent passage only.

Contiguous zone (up to 24 nm): the coastal state may enforce its customs, fiscal, immigration and sanitary laws.

Exclusive economic zone (up to 200 nm): sovereign rights over living and non-living resources in the water column, seabed and subsoil. Freedom of navigation and overflight for other states remains. The coastal state controls fishing and marine scientific research.

Continental shelf: the seabed and subsoil. Every coastal state has a shelf to at least 200 nm. Under Article 76 it may extend further (up to 350 nm under the criteria) after CLCS recommendations and deposit of the outer-limit chart. Rights are exclusive for exploring and exploiting non-living resources and sedentary species. The water column above the extended shelf remains high seas (or EEZ if still within 200 nm). Navigation is not restricted by the shelf claim alone.

In the South Atlantic the practical pressure is often at the edge of the EEZ and on the high seas just outside it. Chinese distant-water squid fleets concentrate beyond the Argentine EEZ — the so-called Mile 201 line. Documented cases include the 2016 pursuit and sinking of the Chinese jigger Lu Yan Yuan Yu 10 after it was detected fishing inside Argentine waters, and more recent detections of Chinese-owned vessels operating under Vanuatu or Cameroon flags of convenience inside the EEZ. Argentina has already sanctioned several such vessels in 2026. The larger and continuous effort remains on the high-seas side of the 200 nm limit, where a continental-shelf claim does not restrict fishing.

Established

• Uruguay deposited the official outer-limit chart for its continental shelf at 350 nm (MFA / EFE 14 Aug 2026; based on 2016 CLCS recommendations).
• Extension of seabed and subsoil rights by approximately 83,000 km².
• Continental shelf rights under UNCLOS Arts 76–78 are over the seabed and subsoil; they do not automatically control the water column or fishing.

Not established

• The precise 2026 deposited chart image itself (the pack contains the 2009 and 2016 figures).
• Any immediate change in surface navigation or fishing rules.
• Named seismic vessel with IMO for the earlier Searcher case.