Orange roughy matures slowly and lives for over a century, meaning populations recover very slowly from fishing pressure. Several orange roughy fisheries have been closed or severely restricted, and the species appears on sustainability caution lists from organizations such as the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch. Importers should request current quota documentation and fishery certification from suppliers.

Importers should obtain catch certificates or harvest event records from the exporting country's fishery authority, along with the foreign processor's FDA facility registration and HACCP documentation. If the shipment originates from a fishery subject to NOAA's Seafood Import Monitoring Program, additional chain-of-custody data must be filed in ACE.