The most recent scientific report shows that stocks of Atlantic bluefin tuna are "in such a bad shape" that the Commission considers the matter to qualify for inclusion in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), said Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik.
This would mean a strict regulation and a ban on international trade in the fish.
The proposal will now be discussed with the 27 EU member states in an effort to draw up a common EU position for the next CITES meeting, which is taking place from 13 to 25 March 2010.
Most European countries have already expressed support for a ban, with Malta and Cyprus seen as the last EU opponents.
EU Fisheries Commissioner Maria Damanaki said that the EU proposal for listing bluefin tuna under Appendix I is subject to some "important conditions".
The Commission proposes that the listing should not take place immediately, but within 12 months of the CITES meeting next month.
The one-year delay, which France says is a condition for its backing, would give European fishermen another season to adjust, and would also allow action by ICCAT, the intergovernmental body for Atlantic tuna fishing.
But Japan is expected to fight hard against a bluefin ban at the next CITES meeting from 13 March, and any move would need the backing of two-thirds of the 175 countries voting.
Scientists say stocks of the Atlantic bluefin, which can grow to the size of a horse, have fallen by more than 80% over the last 40 years to around 3.2 million.
European fishermen catch the fish when they congregate in tightly packed shoals to breed in the Mediterranean, preventing stocks from recovering.
The value of the trade is estimated at nearly $2 billion a year, with about 80% exported to Japan where it is prized by sushi lovers and can sell for $200-300 per kilo.
(EurActiv with Reuters.)
