Seafarers: Commission welcomes provisional agreement to ensure highest standards for training and certification

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The European Commission welcomes yesterday’s provisional agreement by the European Parliament and Council on its proposal on seafarers’ training and certification.

The co-legislators accepted all the goals set out in the initial Commission proposal, which seeks to simplify and update the EU regulatory framework on training and certification for seafarers, including the mutual recognition of certificates issued by EU Member States. The reform will align EU rules with the recently updated  STCW Convention, which has been adopted by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). It will therefore ensure that seafarers working on-board the EU fleet have top quality knowledge and skills. The reform will also step up the efficiency of the centralised system used to recognise certificates for seafarers issued by third countries. Co-legislators also found agreement on aspects of the digitisation of seafarers’ certificates, possible initiatives to promote the concept of Maritime Certificate of Excellence, and the consideration, in the future, of whether a third country has ratified the Maritime Labour Convention before employing seafarers certified by it. This provisional agreement will now need to be formally approved by the European Parliament and the Council before it can enter into force. 

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