The Merchant Shipping (Maritime Labour Convention) (Medical Certification) Regulations 2010

Made: 10th March 2010

Laid before Parliament: 12th March 2010

Coming into force: 6th April 2010

The Secretary of State makes the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by section 85(1)(a) and (b), (1A), (1B), (3) and (5) to (7) and section 86(1) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 and section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 .

In accordance with section 86(4) of the Merchant Shipping Act the Secretary of State has consulted the persons referred to in that section.

Citation, commencement and revocations

1

• (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Merchant Shipping (Maritime Labour Convention) (Medical Certification) Regulations 2010 and shall come into force on 6th April 2010.

• (2) The following Regulations are revoked—

• (a) the Merchant Shipping (Medical Examination) Regulations 2002 , and

• (b) the Merchant Shipping (Medical Examination) (Amendment) Regulations 2005 .

Interpretation

2

In these Regulations—

• “the Act” means the Merchant Shipping Act 1995,

• “approval” means an approval given by the Secretary of State in writing and which specifies the date on which it takes effect, its duration and the conditions (if any) on which it is given, and “approved” has a corresponding meaning,

• “Code of Practice” means one of the following Codes of Practice—The Code of Practice for the Safety of Small Commercial Sailing Vessels, published in 1993 by the Stationery Office (ISBN 0-11-551184-9),The Code of Practice for the Safety of Large Commercial Sailing and Motor Vessels, as set out in Merchant Shipping Notice 1792(M),The Code of Practice for the Safety of Small Commercial Motor Vessels, published in 1993 by the Stationery Office (ISBN 0-11-551185-7),The Safety of Small Workboats and Pilot Boats — A Code of Practice, published in 1998 by the MCA,The Code of Practice for the Safety of Small Vessels in Commercial Use for Sport or Pleasure Operating from a Nominated Departure Point, published in 1999 by the Stationery Office (ISBN 0-11-551812-6),

• “the MCA” means the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, an executive agency of the Department for Transport,

• “medical condition” includes both injury and illness, and a “significant medical condition” is a medical condition which adversely affects or is reasonably likely to adversely affect the seafarer’s ability to carry out his or her duties, including the seafarer’s ability to undertake emergency duties;

• “medical fitness certificate” means a certificate attesting to a person's fitness to perform the duties which that person will carry out at sea and which is issued under regulation 8 or 14 (whether or not subject to restriction or conditions),

• “medical practitioner” means a person approved by the Secretary of State to issue medical fitness certificates who is —in the case of a practitioner ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom, a fully registered person who—holds a licence to practise; ormeets the criteria specified in Merchant Shipping Notice 1839(M), being criteria which the Secretary of State considers appropriate having regard to the evidence of continuing professional development which such a practitioner must demonstrate in order to obtain a licence to practise; orin the case of a practitioner not ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom, a person who meets the criteria specified in Merchant Shipping Notice 1839(M), being criteria which the Secretary of State considers appropriate having regard to the qualifications and other credentials which must be demonstrated by a person falling within paragraph (a),

• “Merchant Shipping Notice” means a notice described as such and issued by the MCA, and any reference to a particular Merchant Shipping Notice includes a reference to a Merchant Shipping Notice amending or replacing that Notice which is considered by the Secretary of State to be relevant from time to time,

• “offshore installation” means any installation which is intended for underwater exploitation of mineral resources or exploration with a view to such exploitation,

• “relevant inspector” means a person mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of section 258(1) of the Act

• “seafarer” means any person, including a master, who is employed or engaged or works in any capacity on board a ship and whose normal place of work is on a ship;

• “sea-going” in relation to a United Kingdom ship means—a ship which operates outside the waters specified as Category A, B, C and D waters in Merchant Shipping Notice 1837(M);a ship to which the Merchant Shipping (Survey and Certification) Regulations 1995 apply and in respect of which no exemption granted under regulation 2(2) of those Regulations applies;a ship which is a large vessel within the meaning of regulation 3(1) of the Merchant Shipping (Vessels in Commercial Use for Sport or Pleasure) Regulations 2025 in respect of which a certificate of compliance has been issued in accordance with regulation 9 of those Regulations, ora high speed craft in respect of which a permit to operate outside waters of Categories A, B, C or D has been issued in accordance with regulation 14 of the Merchant Shipping (High Speed Craft) Regulations 2022;

• “ship” includes a hovercraft, and

• “United Kingdom ship” means a ship which is—a United Kingdom ship within the meaning of section 85(2) of the Act,a Government ship within the meaning of section 308(4) of the Act which is ordinarily engaged in commercial maritime operations, ora hovercraft registered under the Hovercraft Act 1968 .

Meaning of “seafarer”

3

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Meaning of “pleasure vessel”

4

• (1) Subject to paragraph (4), for the purposes of these Regulations a “pleasure vessel” is a vessel of a type described in paragraph (2) or (3).

• (2) The first type of pleasure vessel is a vessel—

• (a) wholly owned by an individual and used only for the sport or pleasure of the owner or the immediate family or friends of the owner, or

• (b) wholly owned by a body corporate and used only for the sport or pleasure of employees or officers of the body corporate, or their immediate family or friends,

which is on a voyage or excursion in respect of which the owner is not paid for or in connection with operating the vessel or carrying any person, other than as a contribution to the direct expenses of the operation of the vessel incurred during the voyage or excursion.

• (3) The second type of pleasure vessel is a vessel wholly owned by or on behalf of an unincorporated association formed for the purposes of sport or pleasure which, at the time it is being used, is used only for the sport or pleasure of members of that unincorporated association or their immediate families, and for the use of which any charges levied are paid into the funds of, and applied for the general use of, that unincorporated association.

• (4) A vessel is not in paragraph (2) or (3) if payments other than those mentioned in those paragraphs are made by or on behalf of the users of the vessel, other than the owner of the vessel.

• (5) In paragraphs (2) and (3) “immediate family” means, in relation to an individual, the spouse or civil partner of the individual, and a sibling, ancestor or lineal descendant of that individual or of that individual's spouse or civil partner.

Application

5

• (1) Subject to paragraph (2)—

• (a) these Regulations apply to sea-going United Kingdom ships wherever they may be, and

• (b) regulation 20 applies to sea-going ships (including hovercraft) which are not United Kingdom ships, when they are in a United Kingdom port or United Kingdom waters.

• (2) These Regulations do not apply to—

• (a) pleasure vessels,

• (b) fishing vessels,

• (c) warships or naval auxiliaries,

• (d) offshore installations whilst on their working stations.

• (3) These Regulations do not apply to (in the case of regulation 7, do not apply as respects)—

• (a) any person whose work is not part of the routine business of the ship and whose principal place of work is ashore,

• (b) any person who is subject to any requirement contained in the Working Time Regulations 1998 , the Merchant Shipping (Working Time: Inland Waterway) Regulations 2003 or the Fishing Vessels (Working Time: Sea-fishermen) Regulations 2004 .

Seafarer to have valid medical fitness certificate

6

• (1) Subject to paragraphs (3) and (4), no person may work as a seafarer on a ship to which these Regulations apply unless that person has been issued with a medical fitness certificate which is still valid and is not suspended.

• (2) A seafarer who has been issued with a medical fitness certificate must carry that certificate on board during the term of that seafarer's employment on a ship to which these Regulations apply.

• (3) A seafarer whose medical fitness certificate has expired during the course of a voyage may continue to work until—

• (a) the first port of call at which it is possible for the seafarer to make an application for a medical fitness certificate and be examined by a medical practitioner, or

• (b) the expiry of three months starting on the date of the expiry of the certificate,

whichever is the sooner.

• (4) In urgent cases, with the Secretary of State's approval, if a person—

• (a) does not hold a valid medical fitness certificate, but

• (b) has held a medical fitness certificate for a period of not less than 24 months (or in the case of a person under 18 years at the date of issue of the certificate, 12 months) and that certificate has expired no earlier than one month before the date on which that person joined a ship to which these Regulations apply,

that person may work as a seafarer on that ship until the first port of call at which it is possible for an application for a medical fitness certificate as respects that person to be made and for that person to be examined by a medical practitioner, but in any case not for a period exceeding three months.

• (5) No person may work as a seafarer on a ship to which these Regulations apply in a capacity of sea service or in a geographical area precluded by any restriction in that person's medical fitness certificate.

• (6) No person may work as a seafarer on a ship to which these Regulations apply in breach of a condition of that person's medical fitness certificate.

Employment of seafarers

7

• (1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), no person may employ another person as a seafarer on a ship to which these Regulations apply unless that other person has been issued with a medical fitness certificate which is still valid and is not suspended.

• (2) A person may continue to employ as a seafarer, on a ship to which these Regulations apply, a person whose medical fitness certificate has expired during the course of a voyage until—

• (a) the first port of call at which it is possible for the seafarer to make an application for a medical fitness certificate and be examined by a medical practitioner, or

• (b) the expiry of three months starting on the date of expiry of the certificate,

whichever is the sooner.

• (3) In urgent cases, with the Secretary of State's approval, if a person who is a seafarer—

• (a) does not hold a valid medical fitness certificate, but

• (b) has held a medical fitness certificate for a period of not less than 24 months (or in the case of a person under 18 years at the date of issue of the certificate, 12 months) and that certificate has expired no earlier than one month from the date on which the seafarer joined a ship to which these Regulations apply,

another person may employ that person as a seafarer on that ship until the first port of call at which it is possible for an application for a medical fitness certificate as respects that seafarer to be made and for that seafarer to be examined by a medical practitioner, but in any case not for a period exceeding three months.

• (4) No person may employ a person as a seafarer in a ship to which these Regulations apply in a capacity of sea service or in a geographical area precluded by any restriction in that person's medical fitness certificate.

• (5) No person may employ a person as a seafarer in a ship to which these Regulations apply in such a way as to breach a condition of the person's medical fitness certificate.

Application for and issue of medical fitness certificate

8

• (1) If—

• (a) an application for a medical fitness certificate is made to a medical practitioner,

• (b) any fee prescribed in Regulations made under section 302 of the Act has been paid,

• (c) the medical practitioner has examined the person to whom the application relates, and

• (d) having had regard to the medical standards specified by the Secretary of State in Merchant Shipping Notice 1839(M), the medical practitioner considers that the person to whom the application relates is fit to perform the duties which that person will carry out at sea,

the medical practitioner must issue that person with a medical fitness certificate in the form specified in Merchant Shipping Notice 1839(M).

• (2) A medical fitness certificate may, as the medical practitioner considers appropriate—

• (a) be restricted to such capacity of sea service or geographical areas as that practitioner records on the certificate, and

• (b) be subject to such conditions as that practitioner records in accordance with the requirements of Merchant Shipping Notice 1839(M).

• (2A) A person applying for a medical fitness certificate must disclose to the medical practitioner to whom the application is made—

• (a) all existing medical conditions from which the person suffers and of which the person is aware (if any); and

• (b) all medication which the person is taking (if any).

• (2B) Disclosure required by paragraph (2A) must be made with the application or as soon as reasonably practicable afterwards.

• (3) If a person is employed as a seafarer, or has been offered employment as a seafarer, at the time an application is made for a medical fitness certificate under paragraph (1), the person's employer must ensure that the application is made and processed at no cost to the person to whom it relates.

Period of validity of medical fitness certificate

9

A medical fitness certificate is valid only from the date of the medical examination or the date of consideration by a medical referee, as appropriate, and for the following maximum periods—

• (a) in respect of a person under 18 years of age, one year,

• (b) in respect of a person of 18 years of age or over, two years,

or, in either case, such shorter period as is specified on the certificate.

Fitness certificates: Code vessels and domestic passenger vessels

10

• (1) If a person has been issued with a certificate of medical fitness which is specified by the Secretary of State in Merchant Shipping Notice 1839(M) as equivalent to a medical fitness certificate for work on a Code vessel or a domestic passenger vessel, then (unless that person is the master of a domestic passenger vessel) that certificate is for the purposes of regulations 6, 7, 12 and 13 equivalent to a medical fitness certificate, but only as respects that person's work on that type of vessel.

• (2) In paragraph (1)—

• “Code vessel” means a vessel which—operates under a Code of Practice, anddoes not go more than 60 miles from a harbour or shelter of any kind which affords entry (subject to prudence in the weather conditions prevailing) and protection from the force of weather, and

• “domestic passenger vessel” means a ship which is of Class VI or Class VI(A) as defined in the Merchant Shipping (Life Saving Appliances for Passenger Ships of Classes III to VI(A)) Regulations 1999 .

Fitness certificates: non-United Kingdom certificates

11

• (1) A certificate of medical fitness to work as a seafarer which has been issued to a person by an authority empowered to issue such certificates by the laws of any country or territory outside the United Kingdom specified by the Secretary of State in Merchant Shipping Notice 1815(M) is for the purposes of regulations 6, 7 and 12, and for the purposes of regulation 13 other than regulation 13(1)(d), equivalent to a medical fitness certificate, but only until the expiry date specified on the certificate.

• (2) A certificate to which paragraph (1) applies is not equivalent to a medical fitness certificate unless it is issued in English, or in English and some other language.

Reporting of medical conditions

12

• (1) A person who is a seafarer who holds a medical fitness certificate and who—

• (a) is, or is likely to be, absent from work for a period of thirty days or more due to a medical condition, or

• (b) develops a significant medical condition,

must report that medical condition as soon as practicable.

• (2) A report made in accordance with paragraph (1) must be made—

• (a) in the case of a person who has been issued with a certificate of medical fitness, to the authority which issued that certificate,

• (b) in any other case, to a medical practitioner.

• (3) If a seafarer must make the report required by paragraph (1), the validity of that seafarer's medical fitness certificate or certificate of medical fitness is suspended from the date on which it first becomes practicable for that seafarer to make the report until the date (if any) on which a medical practitioner or the authority (as appropriate) has assessed, if necessary by conducting a medical examination of the seafarer, that the seafarer is fit having regard to the medical standards specified by the Secretary of State in Merchant Shipping Notice 1839(M).

• (4) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Suspension and cancellation of medical fitness certificate

13

• (1) This regulation applies if a medical practitioner has reasonable grounds for believing that—

• (a) there has been a significant change in the medical fitness of a person during the period of validity of that person's medical fitness certificate,

• (b) a person is not complying with the terms of a condition to which that person's medical fitness certificate is subject,