The Professional Yachting Association and Italian Yacht Masters Association Issue Fake License Warning

The Professional Yachting Association (PYA) and the Italian Yacht Masters Association (IYM) have raised concerns about “a surge in unqualified crew with fake or purchased licenses.”

While this poses a clear safety risk, the Professional Yachting Association emphasizes: “It is also in the best personal interests of all crew not to waste money on any CoC … not recognized by the major flag states in yachting. The same principle applies to any type of training course (deck, engineering, or interior) … not accredited by the rigorous requirements of national educational establishments or the industry-driven GUEST-audited courses.”

The PYA shares that there are procedures to identify fraudulent licenses, and the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) and Transport Malta (TM) actively work to denounce these documents. However, some loopholes remain. The International Maritime Organization maintains a list of countries that meet their strict minimum training and certification standards for seafarers.

“The PYA and IYM urge all yacht crew, managers, recruiters, and insurers to only accept white-list CoCs to ensure the safety and legitimacy of your yachting operation,” the email said. Those crew who hold CoCs from a non-white list country will face challenges.

“Holders of a CoC from a non-white list country will most likely be denied a Certificate of Equivalency, they will likely be rejected as a viable manning solution for white list flagged vessels, and their sea time and training may either be highly scrutinized or not accepted at all towards a CoC from a white list country,” said the PYA and IYM in their joint statement.

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