CoC (Certificate of Competency)
Abbreviation: CoC
The STCW certificate proving a seafarer meets the training + experience standard for a specific rank + capacity.
Quick facts
- Standard
- STCW 1978 as amended, 2010 Manila
In practice
Every officer serves under a CoC issued by their flag state. Recognition endorsements (Reg I/10) allow serving on other flags.
Regulatory detail & full definition
A Certificate of Competency (CoC) is issued by a flag-state maritime administration proving that a seafarer meets STCW standards for a specific rank + capacity + trade area. Deck CoCs range from OOW → Chief Mate → Master (unlimited or limited by tonnage / trade). Engine CoCs range from Third → Second → Chief Engineer, similarly limited. Endorsements for tanker, LNG, HSC, polar operations add to the base CoC. See /glossary/stcw-coc for STCW-specific detail.
Authoritative source: IMO — STCW Convention ↗
Related
Source: STCW
High confidence
Editorial confidence: how we grade.