MLC 2006 compliance checker

The Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC 2006) is the international standard that governs seafarers' working and living conditions. This checker covers the provisions most commonly cited in port-state control deficiencies and seafarer complaints:

· Title 1 — Minimum age (Reg 1.1) and medical fitness (Reg 1.2)
· Title 2 — Seafarers' Employment Agreement (Reg 2.1), wages (Reg 2.2), hours of rest (Reg 2.3), repatriation (Reg 2.5)
· Title 3 — Accommodation (Reg 3.1)
· Title 4 — Medical care (Reg 4.1), shipowner's liability and financial security (Reg 4.2)
· Title 5 — Certification, DMLC posting (Reg 5.1.3), and onboard complaint procedures (Reg 5.1.5)

Disclaimer: This is a study aid for seafarers, students, and maritime professionals. Actual compliance depends on flag-state implementation, vessel type, construction date, and the individual circumstances of each case. It is not legal advice. Provisions may vary where a flag state has made permitted derogations under the Convention.

1.What is your age?

Enter your current age in whole years.

years

2.Do you hold a valid medical fitness certificate?

Valid = issued within the last 2 years (or 1 year if you are under 18). A certificate that has expired, even by one day, is not valid.

3.Did you sign a written Seafarers' Employment Agreement (SEA) before joining the ship?

A verbal agreement or no agreement at all is not sufficient. The SEA must be in writing, signed before joining.

4.Were you given a copy of your SEA to keep?

You must be given your own copy at the time of signing — not just allowed to read the document.

5.Did you pay any fee or charge to the manning agency for obtaining your placement?

This includes any registration fee, administrative fee, or any other charge levied specifically for finding you a job.

6.How long is your contract (continuous service without repatriation)?

Enter the total months of continuous service specified in your SEA, not time on the current voyage.

months

7.Do you receive a written wage account (payslip) at least once a month?

The account must itemise gross pay, deductions, and net amount. A verbal update or a ship's log entry is not sufficient.

8.Are you paid the wages due to you in full at intervals not greater than one month?

Partial or late payment counts as non-payment for the purposes of this question.

9.Do you receive at least 10 hours of rest in any 24-hour period, and at least 77 hours of rest in any 7-day period?

If your ship operates a maximum-hours regime instead, the limits are ≤14 hours work in 24 and ≤72 hours in 7 days.

10.Is at least one of your two required daily rest periods not less than 6 consecutive hours?

Rest may be split into two periods, but one of them must be at least 6 consecutive hours; the other must be at least 2 hours.

11.Is your sleeping accommodation a single-berth cabin, or shared with no more than one other seafarer?

For vessels whose keels were laid after 20 August 2013, MLC generally requires single sleeping rooms. Older vessels may differ depending on size and flag-state implementation.

12.Is the Declaration of Maritime Labour Compliance Part II (DMLC II) posted on board in a location accessible and visible to all seafarers (typically the messroom)?

The DMLC II documents how the shipowner meets MLC on that specific ship. It should be clearly displayed alongside the MLC certificate.

13.Is a financial-security provider (such as a P&I club) named on the ship's MLC certificate, covering unpaid wages and repatriation?

Following the 2014 amendments (in force 2017), ships must carry documentary evidence of financial security for seafarer claims.

14.Do you have free and unhindered access to an onboard complaint procedure, with a posted notice showing the chain of escalation?

There must be a posted notice giving the contact details for the seafarer's flag state and, if different, the country of residence.

15.Are all medical care expenses — including treatment, medicines, and hospitalisation — covered at no cost to you during your SEA period?

The shipowner must bear all medical costs. Any co-payment charged to a seafarer during the SEA period is a breach.

MLC 2006 compliance checker

See also

MLC 2006 compliance checker

See also