Most crew nationalities are accepted to sail as part of the crew compliment on board Malta flagged vessels. This gives Owners and Managers the flexibility on the manning of their vessels in a way which suits their operational needs. It also has a huge impact on the operational costs of the vessel, since crew wages make up a substantial part of the vessel’s budget. Malta requires only Officers serving on board Malta registered ships to carry an endorsement to be issued by the Malta Administration attesting to the recognition of their certificate of competency issued by a foreign Administration. This is not the same for the Ratings as these ranks are not required to have Malta Flag endorsements.
When selecting the Officers to serve on board Malta Flagged vessels one needs to keep in mind that Malta shall only endorse certificates which are issued by the countries with which Malta has signed bilateral agreements. Below is the list of Countries currently recognized by Malta in terms of Regulation I/10 of the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, as amended, which is based on the bilateral agreements signed by Malta and the respective countries.
Recognized Countries under Malta
All Member States of the European Union and the following countries:
| Argentina | Australia | Azerbaijan | Brazil | Cabo Verde |
| Canada | China | Cuba | Egypt | Ethiopia |
| Georgia | Ghana | Hong Kong | Iceland | India |
| Indonesia | Islamic Republic of Iran | Israel | Jamaica | Japan |
| Jordan | Montenegro | Myanmar | New Zealand | Norway |
| Peru | The Philippines | Republic of Korea | Russia | Singapore |
| Sri Lanka | Tunisia | Turkey | Ukraine | United Kingdom |
| United States of America | Uruguay | Vietnam |
Upon receipt of an application for the issuance of a Malta flag endorsement, the Merchant Shipping Directorate shall within a few days of receiving an application issue a CRA, which is an Acknowledgement of Application Endorsement Attesting Recognition of Certificate of Competency. This serves as proof of having applied for an endorsement certificate and is normally valid for 3 months. The CRA is to be carried by the seafarer and a copy also kept on board until the endorsement is issued. The validity of an endorsement certificate is closely linked to the validity of the certificate of competence both of which have to be revalidated every five years by the respective Administration. However, since an endorsement will remain valid up to the first expiring certificate it is endorsing revalidation of an endorsement might need to occur more frequently.
AML’s team has assisted numerous Owners and Managers with the processing of endorsement applications, ensuring that CRAs and endorsements are delivered in a timely manner. Through our extensive experience in crew management, this makes us your ideal partner for the job.
Contact us for more information on maltaflag@amlmalta.com
