Core concepts
Governing: STCW Reg. I/10 (incl. I/10.2 and I/10.5); Cayman MPM Rev 14 §§7, 9. Builds on: L1.1.
Regulation I/10 lets an Administration accept officers certificated by another STCW Party, provided it is satisfied with that Party's standards and issues its own document attesting the recognition. Four ideas carry the system.
1. The endorsement
An endorsement "attesting to the recognition" is the flag's statement that your CoC is good under its flag, in the same capacity and with the same limits. It adds no competence. A valid Bermuda endorsement may be used in the capacity stated on it or in a lower capacity (BSN 2025-015 §5(2)).
2. The underlying certificate
The endorsement is always read with the national CoC, and its life follows the CoC.
| Flag | Endorsement validity |
|---|---|
| Cayman | Valid only while the underlying CoC is valid; renewed each time it is revalidated; no extension beyond it (MPM §9(d)) |
| Isle of Man | Expires with the CoC or on its withdrawal, suspension or cancellation; maximum 5 years (MSN 051 §8) |
| Bermuda | Normally the same expiry as the national STCW endorsement; may be shorter; no extensions (BSN 2025-015 §5(1)) |
3. The CRA
Regulation I/10.5 allows an officer to serve for up to three months on documentary proof that an application has been lodged. Each flag issues a receipt, the Confirmation (or Certificate) of Receipt of Application. Module 3 covers it.
4. LAP at management level
Regulation I/10.2 requires the recognising flag to ensure management-level officers know its maritime law. Cayman lists the certificates caught: II/2, III/2, III/3, and VII/1 at management level, meaning master, chief mate, chief engineer and second engineer (MPM §7). Lesson 4.1 compares how each flag checks it.
Why a recognition cannot be recognised
The UK issues its own recognition document to foreign officers. It was the Certificate of Equivalent Competency (CEC); the MCA now calls it a Flag State Endorsement (FSE). Other flags issue endorsements too. Elsewhere in the Group you cannot stack them:
"Certificates of Equivalent Competency or Endorsements issued by an Administration attesting to the recognition of a certificate issued by another Party cannot be accepted for the purpose of further recognition by the Cayman Islands." (MPM §9(g))
Bermuda says the same of UK CECs: they are the UK's equivalent of its STCW endorsements and cannot be used to obtain a Bermuda endorsement (BSN 2025-015 §2(3)). The flag wants to assess the certificate you earned, not someone else's assessment of it.
WARNING — Endorsements do not chain A Marshall Islands endorsement, a Malta endorsement or a UK CEC on top of your national CoC is not a stepping stone. Apply on the national CoC. Gibraltar's acceptance of the UK CEC is the one exception (Lesson 2.1).
Originals on board
STCW I/2.11 requires certificates to be kept on board in original form, and electronic forms count where the Administration has set the format (CISN 01/2024 §17.3, citing MSC.540(107)). An IoM digital endorsement is itself the original; a printout is uncontrolled (MSN 051 §5).