Eligibility
Governing: CISN 01/2024 Rev 02 §2; MSN 051 App. 1; BSN 2025-015 App. 1; VISMA STCW page; Gibraltar list of 14 Dec 2023; MPM Rev 14 §23. Builds on: L1.2.
One list, five copies
The IoM calls its list "the common Red Ensign Group list" (MSN 051 App. 1). Counting the published versions gives about 75 countries besides the UK, and the five copies match closely. The usual yacht sources are there: USA, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Malta, Canada, India, the Philippines and most of Europe.
| Note on the list | Where it appears |
|---|---|
| Australia: AMSA certificates only; state-issued not accepted | Cayman; BVI |
| Hungary: motorships only | Cayman; BVI |
| "Evidence of English not required" (e.g. UK, USA, Canada, Ireland, India, Malta, NZ, South Africa, AMSA) | Cayman; BVI |
| Near-coastal CoCs stay near-coastal | Cayman §2.2 |
The BVI web table has misaligned notes (the AMSA remark sits against Argentina), so read it alongside Cayman's.
Who is not on it
The Marshall Islands, Liberia and Panama appear on none of the five lists. That matters on yachts, where many officers carry an RMI endorsement on top of a national CoC. An RMI endorsement is a recognition, so it cannot be recognised again (Cayman MPM §9(g); Bermuda applies the same logic in §2(3)). Present the national CoC behind it.
The Cayman exception
The RMI issues its own STCW Master (Yachts) Unlimited Tonnage CoC. Cayman "formally recognises this Certificate for service onboard all yachts engaged in trade", including Part A yachts of 3000 GT and over and all Part B vessels (MPM §23). It is an RMI-issued CoC, not an endorsement, which is why it can be recognised. No equivalent statement was found for the other four flags.
The REG list is wider than the UK's
The MCA's FSE list (last updated 30 Jan 2025) is shorter. It omits, among others, Algeria, Argentina, Chile, Egypt, Indonesia, Japan, Oman, Peru and Tunisia. For the USA it accepts only the GMDSS ROC and warns "You may need to take a MCA oral exam". So a CoC the MCA would not recognise can still earn a Cayman, IoM, Bermuda, BVI or Gibraltar endorsement.
Discrepancies within a flag
- Bermuda: the undated FAQ list is shorter than BSN 2025-015 Appendix 1. The notice prevails.
- Cayman: the endorsement web page still links Shipping Notice 05/2011 (Rev 12), which CISN 01/2024 §1.5 revoked.
- BVI: a secondary registry guide says VISMA endorses any "IMO White List" CoC. VISMA's own page shows the narrower REG list; rely on VISMA.
CAUTION — USCG credentials in 2026 During the 2026 NMC funding lapse Cayman recognised USCG STCW dispensations for MMC endorsements expired on or after 1 Jan 2026, ending no later than 31 August 2026 (CIGN 05/2026). The officer carried the original MMC, the dispensation letter, the NMC bulletin and the Cayman endorsement. That window has closed.