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• Vanuatu Flag Administration has issued Fleet Safety Letter 011519.GEN (copy attached) informing that wef 1 March 2019, cargo ships of 500 GT and above, older than 15 years old and visiting any ports within the Paris, Tokyo or Black Sea PSC MoUs or the United States, are required to hold a valid Statement of Fact confirming the completion of an Additional Flag State Statutory Survey (Additional Survey).

• The Statement of Fact will be issued upon satisfactory completion of the Additional survey, the scope of which will be equivalent to annual surveys of the following certificates:

• Cargo Ship Safety Construction Certificate (SOLAS)
• Cargo Ship Safety Equipment Certificate (SOALS)
• International Oil Pollution Prevention Certificate (MARPOL Annex I)
• International Air Pollution Prevention Certificate (MARPOL Annex VI)
• International Load Line Certificate (Load Line)

• The Statement of Fact will be issued by the Recognized Organization that issued the relevant SOLAS, MARPOL and Load Line statutory certificates, as applicable to the vessel with a validity of six months from the survey completion date.

• The Additional survey must be completed prior to vessel visiting any of the designated ports or, if it is not possible, during the first visit of the vessel to any of the designated ports. The vessel should not depart the first visited designated port within any of the 4 PSC regimes listed above, until the Additional Survey is completed and the Statement is issued.

• During the Additional Survey, if deficiencies are found, a short term certificate will be issued. Upon rectification of the deficiencies, the Statement will be issued using as completion date of the Additional Survey, the date when the surveyor issued the short term certificate.

• If the deficiency related to the International Safety Management Code is noted, the attending surveyor is required to send the report to the Administration. Upon review of the report, the Administration will decide whether a ship and/or company audit is warranted and will provide necessary instructions to the Recognized Organization that issued the Safety Management Certificate and the Document of Compliance.

• The Statement could be issued based on the mandatory statutory surveys required to endorse the statutory certificates listed above, if the surveys are completed within the permissible surveys window and prior to entering any of the applicable ports. Mandatory statutory surveys completed prior to 1 February 2019 cannot be credited for the issuance of the Statement. The validity of the Statement shall be six months from the date the certificates are endorsed.

• Ship owners/ operators and masters of Vanuatu flagged vessels are advised to be guided by the attached Fleet Safety Letter.

Enclosure:

1. Vanuatu International Ship Registry Fleet Safety Letter 011519.GEN, dated 15 January 2019.

Disclaimer:

This Technical Circular and the material contained in it is provided only for the purpose of supplying current information to the reader and not as an advice to be relied upon by any person. While we have taken utmost care to be as factual as possible, readers/ users are advised to verify the exact text and content of the Regulation from the original source/ issuing Authority.

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