Thematic module · fifth module developed

# PSC Readiness Live

Preparing for Port State Control inspections: checklists, required documentation, Ship Risk Profile, deficiencies, detention/banning, Concentrated Inspection Campaigns, USCG Port State Control, Tokyo MOU, Black Sea MOU, Indian Ocean MOU and Mediterranean MOU specifics, appeal management, Flag State-PSC coordination, PSC risk profile for bulk carriers, fraudulent certificates and registrations.

Each topic below brings together, in a single place: an operational explanation, the regulatory reference, scope of application, procedure, practical example, real cases, common mistakes, PSC observations, operational tips, a checklist and FAQ — regulations verified as of July 2026.

### Pre-PSC Checklist

Practical preparation in the hours and days before a Port State Control inspection: what to check, in what order, and why doing it well in advance changes the outcome.

### Documentation Required on Board

The complete map of certificates and records a PSCO may request: what must be on board, in what form, and the deadlines most often forgotten.

### Ship Risk Profile and New Inspection Regime (NIR)

How the Paris MOU decides which ship to inspect and when: the factors that determine the risk profile and why it pays to know them on board too.

### Communicating with the PSCO

How to behave during the inspection: the crew's rights and duties, the right tone in interviews, and why transparency reduces (not increases) the risk of deficiencies.

### Managing Deficiencies

From detection during the inspection to formal closure: how to manage a PSC deficiency without letting it become a recurring problem.

### Detention and Banning

What happens when a ship is detained, how to get out of a detention, and the often-underestimated rules that lead to a port access ban (banning).

### Concentrated Inspection Campaigns (CIC)

Thematic campaigns of reinforced inspection: how to know in advance what PSCOs will focus on over the coming months, and prepare accordingly.

### USCG Port State Control

A regime of its own, parallel to the Paris and Tokyo MOUs: the frequency of USCG checks depends largely on a single factor — the compliance history of the flag and the ship.

### Tokyo MOU: Regional Specificities

Same principle as the Paris MOU, different numbers: in 2025 the Tokyo MOU conducted a record number of inspections, with a lower but still significant detention rate.

### Black Sea MOU: Regional Specificities

The detention rate in the Black Sea MOU region reached 6.78% in 2025, the highest level since 2007: a regional regime with its own priorities and dynamics, distinct from the Paris and Tokyo MOUs.

### Indian Ocean MOU: Regional Specificities

The Indian Ocean MOU regime, active since 1999 with member States from Australia to Iran, recorded almost 6,000 inspections in 2025 and a detention rate of 4.38%: a regime often less familiar to Western operators.

### Managing an Appeal against a Detention

Filing an appeal does not suspend the detention: the ship remains held until the deficiencies are corrected, regardless of the outcome of the appeal procedure.

### Coordination between Flag State and PSC

The 2025 revision of PSC procedures introduces Duly Authorized Officers and a new Appendix 20 dedicated to security: a signal of the growing formalisation of the relationship between flag State and port authority.

### Mediterranean MOU: Regional Specificities

Thirteen member States from 2026, with France and Albania just joined: the Mediterranean PSC regime is expanding just as detentions record a 20% increase.

### Bulk Carriers: PSC Risk Profile and Recurring Deficiencies

Container ships, bulk carriers and general cargo ships together accounted for 83% of detentions in the first quarter of 2026: it is not the ship's structure that most often comes under PSC scrutiny, but ISM management and maintenance.

### Fraudulent Certificates and Registrations: the New Paris MOU Guidance

It is no longer just a problem linked to the sanctioned shadow fleet: the Paris MOU is flagging a growing number of ships with fraudulent registrations and certificates, and is preparing, for the first time, a harmonised practical guide for handling them.

Coming in future updates to this module: publication of the Paris MOU practical guidance on suspected cases of fraudulent certificates/registrations, coordination between the PSC risk profile and digital statutory certification, handling PSC inspections for alternative-propulsion ships (methanol/ammonia), preparation for the 2027 Concentrated Inspection Campaign on Enclosed Space Entry (already confirmed by Paris MOU/Tokyo MOU to follow the 2026 Cargo Securing campaign).

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