European Union countries could be ready to accept seafarer’s Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) as evidence of key worker status for allowing them to travel freely.
Seafarers' International Labour Organization (ILO) identification is also seen as an option.
As TradeWinds earlier reported, the closure of European Union missions in the main seafarer supply countries have prevented mariners securing visas to allow them to relieve around 200,000 crew members now trapped on vessels.
A huge backlog is also building up of applications for visas, which is likely to cause problems in labour supply countries even if the coronavirus pandemic eases.
A number of shipping associations have recently written to political leaders within the EU asking them to allow seafarers, which cannot secure visas, free travel to join ships.
A meeting of more than a dozen countries, hosted virtually by the UK, agreed to “new international measures to open up borders to seafarers”.
However, the joint international commitment was short on detail on what that might involve. But it has emerged that EU nations said they would “consider the legal possibilities” of accepting STCW or ILO identification to allow identification of seafarers as key workers. The European maritime nations of Norway, Denmark and Germany attended the meeting.
The move was applauded by North P&I Club chief executive Paul Jennings, who also heads the International Group of P&I Clubs. He had earlier urged the UK summit to come to a solution on the crew crisis. Jennings said he welcomed the joint statement.
“We are especially pleased that the joint statement raises the possibility that either STCW certificates or ILO identity cards could be used as evidence to support the classification of seafarers as key workers to enable travel for crew changes,” he said.
“Now is the moment for administrations to step up and demonstrate that they truly support IMO as the arbiter of standards for global shipping through swift and direct action, rather than conditional undertakings.”
However, the possible security and immigration implications of using STCW or ILO identification could prove too much for EU countries to accept.
Even if the seafarer identification is accepted that is unlikely to overcome the travel and quarantine restrictions that are preventing the free movement of seafarers.
