What's Actually on Your Workboat Certificate — And What It Means

Why Read Your Own Certificate

Appendix 10 of Workboat Code Edition 3 sets out the actual templates for five distinct certificate types. Most crew never read the certificate their vessel operates under beyond checking the expiry date — but the conditions and limitations printed on it govern real, everyday decisions: whether you can carry passengers over 60 miles from a safe haven, what happens automatically if the vessel is sold, and what paperwork has to be aboard alongside the certificate itself.

Pilot Boat Certificate

Issued specifically for vessels dedicated to pilot transfer work. It records the permitted Area of Operation (Category) and GMDSS Area, the intermediate examination due date, and — importantly — states it is equivalent to a UK Load Line Exemption Certificate, so a separate Load Line certificate isn't required alongside it. Two conditions apply to every Pilot Boat Certificate: it must comply with Documentation of Compliance SWB2, and it is automatically cancelled the moment the vessel is sold and must be returned to the Certifying Authority.

Workboat Certificate (With and Without Pilot Boat Endorsement)

The standard Workboat Certificate carries the same core fields — Gross Tonnage, Hull Identification Number, maximum persons on board, permitted Area of Operation, midterm examination due date — plus a mandatory maximum loading condition, expressed either as a straight weight limit or a reference to the vessel's Stability Information Booklet. Where a vessel also holds a Pilot Boat Endorsement, the certificate additionally names the specific harbour it's approved to operate in as a pilot boat, and caps the maximum number of persons (including crew) permitted for that specific use.

MLC Compliance — The Rule Most Crew Miss

Every certificate type carries the same MLC compliance statement, and it's a genuine trap for the unwary: the certificate is only valid for commercial operation on international voyages, or voyages more than 60 miles from a UK safe haven, with seafarers on board, if the vessel is certificated for Category 0, 1 or 2 and the certificate is accompanied by a valid MLC inspection report. A vessel certified for a lower category, or without that accompanying MLC report, is not covered for that kind of voyage — regardless of what the main certificate itself says.

Workboat Statement of Compliance

A distinct document from the certificates above, issued specifically to confirm Code compliance rather than certify seaworthiness in the certificate sense. It carries the same core vessel data and the same automatic-cancellation-on-sale condition, but is structured as a compliance confirmation rather than a certificate proper.

Light Duty Workboat Certificate

A hybrid document for vessels primarily certificated under the Small Commercial Vessel Code, satisfying both that Code's requirements and Section 3.9 of Workboat Code Edition 3 simultaneously. It exists specifically for vessels used commercially for sport and pleasure under SI 1998 No. 2771 — a narrower category than the standard Workboat Certificate, with its own Documentation of Compliance reference: SCV2, not SWB2.

Check Your Vessel

• All crew: Which of these five certificate types does your vessel actually hold, and does it match the work you're currently doing?
• Skipper/Owner: If your vessel operates internationally or beyond 60 miles from a UK safe haven with seafarers aboard, is a valid MLC inspection report actually carried alongside the certificate — not just referenced?
• Owner/Operator: Do you know the Documentation of Compliance reference (SWB2 or SCV2) your certificate depends on, and where a copy of it is kept?

Source: The Safety of Small Workboats and Pilot Boats — A Code of Practice, 3rd Edition (MCA, published 22 January 2025, in force 13 December 2023), Appendix 10.