Under MTSA (33 CFR Part 104), a foreign vessel subject to the ISPS Code is generally NOT required to submit its Ship Security Plan (SSP) to the US Coast Guard for approval. Why does the US accept ISPS-certified plans without separately re-approving them, while still maintaining a parallel domestic MTSA regime?

A. MTSA fully replaces the ISPS Code for any vessel calling at a US port, regardless of ISSC status

B. A valid International Ship Security Certificate (ISSC) already represents flag-state verification that the SSP meets the SOLAS Ch.XI-2/ISPS Code standard, so the US recognises that certification rather than duplicating it — MTSA exists in parallel mainly to cover vessels and facilities NOT otherwise captured by ISPS (e.g. certain smaller foreign cargo ships between 100-500 GT), not to re-examine ISPS-compliant ships from scratch

C. Foreign vessels are exempt from any US security verification as long as they hold an ISSC, including verification that the plan is actually being followed onboard

D. MTSA and ISPS apply to completely unrelated vessel categories with zero overlap in scope

A. The USCG is a member of all nine regional MoUs simultaneously and applies their combined criteria

B. The MoUs are international agreements between multiple flag/port states sharing inspection data and harmonised deficiency codes; USCG PSC is enforced unilaterally under US domestic law (not a treaty-based MoU), giving the US Coast Guard independent authority to set its own targeting criteria, programmes, and enforcement tools without needing multilateral agreement

C. USCG PSC is legally identical to Tokyo MoU and simply uses a different name for administrative reasons

D. USCG PSC only applies to US-flagged vessels, not foreign vessels calling at US ports

A. The mandatory annual exam makes the targeting matrix redundant, since every vessel is inspected at the same frequency regardless of score

B. Risk-based targeting concentrates inspector effort on higher-risk vessels for more frequent/detailed boarding, but a mandatory minimum annual exam exists as a floor so that even a low-risk-scoring vessel cannot avoid ever being inspected — the two mechanisms work together rather than one replacing the other

C. The targeting matrix determines flag state, not inspection frequency or priority

D. Only Priority I vessels are ever actually boarded; Non-Priority vessels are exempt from inspection entirely