Pursuant to the Circular, several general and other professional requirements for foreign crew members’ eligibility for working on board Vietnamese-flag ships are amended as follows:
- If a foreign crew member is not qualified for receipt of a work permit, in order to work on board a Vietnamese-flag ship, he/she must obtain a written certification issued by the Employment Department of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs and a provincial Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs (this does not, however, exist in regulations currently in force);
- An additional requirement relating to the passport validity is that a crew member holds the passport which is at least 06 months left to the expiry date and is issued by a competent regulatory authority in his/her home country.
According to Ms. Nguyen Thuy Han, a legal advocate in charge of the LawSoft’s Law Forum, these additional requirements will contribute to improving safety for work at sea and preventing any accident likely to occur due to any crew member’s ineligibility.
- An additional requirement related to practical experience is that a crew member is required to work at sea for at least 36 months.
- A qualification requirement is that, if a crew member holds a qualification issued by regulatory authorities in countries with which Vietnam has signed agreements on recognition of qualifications under the STCW Convention, he/she will need to apply for the Recognition of Certificate of Competency.
Circular No. 43/2019/TT-BGTVT is entering into force on August 1, 2020.
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