Flag states: who stands behind your seafarer contract
59 flag states with verified modules in the MLC Contract Check · facts verified against the official registry or administration website, the ILO ratification register and the flag's own MLC circulars (verification dates on each page; thirty flags added on September 1, 2026, among them every flag on the Paris MoU black list) · each page shows the flag's Paris MoU, Tokyo MoU and ITF rating
The flag on the stern decides which administration implements and enforces the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 on your ship, which law governs your seafarer employment agreement, and where an MLC complaint goes. Not your home country, and not the address on the company letterhead. Pick your flag for the authority, the governing law, the complaint contact and the MLC checklist every SEA has to meet.
The registries with verified modules
| Flag | Authority | Complaint contact |
|---|---|---|
| Liberia | The Liberian Registry (LISCR) | MLComplaints@liscr.com |
| Panama | Panama Maritime Authority (AMP) | mlcsegumar@amp.gob.pa |
| Marshall Islands | The Republic of the Marshall Islands Maritime Administrator | register-iri.com, Seafarers section |
| Bahamas | Bahamas Maritime Authority (BMA) | stcw@bahamasmaritime.com |
| Malta | Transport Malta | mlc.tm@transport.gov.mt |
| Italy | Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport | lavoromarittimo.mit.gov.it |
| Bermuda | Bermuda Shipping and Maritime Authority (BSMA) | enquiries@bermudashipping.bm |
| Hong Kong | Marine Department of the Hong Kong SAR Government | mardep.gov.hk |
| Singapore | Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) | mpa.gov.sg |
| Netherlands | Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT | psc@ilent.nl or the online MLC complaint form at english.ilent.nl |
| Germany | BG Verkehr | ism-mlc@bg-verkehr.de |
| Cyprus | Shipping Deputy Ministry (SDM) | mlc@dms.gov.cy |
| Portugal (Madeira / MAR) | DGRM (Direcao-Geral de Recursos Naturais | mlc.complaints@dgrm.mm.gov.pt |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Department of Marine Services and Merchant Shipping (ADOMS) | technical@abregistry.ag |
| Norway (NOR / NIS) | Norwegian Maritime Authority (Sjofartsdirektoratet) | post@sdir.no |
| Greece | Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy with the Hellenic Coast Guard | dner@hcg.gr |
| Cayman Islands | Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands (MACI) / Cayman Islands Shipping Registry | shipping.master@cishipping.com |
| Isle of Man | Isle of Man Ship Registry (IOMSR) | marine.mlc@gov.im |
| Gibraltar | Gibraltar Maritime Administration (GMA) | maritime.survey@gibraltar.gov.gi |
| United Kingdom | Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) | mlc@mcga.gov.uk |
| Denmark (DIS) | Danish Maritime Authority (Soefartsstyrelsen) | cfs@dma.dk |
| France (RIF) | Direction generale des affaires maritimes | Cerfa 16006*01, plainte ou reclamation des gens de mer |
| Spain (Canary REC) | Direccion General de la Marina Mercante (DGMM) | Onshore complaints go to a Capitania Maritima; the DGMM distributes them and passes labour matters to the Inspeccion de Trabajo |
| Croatia | Ministarstvo mora | uprava.sigurnosti.plovidbe@pomorstvo.hr |
| Curacao | Maritime Authority of Curacao (MAC) | manningshipr@maritimecuracao.org |
| Barbados | Barbados Maritime Ship Registry (BMSR) | registry@barbadosmaritime.com |
| China | China Maritime Safety Administration (China MSA) | The maritime administration of the port, by phone, letter, fax, e-mail or in person |
| Japan | Ministry of Land | +81 3 5253 8647 |
| South Korea | Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) | +82 44 200 5745 |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | St. Kitts & Nevis International Ship Registry (SKANReg) | mail@stkittsnevisregistry.net |
| Palau | Palau International Ship Registry (PISR) | info@palaushipregistry.com |
| Togo | Ministry of Maritime Economy | complaint@togoregistrar.com |
| Guinea-Bissau | International Ships Registry of Guinea-Bissau (G-B I.S.R.) | gbi@gbisr.com |
| Belize | International Merchant Marine Registry of Belize (IMMARBE) | seafarerservices@immarbe.com |
| Vanuatu | Office of the Maritime Administrator | info@register-vu.com |
| Vietnam | Vietnam Maritime and Waterway Administration (VIMAWA | cuchhvn@vinamarine.gov.vn |
| Comoros | Comoros Maritime Administration (National Agency of Maritime Affairs) | info@comorosmaritime.org |
| Tanzania (Zanzibar) | Zanzibar Maritime Authority (ZMA) | mlc@zma.go.tz |
| Cameroon | Ministry of Transport of Cameroon | No MLC complaint channel exists because Cameroon is not party to the Convention. Use the on-board procedure, then the ITF inspector and port state control in your next port. |
| Philippines | Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) | +63 2 8527 3000 |
| India | Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) | crews@dgshipping.com |
| Indonesia | Directorate of Shipping and Seafarers (Direktorat Perkapalan dan Kepelautan) | kepelautan@dephub.go.id |
| Russia | Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transport (Rosmorrechflot) | +7 495 626 1100 |
| Türkiye | Directorate General of Maritime Affairs (Denizcilik Genel Müdürlüğü) | +90 312 203 1000 |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (SVG MARAD) | technical@svg-marad.com |
| Sierra Leone | Sierra Leone Maritime Administration (SLMARAD) | info@slmarad.com |
| Cook Islands | Maritime Cook Islands (MCI) | mlc@maritimecookislands.com |
| Tuvalu | Tuvalu Ship Registry | info@tvship.com |
| Thailand | Marine Department (Krom Chao Tha) | saraban@md.go.th |
| Egypt | Egyptian Authority for Maritime Safety (EAMS) | +20 3 483 3698 or +20 3 480 2681 |
| Bangladesh | Department of Shipping | info@dos.gov.bd |
| United States | United States Coast Guard | CG-CVC-1@uscg.mil |
| Luxembourg | Commissariat aux affaires maritimes (Luxembourg Maritime Administration) | cam@cam.etat.lu |
| Belgium | Belgian Maritime Inspectorate (BMI) | mlc@mobilit.fgov.be |
| Sweden | Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen) | sjofart@transportstyrelsen.se |
| Finland | Finnish Transport and Communications Agency (Traficom) | kirjaamo@traficom.fi |
| Ireland | Marine Survey Office (MSO) | MSO@transport.gov.ie |
| Faroe Islands | Faroese Maritime Authority (Sjóvinnustýrið | fma@fma.fo |
| Saudi Arabia | Transport General Authority (TGA) | 19929@tga.gov.sa, hotline 19929 |
Flag not listed? The check still runs against the full MLC 2006 baseline: pick "MLC only" in the flag grid. Use the "Add the flag of my ship" line under the grid to ask for a new module; every message is read.
How to find the flag your ship sails under
Four places carry it, and they should all agree. The stern of the ship, next to the port of registry. The Certificate of Registry in the master's office. Your seafarer employment agreement, which names the law it runs under. And the Maritime Labour Certificate with the Declaration of Maritime Labour Compliance, which MLC Standard A5.1.3 requires to be posted where crew can read it.
If the SEA names one country and the certificate on the notice board names another, stop there and ask. A contract written under one law for a ship registered under another is the kind of mismatch that decides who pays for your flight home.
What the flag does not decide
The flag sets the administration and the governing law. It does not set your wage. That number lives in your SEA and in any collective agreement the SEA names, and the ILO floor for an able seafarer is USD 690 per month from January 1, 2026.
It also closes no doors. Port State Control can inspect a ship against the MLC in any port that enforces the Convention, whatever flies at the stern, and an ITF inspector can take your case in parallel. Flag state, port state, union: three routes, and using one keeps the others open.
Check my contract free
Sources and scope: methodology and sources. Automated AI document check, not legal advice.