The Merchant Shipping Directorate has introduced a set of optional safety guidelines tailored for pleasure yachts under 24 meters in hull length which have entered into force on the 01st June 2026. These guidelines seek to establish a well-balanced yet structured safety baseline for pleasure yachts registered under the Maltese flag and serve as an operational manual detailing the exact technical criteria required to meet the voluntary certification. While compliance is voluntary, the standards are recommended to owners for purposes of safety awareness and are also aimed at meeting safety certification requirements imposed by other jurisdictions.

The recommendations address an extensive array of operational details, including:

• Vessel Integrity & Upkeep: Standard maintenance, clean machinery spaces, and proper CE certification.
• Personnel & Planning: Operator licensing requirements and thorough pre-departure voyage planning.
• Safety & Environment: Emergency equipment standards (such as fire extinguishers, lifejackets, and liferafts), lithium battery safety awareness, and waste/pollution prevention plans.
• Auxiliary Craft & Liability: Safe operation rules for tenders and mandatory third-party insurance brackets.

For yacht owners who choose to align with the guidelines, a voluntary survey may be carried out for release of a Pleasure Yacht Safety Certificate, which remains valid for a five-year term subject to intermediate check-ups. These safety reviews can be completed by authorized Maltese government surveyors or recognized classification societies.
Ultimately, yacht owners who decide to not implement the requirements within the voluntary guidelines are entirely free to navigate exactly as they did before, provided they remain compliant with the standard local and international laws of the waters they enter.

The guidelines may be accessed here.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact the ship registration team at Fenech & Fenech Marine Services Ltd. on shipregistration@fenechmarine.com.