ICC International Certificate of Competence

The International Certificate of Competence (ICC) was introduced by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Inland Transport Committee to provide boat owners and charterers with a document issued in their own country and recognised throughout Europe.

The rules on where, and for what type of boat, you might need to have a certificate as a visitor, vary from country to country. In some you will need a certificate on inland but not in coastal waters and you may need a certificate only for motorboats, or for boats over a particular length, capable of a speed in excess of a certain number of knots or with engines over a certain power.

Individual countries change their rules from time to time and the actual practice of local maritime officials has been reported as being at variance with national regulations. In some countries, whose laws require certificates for all boat users, the local harbour masters and marine police are not in the least interested, while in others, whose laws do not require visitors to have certificates, harbour masters ask to see them and there is much tut-tutting if one cannot be produced.

As a general rule, the further inland and the further south you go, the more likely it is that you will need to carry a Certificate of Competence.

Many certificate holders take the view that, even though they may not strictly have to have one, it is easier to take the test in English than to waste a day's holiday on a multilingual argument with a harbour master who is insisting that a certificate must be produced before the entry or exit formalities can be completed.

Useful Information

What about CEVNI?

CEVNI is the code of signs, rules and procedures governing navigation on all the interconnected European inland waterways.

A CEVNI qualification is a legal requirement for all users of the Inland Waterways of Europe.

An ICC valid for inland waters is supplemented by a written test on the CEVNI rules. This is a multiple choice question paper based on the rules laid out in the RYA publication 'European Waterways Regulations'.

Is there a minimum age?

Yes. The minimum age for the issue of ICC's is 16.

Who Issues ICCs?

ICCs are issued in the UK, to British Nationals, by the RYA, following satisfactory completion of an ICC test.

Where can I take an ICC test?

RYA Affiliated Clubs who have applied to the RYA to carry out ICC tests, and at RYA Recognised Training Centres