Safety Management Certificate (SMC)

A Safety Management Certificate is issued to an individual ship, valid for five years, certifying that the company and its shipboard management operate the ship in accordance with the approved safety-management system under the ISM Code. It can be issued only when the company holds a valid Document of Compliance for that ship type. The SMC is verified by at least one intermediate audit between the second and third anniversaries, and a port state control officer who finds the ISM system has failed in practice can detain the ship for it.