Port State control officer: qualification and powers
A port State control officer is the inspector who boards foreign ships for a port State; IMO procedures and the regional MoUs set qualification and conduct.
A port State control officer (PSCO) is the person authorized by a port State’s maritime Authority to board and inspect foreign ships and, where the deficiencies are serious enough, to detain them. The common procedures are in IMO resolution A.1206(34), Procedures for Port State Control, 2025 , and the regional regimes such as the Tokyo MoU add their own qualification and training rules.
The full article will cover the qualification criteria, the powers of boarding and detention, codes of conduct, and how the regional MoUs train and harmonize their officers.