The Council of the European Union adopted four legislative measures on 18 November 2024 that together form a revised maritime safety package intended to tighten rules on accident inquiry, ship-source pollution, flag-state oversight and port-state inspections.
The package amends directives covering accident investigation, ship-source pollution, compliance with flag state requirements and port state control, the Council said. Member States are required to transpose the revised directives into national law within 30 months of their entry into force.
The updated accident-investigation directive broadens the scope of mandatory inquiries by explicitly covering certain fishing vessels below 15 metres in length where fatalities occur or vessels are lost at sea. The change brings small fishing boats within the EU accident-investigation framework in the specific circumstances the Council identified.
Revisions to the ship-source-pollution directive extend the EU framework to address a wider range of illicit discharges. The Council said the scope now covers illegal releases of packaged harmful substances, sewage, garbage and certain residues from exhaust-gas-cleaning systems.
The changes to the flag-state directive bring EU rules into closer alignment with international requirements and encourage greater use of digital tools for monitoring flag-state performance. The Council emphasised the directive’s aim of modernising oversight through more systematic digital reporting and follow-up.
The port-state-control directive was updated to reflect international standards and to introduce a voluntary inspection regime for fishing vessels over 24 metres in length. The Council described the measure as an alignment with global rules while providing an option for targeted checks on larger fishing craft.
Extended inquiry for small fishing vessels
By including fishing vessels under 15 metres where fatalities or vessel loss occur, the revised accident-investigation directive narrows a previous gap in mandatory investigations. The Council framed this as a focused enlargement of investigative reach, limited to the most serious incidents involving small fishing craft.
The change does not make all small-vessel incidents subject to inquiry but links mandatory investigations to the occurrence of fatal accidents or the complete loss of a vessel, according to the Council’s notice.
Pollution, oversight and inspection changes
The ship-source-pollution amendment increases the types of discharges that fall under the EU regime and explicitly names packaged harmful substances, sewage, garbage and specified exhaust-gas-cleaning residues. The Council presented the revision as a measure to close loopholes that previously excluded certain waste streams and packaged materials.
Updates to the flag-state directive stress harmonisation with international law and call for expanded deployment of digital monitoring solutions to track compliance. Meanwhile, the port-state-control revision both aligns EU practice with international obligations and offers a voluntary inspection pathway for larger fishing vessels, providing authorities with an option rather than an automatic new obligation.
Member States will have 30 months from the directives’ entry into force to transpose the changes into national legislation, the Council said. That transposition period sets the timetable for when the new provisions will take effect across the EU.
The package, as described by the Council of the European Union, represents a coordinated regulatory update across multiple aspects of maritime governance. It addresses investigation procedures, pollution control, the monitoring duties of flag states and the inspection tools available to port authorities without adding measures beyond those set out in the adopted texts.