India's maritime authority has joined a global project called ISF Verify. The goal is to make seafarer certificates easier to share and check online. The agreement was signed in London on 4 November 2026.
The Directorate General of Maritime Administration (DGMA) signed with the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and Lloyd's Register OneOcean. They signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). An MoU is a written agreement to work together. The signing took place during an IMO Council meeting at IMO headquarters.
What ISF Verify is
ISF Verify is a cloud platform. It links seafarers, flag administrations, shipping companies and port state control. Port state control is the check that a port country does on foreign ships.
The platform does not take over national certificate systems. The original certificate stays with the issuing authority. The seafarer controls who can see their data.
ICS says India supplies about 312,000 seafarers. That makes India the world's second-largest seafarer supply country. The Philippines has already completed a proof of concept with ISF Verify. Together, the two countries cover about 30 percent of the world's 2.57 million seafarers, ICS says.
What the India pilot will do
DGMA, ICS and Lloyd's Register OneOcean will run a pilot. They will study how to connect India's existing certificate system to ISF Verify through an API. An API is a software link that lets two systems exchange data.
The parties will first do technical discovery work. Then they will agree a development plan and a roadmap. Successful integration would let Indian seafarers sync DGMA certificates with ISF Verify.
ICS says this can speed up foreign-flag endorsements. It can also cut the risk of fake certificates and shorten checks in ports. Endorsements are the stamps that another country puts on your certificate so you can sail under its flag.
What it means for Indian seafarers now
This is still a pilot. It is not a new online service you can use today. Keep using the official DGMA and e-Samudra channels for CDC, Certificate of Competency (COC) and other applications.
Paper certificates still slow crew changes in many ports. A BIMCO test of digital certificates showed they can move between different systems when designed well.
Do not pay a private website that claims to put your certificates on ISF Verify. Only trust DGMA and the official project partners when the pilot opens to seafarers.
Keep checking that your certificates are genuine. Our guide to checking Indian and Philippine certificates online shows the official tools.
Keep clear scans of your COC, CDC, STCW courses and medical certificate. Share them only with a licensed crewing agency or your company.
When a foreign flag asks for an endorsement, follow DGMA's current process until the pilot says otherwise.
For official certificate and help links, see Crewboard useful links.
Cover photo: A meeting in the main hall of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in London, 22 April 2024. The India–ISF Verify agreement was signed at IMO headquarters during an IMO Council week in November 2026. Illustrative photo of the venue. Photo: International Maritime Organization (imo.un)/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.
Sources: ICS press release: India joins ISF Verify (4 Nov 2026), Splash247: India joins global digital seafarer certification drive (5 Nov 2026).
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