Code of safety for small commercial vessels operating in the caribbean trading area (SCV Code 2021)

Prepared for Caribbean Countries With the support of the International Maritime Organization

Caribbean Trading Area means the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea proper including the bays and seas therein and that portion of the Atlantic Ocean within the boundary constituted by a rhumb line from a point on the east coast of the United States of America in latitude 32o 00' north to the intersection 20o 00' north, 59 o 00' west; thence a rhumb line to the intersection of 7o 20' north, 50o west; thence a rhumb line drawn southwesterly to the
eastern boundary of French Guiana

The Code of Safety for Small Commercial Vessels (SCV Code) prescribes operating standards for safety, seafarer certification and well-being and protection of the marine environment for small commercial vessels operating in the Caribbean Trading Area (CTA). 

The SCV Code applies to vessels operating commercially, trading in the Caribbean Trading Area, which are 5 metres or more in length overall and less than 24 metres in length (L).
Passenger vessels under this Code shall: only operate at a distance of 20 miles or less from the nearest harbour or safe refuge; carry no more than 150 passengers; and where overnight accommodation is provided, carry no more than 50 passengers onovernight voyages.