Maritime Health Training for Sailors 2026: FORMA-T 2011 is now authorized to provide it

Key data

Sailors working on board vessels are required by maritime regulations to demonstrate basic health training. Without this certificate, they cannot legally exercise their professional activity. Until now, the supply of private accredited centers to provide this training was limited. The Resolution of March 16, 2026 from the Instituto Social de la Marina, published in the BOE on April 8, 2026, adds a new operator to the market: FORMA-T 2011, SLU.

This resolution does not create a new obligation for companies, but it does expand the available options to comply with an obligation that already exists. For shipowners, shipping companies and fishing companies with crew members who need to renew or complete their health training, this means greater accessibility and logistical flexibility.

What does this regulation establish?

The resolution formally grants accreditation to the private center FORMA-T 2011, SLU to provide specific initial health training aimed at workers in the maritime-fishing sector. The accreditation covers three types of training activities:

• Stable modality: courses taught at the center's fixed location.
• Itinerant modality: courses taught by traveling to different locations, which facilitates training in ports or fishing activity areas far from major urban centers.
• Refresher courses: training for sailors who already have initial certification but must renew it periodically.

Accreditation from the Instituto Social de la Marina (ISM) is the essential legal requirement for any private center to validly offer this type of training. Without it, courses taught have no official validity and sailors who complete them cannot demonstrate compliance with the regulatory obligation.

This resolution expands the training offer available in the sector, facilitating access to the health certification required by maritime regulations, especially in areas where the availability of accredited centers was scarce.

Economic and operational impact

The direct impact of this resolution is not a new cost: the obligation for health training for sailors already existed before this resolution. What changes is the availability of training supply.

From an operational perspective, the incorporation of FORMA-T 2011 as an accredited center has practical consequences for companies in the sector:

• Greater price competition: more accredited centers can result in more competitive conditions for contracting training.
• Logistical flexibility: the itinerant modality allows the center to travel to the port or area of the company's activity, reducing the time and cost of sailor displacement.
• Reduction of waiting lists: more training capacity available in the market makes it easier for companies to certify their crew with greater agility.
• Risk from non-compliance: companies that have sailors without current health certification are exposed to sanctions and operational restrictions. This accreditation facilitates remedying that situation.

Who does it affect?

This resolution directly affects all actors in the maritime-fishing sector who have a relationship with the health training obligation:

• Shipowners and shipping companies: responsible for ensuring that their crew has current health certification.
• Fishing companies: must demonstrate that sailors in their charge have completed mandatory training before boarding.
• Sailors and maritime workers: individually obligated to obtain and maintain current certification of specific health training.
• HR and training managers in sector companies: must manage the planning and contracting of accredited courses.
• Training centers in the maritime-fishing sector: the market now has a new accredited competitor.

Practical example

A fishing company based in a port in northern Spain has 12 sailors on staff. Three of them have expired health training certificates and two are new hires who have not yet obtained one. In total, five sailors need training before they can legally board.

Until now, the company depended on the accredited centers available in its area, with the timelines and conditions that each one offered. With the accreditation of FORMA-T 2011, SLU in itinerant modality, the company can request that the center travel directly to the port to provide training to the five sailors in a single session, without needing each worker to travel individually to a fixed location. This reduces time away from activity and simplifies administrative management.

Sailors who complete the course will obtain the official accreditation required by maritime regulations, enabling them to work on board.

What should companies do now?

1. Audit the certification status of the crew: review which sailors have current health training certificates, which have expired, and which have never obtained one.
2. Identify urgent training needs: sailors without valid certification cannot legally work on board. Prioritize their training before the next departure.
3. Evaluate FORMA-T 2011's offer in itinerant modality: if the company has several sailors who need training, the itinerant modality may be more efficient than sending them individually to a fixed center.
4. Compare conditions with other accredited centers: the expansion of supply is an opportunity to negotiate better economic and scheduling conditions.
5. Establish a system for monitoring expiration dates: implement internal control of health certificate expiration dates to avoid non-compliance situations.