Pre-arrival analysis and DAO authority

Pre-arrival analysis

Pre-arrival information concerns all information that commercial ships must provide if they wish to call at a Dutch port. This information includes crew lists and cargo information (hazardous substances), for example. It has included maritime security information since 2004. This information will in future be handled by the maritime information hub (Maritiem Informatie Knooppunt, MIK) of the Netherlands Coastguard. On the basis of an analysis of this information, a Duly Authorised Officer (DAO) will decide whether action in relation to the ship is required.

Analysis

According to EU Regulation 725/2004, EU member states must request this information from visiting ships and analyse it. This is done in order to identify, in good time, non-compliance with security requirements on the part of ships bound for European seaports or any potential threats posed by such ships. In the Netherlands, this information is requested by the harbour masters, while the Netherlands Coastguard has been mandated to analyse it.

Types of information

Ship Security Pre-Arrival Information (SSPI) must be provided no later than 24 hours in advance and is passed on to a central information system through agents and port information systems. This information includes:

• IMO number
• Ship’s name, security officer and cargo
• Current security level
• Whether the ship has a valid security plan and security certificate
• The last 10 port facilities visited by the ship, including the dates
• The security level in these last 10 ports
• Whether any special circumstances, such as security incidents, occurred in that period

Introduction of tasks

The introduction of these new tasks for the Netherlands Coastguard started in 2020. A temporary Netherlands Coastguard team is establishing procedures for these tasks, setting up systems and carrying out test analyses. In 2022, the Director of the Netherlands Coastguard advised the mandating ministries on permanent arrangements pertaining to maritime security, including the pre-arrival analysis task. Depending on further decision making, the Netherlands Coastguard may proceed with the structural performance of these tasks after new employees have been recruited and have completed induction training.

DAO authority

The Duly Authorised Officer (DAO) receives the pre-arrival advice. As coordinating DAO for the Dutch part of the North Sea, the Netherlands Coastguard determines the measures that must be taken if a ship does not comply with security regulations or if there is a potential threat to or from a ship. This is done on the basis of the pre-arrival analysis or other information, such as from a neighbouring country or from the intelligence services. The Netherlands Coastguard acts in this regard in cooperation with its enforcement partners, principally the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT), the police, the customs authorities, the port authorities and the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee.

Possible measures

• Contact the ship or the shipowner to resolve the shortcomings.
• Have the ship inspected in a port by network partners.
• Direct the ship to an anchorage in Dutch waters.
• A check of the ship at sea by the Netherlands Coastguard and/or enforcement partners.
• Deny the ship access to Dutch ports.