(www.MaritimeCyprus.com) The United States Coast Guard’s Office of Commercial Vessel Compliance has released its 2025 annual report over US port state control. The aim of the report is to “provide the global maritime industry key statistics and compliance trends in relation to compliance with U.S. and international regulations, such as the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), and the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS).”
VESSEL ARRIVALS, EXAMS, AND DETENTIONS
In 2025, a total of 11,279 individual vessels, from 79 different flag administrations, made 76,351 port calls to the United States. 8,999 PSC exams were conducted. These exam numbers increased over the 2024 total of 8,710. The total number of ships detained in 2025 for environmental protection, safety, and security-related deficiencies decreased from 82 to 77.
FLAG ADMINISTRATION PERFORMANCE
Flag Administration performance for 2025 increased with the overall annual detention rate decreasing from 0.94% to 0.85%. The three-year rolling detention ratio decreased from 1.01% to 1.00%. The flag Administrations of the Bahamas, Comoros, Curacao, Italy, and Latvia were removed from the targeted flag list this year.
DETENTION AND ASSOCIATION APPEALS
In 2025, the Coast Guard received a total of seventeen appeals. Nine appeals challenged the overall merits of the detention. For those merit appeals, two were granted, five were denied. In addition to receiving appeals contesting the overall merits of a detention, we also receive appeals requesting the removal of a party’s association with a detention. For those parties appealing their association with a detention, eight were received. Of those, five were granted, and three were denied. The Coast Guard welcomes any appeal based on a control action or association of a detention, as well as any deficiency issued by the Coast Guard.
QUALSHIP 21 AND E-ZERO PROGRAMS
The QS21 program ended calendar year 2025 with 4,659 vessels enrolled. In 2025, Four flag administrations lost their eligibility while four new flags became eligible. The flag administrations of the Bahamas, Germany, Italy, and the Philippines for became QS21 eligible this year. The E-Zero program focuses on environmental stewardship and worldwide compliance with international environmental conventions. At the close of 2025, 605 ships were awarded the E-Zero designation. That’s nearly 200 more E-Zero enrollments over the 2024 total. Coast Guard Work Instruction CVC-WI-002(2) contains new information on the eligibility criteria for the QS21 and E-Zero programs.
ENHANCED EXAM PROGRAM
This program, like the Concentrated Inspection Campaigns (CICs) carried out by port state control MoUs, is intended to increase focus on specific aspects of ship safety but on a quarterly basis. This increased focus may vary due to the implementation of new regulations, deficiency trends, or other PSC program interests. The goal of the EEP is to generate meaningful data on exam points of interest, while limiting the additional workload of the PSCOs. The information collected can then be considered for evaluating current policy effectiveness and determining if adjustments need to be made in the future. In 2025, EEP campaign topics included engine room automation, Security (ISPS), emergency power and electrical systems, and closures forming CO2 protective zones.
For more details, click below to download the full USCG Annual report for 2025:
