Ship Sanitation Certification system (SSC)

You or your agent should request inspections for ship sanitation certificates when you submit your New Zealand Advance Notice of Arrival.form.

Advance Notice of Arrival - Customsexternal linkPDF

Public health officers will decide if your visit times work for a ship sanitation inspection at your port of arrival.

• Do not request an inspection during silent hours (at night or on weekends) unless there is no other option.
• Inspections will be carried out when it is safe to do so such as after cargo has been loaded or unloaded.

If the timing does not work, we may grant an extension of up to 30 days, as long as your ship sanitation certificate is valid when we grant the extension.

We will look at general sanitation conditions on board your ship and the public health risks these may pose. We focus on disease vectors such as rodents and arthropods, and conditions associated with high-risk infections.

The inspection will include the following.

Meeting with ship's master or executive officer

We will meet with the ship's master or executive officer to discuss the inspection process.

Checking documentation

We will review:

• ship sanitation certification
• Maritime Declaration of Health
• ship's logs, medical logs and (for passenger ships) gastrointestinal illness logs
• ballast water certificates (Ministry for Primary Industries biosecurity staff validate these)
• ship potable water records (chemical and bacteriological testing records and certification of source quality for last loaded bunkered water)
• waste disposal records
• food source and storage records
• sanitation audit log.

We will also review management plans such as:

• water bunkering
• food safety
• sewage
• integrated pest management (IPM) – which is a key document that vessels on international voyages should have. 
  Integrated pest management plan

Physical inspection of key areas

We will inspect key areas of the vessel, including:

• accommodation areas
• galley
• food storage
• engine room
• holds
• medical facilities
• water storage tanks and water pipes
• waste-water holding tanks and sewer pipes
• solid waste storage and disposal
• deck spaces for standing water
• check that rodent guards are on all mooring lines and correctly positioned.

What we do not check

We do not check occupational health and safety risks.

When we complete the physical inspection, we will meet with the ship's master or a senior officer to discuss the ship's condition and any remediation requirements or control measures.

We will then issue either a

• Ship Sanitation Control Certificate (if we found public health risks).
• Ship Sanitation Control Exemption Certificate (if we found no evidence of public health risks).