Do yachts drug test, and do records or tattoos rule you out?

Three questions come up in every dockside conversation with green crew, and almost nobody answers them straight. Will they test me. Does my record matter. Will my ink cost me the job. Here is the version from the hiring side of the passerelle, less dramatic than the forums suggest and less forgiving in one specific place.

Do yachts drug test crew, and when?

There is no single yachting rule. The flag state, the management company, the insurer and the captain each push in their own direction, and the yacht you join lands somewhere in that mix.

What is consistent is the contract. Yacht crew agreements carry zero tolerance clauses on illegal drugs as standard practice. That clause does not need a positive test to end your season. It gives the captain grounds to act on cause.

One belief worth killing now. The ENG1 seafarer medical does not include a routine drug test. You do have to bring any medication you take to the appointment, and the approved doctor will go through your history and can investigate further if there is clinical reason. Where a condition or medication creates a restriction, you get an ENG3 form stating the reason for it, not the drug you are on. For the cost and timing of that appointment, see what an ENG1 costs by country.

From the bridge

I have never tested a crew member on a hunch. I have sent crew home for being unfit for a 06:00 start, and it did not take a cup to prove it.

What is the alcohol limit for seafarers?

The Manila Amendments to STCW set a mandatory limit for masters, officers and anyone with designated safety, security or environmental duties: 0.05 percent blood alcohol, or 0.25 mg of alcohol per litre of breath. The UK MCA publishes the limits in MGN 590, which applies to all professional seafarers.

Yacht practice sits well below any legal number. Dry during charter. Nothing before a watch, a tender run or a night passage. On many boats the crew mess bar closes when guests board and stays closed until they fly out.

There is a criminal dimension too. Those limits are law, not etiquette: a professional seafarer over them on duty is committing an offence, not breaking a house rule. And the sea adds its own penalty: alcohol speeds up how fast your body cools in the water, which is the wrong handicap to carry on a night passage.

This is not legal advice. Check the official page before you act.

Can you get a yacht job with a criminal record?

Usually yes. It depends on the offence, how old it is, and how thoroughly the yacht checks.

Background checking has grown up fast. CrewPass runs criminal record research and identity verification for yacht crew with the global background-check company First Advantage. The verified status lasts two years and is shared with employers and recruiters through a single consent, so you do it once rather than for every application. Adoption is uneven: some agencies make checks standard, and plenty of yachts still run on a handshake and a call to your last captain.

The offence type matters more than the record existing. This job hands you keys, cash floats, guest cabins and a safe. Theft, fraud and dishonesty convictions are the hardest to place. A ten-year-old possession charge rarely ends a conversation if you raise it first.

• Get a certified copy of your own police clearance before you start applying
• Write one clean paragraph: what happened, what year, what you did about it
• Tell the agency at registration, not after an offer
• Check whether the offence blocks the visas your target region needs

From the bridge

I would rather hear about a conviction from you in the first ten minutes than from a report in week three. The first version is a candidate. The second is a problem.

Will a record stop your US or Schengen visa?

This is where a record actually stops the plan, and it catches people out because the yacht said yes and the embassy said no.

Definition

a crime involving moral turpitude is conduct US immigration law treats as inherently base, vile or depraved. Murder, rape, theft, fraud and bribery are standard examples.

A conviction or admission of a crime involving moral turpitude makes you inadmissible to the United States, which reaches the B1/B2 you need to work aboard a yacht in US waters, daywork included. There is a petty offense exception: a single such conviction does not trigger inadmissibility where the maximum possible sentence was one year or less and the sentence actually served was six months or less. Simple assault, a single DUI without aggravating factors, and negligence-based offences typically do not count as moral turpitude at all. The B1/B2 fee is USD 185 as of August 2026.

Europe is looser at the short-stay end. Most Schengen states do not ask for a criminal record declaration inside the 90 days in any 180 allowance, though longer-stay applications ask as a matter of course. Since the Entry/Exit System went fully operational on 10 April 2026, your days are counted by machine.

This is not legal advice. Check the official page before you act.

Do visible tattoos stop you getting a yacht job?

Placement decides this, not quantity. Ink a shirt covers is a non-issue on most boats. Hands, neck and face are the hard cases, hardest of all in guest-facing interior and deck roles. Charter yachts run the strictest policies, deliberately, to avoid friction with a wide international guest list. Engineering and galley roles are markedly more relaxed.

The direction of travel is toward acceptance. A newer generation of owners has tattoos themselves, and sailing yachts have always been easier ground. But there is no fleet-wide policy to appeal to. It is owner by owner and agency by agency.

Declare it. Agencies ask about visible tattoos and piercings as a matter of course, and captains notice a candidate in long sleeves in August. Say what you have and where, in one line, and let the boat decide. If you are still working out whether the life fits you, start with is this for you, and the free guide covers the rest of the entry route.