ICC Assessment — Whitsunday Sailing School

The International Certificate of Competence (ICC) is the certificate many charter companies and authorities in Europe ask to see before letting you skipper a yacht there. Whitsunday Sailing School in Airlie Beach runs an ICC assessment as a three-day, two-night liveaboard aboard Eureka II or Starlight, built around the ICC practical test examined by an instructor.

What you'll learn

This is an assessment program rather than a learn-from-scratch course. The time on board is used to refresh and demonstrate the skills of a competent skipper so the instructor can examine you. Candidates should expect to show:

• Boat handling under sail and power: departures, coming to anchor or a mooring, and manoeuvring with control.
• Man overboard recovery: getting back to a person in the water quickly and safely, the skill examiners watch most closely.
• Safety and crew management: briefing crew, using the safety equipment and taking responsibility for the boat.
• Navigation and the rules of the road: knowing the boat's position, reading the chart, and applying the collision regulations, buoyage and lights.

Arrive expecting to skipper the boat, not to be taught the basics. If any of these areas are rusty, a longer course first will serve you better.

How Whitsunday Sailing School runs it

The program runs for three days and two nights living aboard Eureka II or Starlight in the Whitsundays. The instructor's practical examination, meals, linen, snorkelling gear, accommodation on board and the ICC licence are included. The school runs the ICC within its IYT recreational program.

Who it suits

It suits sailors planning a bareboat charter in Europe who need the ICC. Candidates need at least the IYT International Flotilla Skipper Certificate or equivalent experience. Sailors with a solid background but no formal certificate can ask the school about recognition of prior learning instead of doing Flotilla Skipper first. Check with your charter company and the country you plan to sail in which certificates they accept, as requirements differ.

Where it leads

The ICC is typically a companion to a skipper qualification rather than a step on its own. Sailors wanting broader skipper training can go on to the IYT International Bareboat Skipper course or, for longer coastal passages, IYT Yachtmaster Coastal.

Full course guide

For what the ICC is, who issues it and where it is recognised, read our International Certificate of Competence (ICC) guide. The entry-level qualification is covered in the IYT International Flotilla Skipper (Sail) guide.