PYC (Passenger Yacht Code)

What is the Passenger Yacht Code?

The Passenger Yacht Code (PYC) is the regulatory pathway that lets a private or commercial yacht legally carry more than 12 passengers without being certified as a SOLAS passenger ship. It was first published by the Red Ensign Group (REG), with the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) as lead administrator, and is recognised by the IMO as an accepted equivalence to SOLAS for yachts.

The SOLAS Convention treats any ship carrying more than 12 passengers as a passenger ship, a regime built for cruise liners and ferries. The PYC was developed to deliver SOLAS-equivalent safety outcomes for yachts carrying 13 to 36 passengers, applying a stepped approach scaled to vessel size, operating area and passenger count.

Since 1 January 2019 the PYC has not existed as a standalone document. It was folded into the Red Ensign Group Yacht Code (REG-YC) as Part B, alongside the Large Yacht Code 3 (LY3) which became Part A. The current consolidated edition is July 2024.

Part B applies to passenger yachts on international voyages carrying between 13 and 36 passengers, a count that excludes seafarers. Below that, a commercial yacht sits under Part A (≤12 guests); above it, a yacht must build to full SOLAS passenger-ship standards.

Why it matters for yacht owners

For any owner contemplating more than 12 guests on board, whether for extended family gatherings, charter groups beyond the standard twelve, or events at anchor, the PYC route is usually the only legally viable answer short of a full passenger-ship build. The decision has to be made at design stage. Subdivision, structural fire protection, and life-saving arrangements drive bulkhead positions, deck heights and tender-garage geometry.

PYC certification also changes the operating cost line. Manning scales up: the Minimum Safe Manning Document demands more deck and engineering officers and ratings, with full STCW commercial certificates. Survey scope widens, insurance is repriced, and the yacht enters a heavier compliance cadence.

Key facts

• The PYC governs yachts carrying 13 to 36 passengers; the count excludes crew.
• SOLAS treats any vessel carrying more than 12 passengers as a passenger ship; the PYC is the IMO-recognised equivalence.
• Since 1 January 2019 the PYC has been consolidated into the REG Yacht Code as Part B; current edition July 2024.
• Part A of REG-YC (former LY3) covers commercial yachts of 24 m and above carrying no more than 12 passengers.
• Core technical pillars: subdivision and damage stability, structural fire protection, scaled life-saving appliances, enhanced manning.
• Administered by the UK MCA and the other ten Red Ensign registers.
• Typical PYC candidates are private yachts of roughly 60 m and above wanting to host more than 12 guests, and commercial yachts marketed for larger charter parties.
• Predecessors include the standalone PYC 6th Edition (January 2016) before consolidation into REG-YC.