The Seafarer abandonment crisis
Another topic of interest to ship masters and where concern has been shown is that of seafarer abandonment. In a recent statement the ITF indicated that
thousands have left behind in shipping’s worst year on record.
Worst ever levels of abandonment
ITF data shows spiralling ship and seafarer abandonment at worst ever levels. For example, Indian seafarers are reported as being the worst affected with more than one thousand abandoned out of a global total of more than six thousand abandoned seafarers in 2026.
Seafarer abandonment hit record levels in 2025, according to new data compiled by the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), with 6,223 seafarers abandoned across 410 ships.
In crisis
Seafarer abandonment is in crisis, with the data marking the sixth year in a row that the number of vessels on which abandonments occurred has broken records and the fourth consecutive year that the total number of seafarers abandoned has broken records: the numbers represent a 31% increase in such ship abandonments compared to 2024, and a 32% increase in seafarer abandonment.
It is understood that ITF data will be submitted in a report to the IMO ahead of its discussion at a legal committee meeting this year. This data shows that seafarers were owed a total of US$25.8 million in 2025 as a consequence of the abandonments. From this total, the ITF has recovered and returned US$16.5 million to seafarers.
Seafarer abandonment is defined by the IMO under three criteria:
- Failing to cover the cost of a seafarer’s repatriation.
- Leaving a seafarer without necessary maintenance and support.
- Unilaterally severing ties with a seafarer, including failure to pay contractual wages for a period of at least two months.
Joint IMO / ILO seafarer abandonment database
The IMO and the International Labour Organization (ILO) run a joint seafarer abandonment database1: of 410 abandonments last year, the ITF reported 400 (98 percent).
Seafarer nationalities, abandonment locations
Indian seafarers were the worst affected national group in 2025, as in 2024, with 1,125 seafarers abandoned – at the end of 2025, the Indian Government announced that ‘blacklisting’ 2 measures would be taken to protect seafarers from ships with a record of repeat abandonments and other bad practices.
Filipino seafarers were the second worst affected, with 539 abandoned, followed by Syrians with 309 abandoned.
Worst region
The worst region for abandonment was the Middle East, followed by Europe. The two countries where most ship abandonments took place – the countries with the highest number of vessels on which abandonments occurred – both of which have significantly higher abandonments than any other country, were Türkiye (61) and the United Arab Emirates (54).
Flags of Convenience
Flag of Convenience (FOCs) vessels feature prominently in abandonment: 337 vessels abandoned in 2025 – 82% of the total – were flying FOC flags.
As in 2024, Panama, an FOC, remains the Flag State with the most abandonments (68, up from 43), while the number of abandonments under an unknown flag have more than doubled (46, up from 20).
……………..
3 False flags shadow fleet Russia (Visit external site. Link opens in a new tab.)
4 FMC investigating flagging practices (Visit external site. Link opens in a new tab.)
5 A Sham Union Breaching International Law (Visit external site. Link opens in a new tab.)