The Condition Assessment Scheme (CAS) for oil tankers, as a mandatory requirement under regulation 13G of Annex I to MARPOL 73/78, was originally adopted by the Marine Environment Protection Committee at its forty-sixth session (MEPC 46) on 27 April 2001 by resolution MEPC.94(46) and entered into force on 1 September 2002. MEPC 48 added, by resolution MEPC.99(48), the Model Survey Plan for CAS and the Mandatory Requirements for the Safe Conduct of CAS Surveys (appendices 3 and 4 to CAS) and, MEPC 50, by resolution MEPC.112(50), adopted further amendments to CAS in order to keep its text in line with corresponding amendments to regulation 13G and new regulation 13H of MARPOL Annex I whereby the carriage of Heavy Grade Oil on single hull oil tankers was banned. Finally, MEPC 53, by resolution MEPC.131(53), further amended CAS in order to keep its cross-references in line with the new regulation numbering system in the revised MARPOL Annex I.

In view that the revised MARPOL Annex I did enter into force on 1 January 2007, and so did the amendments to CAS by resolution MEPC.131(53), the purpose of this publication is to provide an easy reference to the up-to-date provisions of CAS, including incorporation of all the amendments that have been adopted by the MEPC, up to and including the amendments adopted by resolution MEPC.131(53).