The Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB) and maritime manpower company TURTLE released the Responsible Maritime Recruitment Toolkit (June 2026).
Human Level’s Take:
- What if getting a job meant paying for it? Despite being prohibited under the Maritime Labour Convention, illegal recruitment fees remain embedded in parts of the global shipping industry. Around a third of seafarers surveyed said they had been asked to pay recruitment fees to secure employment.
- Recruitment fees can come from anywhere. While crewing and manning agencies are the most common source, shipping companies, online recruitment platforms and other intermediaries also feature. These costs are rarely labelled as "recruitment fees.” Instead they're often disguised as payments for medical examinations, training, documentation or administrative services — making it hard for companies to detect fees through supply chain human rights due diligence.
- The financial burden is only part of the story. The fees can leave seafarers in debt before they even step onboard, increasing their vulnerability to exploitation and forced labour. IHRB's findings also point to significant mental health impacts, with many respondents describing stress and anxiety linked to the pressure of securing work and repaying recruitment-related debts.
- So why is this still happening? Because most of those affected either cannot or will not speak up. Many are unaware that charging recruitment fees is illegal, fear the consequences of reporting, or simply believe that raising concerns won't change anything. Ultimately, this becomes an issue of access to effective grievance mechanisms and remedy.
- IHRB emphasises that preventing recruitment fees requires companies to conduct ongoing human rights due diligence in their supply chains, this is not about having aone-off policy commitment. That means establishing clear governance, strengthening oversight of recruitment partners, and mapping recruitment pathways to identify where risks can arise.
- It also requires listening to workers. IHRB highlights the importance of engaging directly with seafarers, providing effective remediation where fees have been charged, and working collaboratively across the industry to strengthen transparency, accountability and implementation of the Employer Pays Principle.
Some key takeaways:
- Illegal recruitment fees remain widespread in the global shipping industry: Illegal recruitment fees continue to present a persistent and systemic challenge across the global shipping industry, continuing to expose seafarers to heightened risks of debt bondage, forced labour and other forms of labour exploitation. IHRB finds that 31% of seafarers have been asked to pay recruitment fees to secure employment, with 74% of those approached ultimately paying the fee. Almost half of affected seafarers reported paying US$500–5,000, while some incurred charges exceeding US$10,000. This creates debt burdens that increasing vulnerability of workers to forced labour, unsafe working conditions and other forms of exploitation. The report also notes that recruitment fees are frequently disguised as charges for training, medical examinations, documentation or administrative services, underscoring persistent challenges for companies to detect fees through human rights due diligence within maritime labour supply chains.
- The impacts on seafarers' wellbeing and access to remedy: The report finds that illegal recruitment fees have significant human rights impacts, extending beyond financial harm to affect seafarers' wellbeing and access to remedy. Crewing and manning agents were the most frequently identified source of fee demands (62%), followed by companies or individuals linked to crewing agencies or shipping companies (41%), online recruitment platforms (24%), and shipping companies (12%). Almost three-quarters of seafarers who were asked to pay a fee reported negative impacts on their mental health, largely driven by financial stress and anxiety. Despite the prevalence of the practice, only 20% of affected seafarers reported the incident, with 40% of non-reporting respondents stating they did not know where or to whom to report. The highest reported incidence of fee-charging was among respondents from India, followed by Ukraine, Nigeria, the Philippines, Ghana and the United Kingdom, although the report notes these findings are influenced by the survey sample composition.
- Embedding responsible recruitment across maritime supply chains: Eliminating recruitment fee risks requires companies to embed responsible recruitment throughout their operations and supply chains. The toolkit responds to these findings by providing a structured framework to help companies identify and eliminate recruitment fee risks across recruitment and crewing practices. The toolkit outlines a structured due diligence approach that begins with clear governance and policies prohibiting worker-paid recruitment fees. Companies are encouraged to map recruitment pathways and identify where fee-related risks may arise, including through third-party recruiters and other intermediaries. Ongoing oversight of recruitment partners can be complemented by regular engagement with seafarers to help identify emerging risks and verify that recruitment practices are consistent with company commitments. Where fees have been charged, companies should ensure that accessible grievance mechanisms and effective remediation processes are in place to repay fees to workers. The report also emphasises that lasting progress will require collaboration across the maritime sector to improve transparency, strengthen accountability and advance implementation of the Employer Pays Principle.
