The regulation of the provision of recreational diving services is aimed at a bill prepared by the Deputy Ministry of Tourism and submitted to the Parliament on Thursday.
The Deputy Ministry of Tourism prepared a Bill entitled “The Diving and Recreational Diving Service Providers Law of 2025”, with the aim of regulating the provision of recreational diving services.
The bill regulates the licensing of recreational diving service providers. In this definition, are included: diving centers, diving schools, autonomous diving instructors, licensed transporters of divers by sea, (via a registered and approved coastal ferry or other licensed vessel) and are the natural or legal persons, who provide one or more of the above services, based on the international standards of control and assurance of the procedures, which are followed and which entail minimizing the risk of an accident.
Furthermore, based on the bill, recreational diving service providers will be granted a three-year license. Additionally, the Ministry of Tourism will maintain a register of licensed recreational diving service providers, the imposition of penalties on those who provide recreational diving services without a license, as well as investigation and verification procedures, with the aim of assigning responsibility in the event of an accident.
According to the provisions of the bill, the operating license is issued if the applicant meets, among others, the following conditions:
The operating license is issued if the applicant meets the following conditions:
(a) Has instructors with the relevant skills and qualifications required by the National Recreational Diving Regulations and Standards;
(b) has a copy of a valid certificate from an accredited certification body for the compliance of the service provider with the national standard CYS EN ISO 24803 “Recreational Diving Services – Requirements for Recreational Diving Provider” with the current version of the standard
(c) maintains in force an insurance contract, for Insurance Coverage against civil liability for Professional Negligence or from another organization engaged in the provision of diving safety, as a service provider, with a licensed insurance company or internationally recognized mutual insurance cooperative based in a member state of the European Union;
(d) has provided a photocopy of his identity card or passport and a copy of a clean criminal record, with a date of issue no earlier than one month from the date of submission of the application
(e) has a certificate of tax residence, or is registered for VAT, Social Insurance, as well as registration with the Registrar of Companies as a company or as a trade name
(f) has presented a medical certificate, which will be in accordance with regulations issued on the basis of this Law for all persons involved in diving activities. A medical certificate is not required for a service provider, who is a natural person, when he does not participate in the training of scuba divers, but only for personnel who may participate in the diving activities
(h) every service provider, operating as a diving center or school, must have a designated Director, who will also be responsible for the legal operation of the diving center / school in accordance with the provisions of the Law
(i) provides statistics in accordance with the Regulations issued on the basis of this Law.