SEAMLESS: autonomous ships in Europe, between technological progress and the regulatory maze
The biggest obstacle to the deployment of autonomous navigation is not technological — it is legal. Regulation on Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) remains fragmented, and the first mandatory code will not enter into force until 2032. The European project SEAMLESS (2023–2026), endowed with €15 million and backed by a consortium of 26 organisations from 12 countries, is investigating how to make the automation of freight transport on inland waterways and short sea shipping commercially viable.
Posted on
03.19.2026
Regulatory achievements of the SEAMLESS project
Iolande Viricel sets out the legislative achievements of SEAMLESS, such as "mapping and comparing a highly fragmented legal landscape" spanning maritime law, inland waterway law, EU law, the rules of the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCNR) and national regimes, particularly those of France, Belgium, the United Kingdom and Norway.
Among the milestones highlighted by Viricel is the legal classification of the project's vessels, "identifying when they can operate under common law and when they require exemptions", as well as explaining how liability and insurance frameworks apply in the context of autonomy.
She also points to another "achievement despite the complexity" — the report's treatment of the master/crew/remote operator question — because "although the legislation is not yet defined, it does demonstrate that remote operations can already be integrated, at least on an experimental basis, through exemption regimes and, in some jurisdictions, through national definitions that already recognise autonomous or remotely operated vessels".
Finally, the IDIT legal expert highlights the definition of automation. "Automated vessels remain vessels from a legal standpoint. Likewise, autonomous inland waterway craft can fit within existing categories, although the rules governing seaworthiness, crewing and liability still need to be adapted", she clarifies.
Without a legal basis, there is no autonomy
Legal uncertainty surrounding autonomous vessels is one of the factors that could slow their technological and commercial deployment, as the project is demonstrating.
"Scaling this technology requires predictable rules about who is in command, what legally constitutes a crew, how liability is distributed, and what risk conditions insurers and authorities will accept", says Viricel.
A key conclusion is that, regardless of the level of automation, the human master remains responsible for the vessel.
"Autonomy transforms the master's role — from a commander on board to a potentially remote one — and the concept of crew, from a purely physical one to a partially virtual one", the researcher responds.
The SEAMLESS pilots: Rhine, European ports and remote control centres
The SEAMLESS project includes several pilots to test in real conditions how autonomous maritime transport will function within European logistics. These pilots aim to validate technology, operations and regulatory aspects.
- Inland waterway pilot (River Rhine) — an ideal setting because it concentrates heavy inland freight traffic and connects with seaports. The objective is to test automated or highly autonomous barges, integrate autonomous navigation systems, evaluate supervision from remote control centres, and analyse interaction with conventional river traffic.
- European port pilots. The project also examines operations in port environments to test the automation of cargo movement, digital coordination between vessel, port and land-based logistics, and the reduction of port operation times to create a seamless logistics flow between maritime and land transport.
- Remote control centres. Another component under trial is the concept of the Remote Operation Centre — centres where human operators supervise multiple autonomous vessels and intervene in complex situations. This concept is key because it aligns with the regulatory model being developed by the International Maritime Organization for the MASS Code.
Regulatory roadmap: from the voluntary MASS Code (2026) to the mandatory one (2032)
Although the IDIT report does not analyse all European jurisdictions, Iolande Viricel explains that several countries are leading the way.
France appears to be the best prepared, having had a specific legal framework for autonomous vessels since 2021 that includes a legal definition in the Transport Code. "Belgium also appears to be relatively advanced, but primarily through an experimental exemption regime under the Royal Decree of 16 June 2021 for unmanned vessels", she adds. And Norway, the third country cited, already permits pilots, although it does not have a specific codified legal framework for autonomous vessels.
As regards inland waterways, the Rhine/CCNR system and the Flemish and Dutch frameworks appear relatively advanced in terms of concrete exemption procedures and the conduct of pilot projects.
The conclusions of the report developed by the IDIT are that the concepts of "crewed" or "partially crewed" are currently far more legally viable than fully uncrewed vessels.
- The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is working in parallel to establish the global framework that will make the commercial operation of these vessels possible.
The Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) agreed in December 2024 on a revised roadmap for the development of the MASS Code: adoption of the non-mandatory code in May 2026, development of an Experience Building Phase (EBP) framework in December 2026, commencement of the mandatory code in 2028 — with amendments to SOLAS — and adoption of the mandatory code before 1 July 2030, for entry into force on 1 January 2032.
At its 110th session, held in June 2025, the MSC finalised 18 of the 26 chapters of the draft Code, with a view to completing and adopting it as a non-mandatory instrument in May 2026.
Among the key outstanding issues are the definition of "master" and "crew" in remote or autonomous operation contexts, the requirements for remote control centres and cybersecurity risk management — aspects that the regulatory review exercise identified as priorities to ensure that international regulation keeps pace with technology.
- "This non-mandatory phase should function as a regulatory learning period that allows states and industry to test equivalent safety solutions, gather operational data from exemption-based pilots, and convert that experience into harmonised standards on command, manning, liability and assistance obligations before the mandatory code enters into force", explains Iolande Viricel.
The timeline has slipped but, the expert notes, it is not possible to attribute this to any single cause. "Our report contextualises this delay as part of a broader period of international legislative experimentation, which is necessary to refine both the technology and the regulations before the mandatory rules enter into force", she points out.
Although it concludes in December of this year, SEAMLESS is laying the groundwork that will undoubtedly serve as the foundation for future projects and regulations — but as of today, the expert consulted by PierNext cannot confirm any project set to succeed it.
