If you are interested in working offshore and forging out a career as an electrician, welder, caterer or any other department you must first obtain the relevant safety certificates.

For offshore work you must get an "offshore medical" certificate

For the North Sea there are three kinds of offshore medical certificates:

- UK, covers UK only,

- Norwegian, covers Norwegian and UK sectors,

- Dutch, covers Dutch, Norwegian, and UK sectors

All three different certificates are valid for two years.

Shell ( Brunei ) list of approved medical examiners for offshore medical ( fitness ) certificate - South East Asia, Western Australia; UKOOA and NOGEPA registered Doctors    . Including medical examiners for offshore Crane Operators ( Brunei & Miri ).

The time period your offshore medical certificate is valid depends on the Authority controlling the oil field / location where you are working. UK North Sea is under the control of UKOOA and the offshore medical certificates are valid for 2 years. Individual employers can request more frequent check-ups.

BOSIET: "Basic Offshore Safety Instruction and Emergency Training". Includes Safety, Fire Prevention and Fire Fighting, First Aid and Hypothermia, Helicopter Safety and Escape, and Survival at Sea. Also called "Offshore Survival Certificate" or "Offshore Survival Course". Valid for 4 years. The cost for the plain BOSIET is around UK £ 800 (in 2008), which you normally pay yourself - until you are employed.

TBOSIET "Tropical Offshore Safety Instruction and Emergency Training", same as regular OPITO BOSIET but done in warm water, 28° - 30° centigrade.

FOET: "Further Offshore Emergency Training"

HUET: "Helicopter Underwater Escape Training"

With the increase of floating drilling and production units there is now an increasing grey area where it's not always clear whether to apply STCW-95 or offshore certification rules. As a "rule of thumb" one can say, if a floating unit is classified as a ship STCW AND OFFSHORE certificates are required. If it's not classified as a ship only offshore certificates are mandatory and work contracts are individual, not ITF based.