The Merchant Shipping (Certification & Manning) Rules consist of 16 Parts. The Rules have been developed pursuant to Section 9 of the Tuvalu Merchant Shipping (Ship Registration) Regulations, mainly detailing Tuvalu compliance with STCW95 Convention.

The Rules cover manning requirements, fraud, forgery and misrepresentation in certifications and documentation, responsibilities of shipowners, medical fitness requirements, investigations, minimum training requirements in order to serve on Tuvalu ships, duties in watch keeping and miscellaneous issues that deal with ship operations.