Focused core question
What documents/licences should I get, if any, in case I didn't wanted to have problems with authorities while sailing around the world, on any given type of sailboat having any kind of flag state?
Corollary questions and context to help you think about the nuances while answering
Let's suppose you want to buy a yacht and you don't want to have problems with authorities that stop you while sailing around the world. Let's also suppose that you are from country A, and that you are looking into possible yachts deals from countries A, B and C. What kind of skipper licence would you need to have if any? According to my research, when you are on a vessel that has a state flag from country A, you are under the law of country A. Does that mean that I need to have a skipper licence from country A?
- What if I change flag state?
- What if you want to buy a boat from country B or C?
- How will country A be able to enforce its law on what happens on your yacht with state flag A, if you are on the other side of the world, in the waters of another country or in international waters?
- Can I have no flag state and be able to not have any law mandated over me? If so, how do things work in that case?
- How does the International Certificate of Competence (ICC) plays into all this? Can it be used in place of a skipper licence? Does it provide any advantage to have it?
- If it is true that a yacht with state flag from country A must follow the law of country A, can country B require you to have an ICC for example, when sailing in their waters? If so, how? Moreover, how does the boundry between the laws of country A and country B work when they are in contrast for example?