Quick answer. An A1 (also called a PD A1) is an EU certificate that shows which country's social-security system you belong to while you work in another EU country. If you are an EU, EEA or Swiss contractor working with us across the EU, you should hold one. It is free, you get it from your home country, and it is increasingly checked, including dockside.
What is an A1?
It is a portable document that proves you stay in your home country's social-security system while you work in another EU, EEA or Swiss country. In plain terms: it stops you being asked to pay social-security contributions in two countries at once, and it is the paper that answers the question "which country covers you?"
Why do I need one to work through Quarterdeck?
As an EU/EEA/Swiss citizen you already have the right to work across the EU (free movement). The A1 is the social-security side of that: when you work in a country that is not your home one, whether on the water in the Med or in a chalet in the Alps, authorities can ask which system you are covered by, and the A1 is the answer. Having it ready avoids hold-ups.
Who needs one, and who doesn't?
EU, EEA and Swiss contractors working in an EU country that is not their home country: yes, get one.
Non-EU crew: an A1 is not your route. Your path is the work permit (and, from 2027, employment through our EU entity). See how work permits work.
How do I get one?
You apply to the social-security body in your home country (the one you pay national insurance or social contributions to). As a self-employed contractor working in more than one EU country, you apply as such. It is free. Apply in good time, well before you start work, as processing takes time. This applies to any assignment, so do not wait for a season to begin.
Apply in your home country: official A1 sources
The A1 comes from your home country's social-security authority. Here are the official pages to read about the A1 and apply, most in the local language. Where a country has a separate route for self-employed people, we have linked that one:
Austria: SVS (self-employed)
Belgium: RSVZ / INASTI (self-employed)
Croatia: HZMO
Czech Republic: CSSZ
Finland: Finnish Centre for Pensions (ETK)
France: URSSAF (self-employed)
Germany: Deutsche Rentenversicherung
Greece: e-EFKA
Italy: INPS
Netherlands: SVB
Norway: NAV
Poland: ZUS (self-employed)
Slovakia: Socialna poistovna
Slovenia: ZZZS
Spain: Seguridad Social (TGSS)
Sweden: Forsakringskassan
Switzerland: Federal Social Insurance Office (BSV)
Home country not listed? Search your national social-security or pension authority for "A1" or "posting / working in another EU country", or ask us and we will point you to it.
What an A1 is not
It is not a work permit. It covers social security only, not your right to work.
It does not cover income tax. Tax is separate and remains your responsibility as an independent contractor, in line with where you work.
What we ask of you
Keep your nationality correct in your profile; it tells us your EU status.
Get your A1 from your home country in good time, well before you start work.
Plan early. We line up assignments 6 to 9 months ahead, and choose our management team and instructors even further out, so an accurate profile and an A1 ready well in advance directly affect what you are offered.
Upload it to your profile. We are adding A1 upload, so there is nothing to do until that is live, we will tell you when.
As an independent contractor, you handle your own tax and any local registration where you work.
Official source
European Commission, Your Europe: social security when you live or work in another EU country and posting staff abroad (PD A1).
Your home country's social-security institution (see the country links above), which issues the A1.
Important
Rules vary by country and change, and this is general orientation, not legal or tax advice. Confirm your own position with your home country's social-security body before you travel. See also: visas & work permits by destination.