Compliance framework
People.
Sovereignty.
Accountability.
The conditions every NavyExporter programme must satisfy — and the lines it will never cross. Where a programme cannot meet them, it does not proceed.
No endorsement is claimed. NavyExporter is not certified, accredited or endorsed by the United Nations, the ICRC, the ILO, the IMO, any government or any other organisation. References to international instruments describe the standards our framework is designed to respect; they do not imply any relationship with the bodies that administer them.
Sovereignty & authorisation
The state decides. The platform serves that decision and never substitutes for it.
- National sovereignty
- Recruitment into a national navy is an exercise of state authority. NavyExporter supports it only at the request of, and under the control of, the sovereign government concerned.
- Government authorisation
- No programme begins without written authorisation from the competent government authority, specifying scope, categories and the legal basis relied upon.
- Applicable national law
- Service law, recruitment and emigration law, labour law and data-protection law are mapped in every jurisdiction involved — the receiving state and the candidate’s state of nationality and residence.
International law & human rights
Clear distance from mercenary activity, and alignment with the human-rights standards that govern recruitment.
- International humanitarian law
- The Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocol I distinguish members of a state’s armed forces from mercenaries (Article 47). Personnel in NavyExporter-supported programmes can only ever be lawful members of a national navy, appointed by that state, never private fighters.
- Mercenary prohibitions
- The 1989 International Convention against the Recruitment, Use, Financing and Training of Mercenaries criminalises mercenary recruitment. NavyExporter does not recruit for any non-state actor or for participation in hostilities outside a state’s own lawful forces.
- Not a private military company
- The Montreux Document addresses states’ obligations regarding private military and security companies. NavyExporter provides no military or security services and operates no armed personnel.
- Human rights
- Programmes follow the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights: a policy commitment, ongoing human-rights due diligence, and access to remedy.
- Anti-trafficking principles
- The UN Palermo Protocol defines trafficking in persons. Deception, coercion, debt bondage and document retention are prohibited and treated as grounds to stop a programme.
- Forced labour
- Consistent with ILO Convention No. 29 and its 2014 Protocol, participation must be free of any menace of penalty, and candidates must be able to leave the recruitment process freely.
- Children
- Programmes accept adults aged 18 or over only, going beyond the minimum safeguards of the Optional Protocol to the CRC on the involvement of children in armed conflict.
- Ethical recruitment
- No recruitment fees or related costs are charged to candidates, in line with the ILO General Principles and Operational Guidelines for Fair Recruitment and the principles of ILO Convention No. 181.
Candidate safeguards
Protections that apply to every person, at every stage.
- Voluntary participation
- Where national law requires voluntary service, participation is fully voluntary and based on informed, written consent given in a language the candidate understands.
- Identity verification
- Identity and nationality are verified against issuing sources to prevent impersonation, fraud and the recruitment of ineligible persons.
- Background screening
- Screening is proportionate, lawful and conducted by or on behalf of the authorities entitled to carry it out, with results restricted to authorised reviewers.
- Medical safeguards
- Medical examinations are conducted by approved practitioners, with confidentiality, informed consent and the right to receive one’s own results.
- Grievance procedures
- Confidential, accessible grievance channels independent of recruitment staff, with protection against retaliation and a documented path to remedy.
Information & accountability
What can be evidenced can be trusted.
- Data privacy
- Personal data is processed lawfully, for defined purposes, with minimisation and retention limits — including under India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 where applicable, and the data-protection law of every other jurisdiction involved.
- Restricted information
- Candidate, medical, security-screening and programme information is restricted by role and never published. The public website carries no programme or personal data.
- Accountability
- Named accountable owners for every programme stage; decisions attributable to the person and authority that made them.
- Auditing
- Immutable audit trails and periodic audits, available to the government concerned and to independent reviewers it appoints.
- Training standards
- Training is delivered only by authorised institutions against recognised standards, such as STCW where applicable; operational military training remains with state-authorised institutions.
Red lines
Conditions that stop a programme
Any one of these is sufficient to decline, pause or end an engagement, regardless of commercial value.
- No written authorisation from the competent government authority
- No lawful pathway under the receiving state’s law
- Any request to supply personnel to a non-state actor
- Any request involving participation in hostilities outside a state’s lawful armed forces
- Recruitment fees, debt or document retention anywhere in the chain
- Candidates under 18
- Refusal of independent monitoring or audit
E — Grievance mechanism
A route to remedy
- 01
Raise
Confidential report by phone, email or in person, in the candidate’s language; anonymous reports accepted.
- 02
Acknowledge
Written acknowledgement and a named case handler independent of the recruitment team.
- 03
Investigate
Fact-finding with protection against retaliation; escalation to the government where required.
- 04
Remedy
Corrective action, remedy for the person affected and changes to prevent recurrence.
- 05
Report
Anonymised grievance data included in programme monitoring reports.
To raise a concern about any activity carried out in NavyExporter’s name — including anyone requesting fees from candidates — contact Mr. Digant Sharma on +91-9769999960 or at im@digantsharma.com.
F — Instruments register
The instruments we reference
| Instrument | Year | Official source |
|---|---|---|
| Geneva Conventions & Additional Protocol I, Art. 47 | 1949 / 1977 | International Committee of the Red Cross |
| Convention against the Recruitment, Use, Financing and Training of Mercenaries | 1989 | OHCHR |
| Montreux Document on private military and security companies | 2008 | Montreux Document Forum |
| UN Palermo Protocol on trafficking in persons | 2000 | OHCHR |
| ILO Forced Labour Convention No. 29 — Protocol of 2014 | 1930 / 2014 | International Labour Organization (NORMLEX) |
| ILO General Principles and Operational Guidelines for Fair Recruitment | 2016 / 2019 | International Labour Organization |
| ILO Private Employment Agencies Convention No. 181 | 1997 | International Labour Organization (NORMLEX) |
| UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights | 2011 | OHCHR |
| Optional Protocol to the CRC on children in armed conflict | 2000 | OHCHR |
| ILO Maritime Labour Convention | 2006 | International Labour Organization |
| IMO STCW Convention | 1978, as amended | International Maritime Organization |
| India — Emigration Act (recruiting agents) | 1983 | Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India |
| India — Recruitment and Placement of Seafarers Rules (RPSL) | 2016 | Directorate General of Maritime Administration, India |
| India — Digital Personal Data Protection Act | 2023 | Ministry of Electronics and IT, Government of India |
This page summarises principles for a programme model and is not legal advice. Every programme requires independent legal review in each jurisdiction involved. Instrument references were checked in September 2026.
Additional references
- Indian Navy (joinindiannavy.gov.in), Officer entry notification — eligibility of Indian citizens, accessed September 2026. joinindiannavy.gov.in
- Press Information Bureau, Government of India, Cabinet approves recruitment scheme for Indian youth to serve in the Armed Forces (Agnipath), 14 June 2022. pib.gov.in
- OHCHR, Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, 2011. ohchr.org
Due diligence
Compliance questions welcome
Governments, institutions and civil-society organisations are welcome to ask how the framework applies to a specific situation.