1910.440: Diving Recordkeeping
Diving employers must record any diving-related injury or illness that requires a dive team member to be hospitalized for 24 hours or more, including the circumstances and extent of injuries. Required records must be made available on request to OSHA, NIOSH, employees and their representatives, and kept for the periods the rule sets, such as keeping only the current safe practices manual.
Key takeaways
- 1910.440 is part of OSHA's general industry standards (29 CFR Part 1910, Subpart T).
- OSHA cited it 1 times in the last 3 years, in 1 inspections, with $0 in current penalties.
- Free 5-minute toolbox talk for your crew below.
In this article
What this rule covers
29 CFR 1910.440, "Recordkeeping requirements", is an OSHA general industry standard (Part 1910, Subpart T). It has 16 numbered paragraphs. The official text below is copied word for word from the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR). The numbers, injury cases and training on this page show how OSHA enforces it on real job sites.
Official text
Show the full text of 1910.440 (16 paragraphs)
(a)
(1) [Reserved]
(2) The employer shall record the occurrence of any diving-related injury or illness which requires any dive team member to be hospitalized for 24 hours or more, specifying the circumstances of the incident and the extent of any injuries or illnesses.
(b) Availability of records. 1 citations
(1) Upon the request of the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, or the Director, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Department of Health and Human Services of their designees, the employer shall make available for inspection and copying any record or document required by this standard. 1 citations
(2) Records and documents required by this standard shall be provided upon request to employees, designated representatives, and the Assistant Secretary in accordance with 29 CFR 1910.1020 (a)-(e) and (g)-(i). Safe practices manuals (§ 1910.420), depth-time profiles (§ 1910.422), recordings of dives (§ 1910.423), decompression procedure assessment evaluations (§ 1910.423), and records of hospitalizations (§ 1910.440) shall be provided in the same manner as employee exposure records or analyses using exposure or medical records. Equipment inspections and testing records which pertain to employees (§ 1910.430) shall also be provided upon request to employees and their designated representatives.
(3) Records and documents required by this standard shall be retained by the employer for the following period:
(i) [Reserved]
(ii) Safe practices manual (§ 1910.420)—current document only;
(iii) Depth-time profile (§ 1910.422)—until completion of the recording of dive, or until completion of decompression procedure assessment where there has been an incident of decompression sickness;
(iv) Recording of dive (§ 1910.423)—1 year, except 5 years where there has been an incident of decompression sickness;
(v) Decompression procedure assessment evaluations (§ 1910.423)—5 years;
(vi) Equipment inspections and testing records (§ 1910.430)—current entry or tag, or until equipment is withdrawn from service;
(vii) Records of hospitalizations (§ 1910.440)—5 years.
(4) The employer shall comply with any additional requirements set forth at 29 CFR 1910.1020,
(5) [Reserved]
[42 FR 37668, July 22, 1977, as amended at 45 FR 35281, May 23, 1980; 47 FR 14706, Apr. 6, 1982; 51 FR 34562, Sept. 29, 1986; 61 FR 9242, Mar. 7, 1996; 71 FR 16672, Apr. 3, 2006; 76 FR 33607, June 8, 2011; 76 FR 80740, Dec. 27, 2011]
Source: eCFR, text current as of 2026-10-15.
Where and how often it was cited
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OSHA interpretation letters
None exist. OSHA has not published a letter of interpretation for 1910.440.
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Frequently asked questions
Which diving injuries must be recorded?
Any diving-related injury or illness requiring a dive team member to be hospitalized for 24 hours or more.
Who can request diving records?
The Assistant Secretary of Labor, the Director of NIOSH or their designees, and employees and designated representatives as described in the rule.
How long is the safe practices manual kept?
Only the current document must be kept.
About this page
Sources
- 29 CFR 1910.440 (eCFR), text current as of 2026-10-15
- U.S. Department of Labor enforcement data: OSHA inspections, citations and accident records, copied nightly; data as of 2026-10-20
3-year window. Federal OSHA only; state-plan rules are not counted. Plain-language text is a summary, not legal advice; the official text controls. Black Belt Safety is not part of OSHA or the Department of Labor.