The codes of conduct: FIS's ten rules and the NSAA's ten points.

The FIS Code of Conduct for Skiers and Snowboarders

Which text

Two versions of the FIS rules were read for this site. An older copy, "10 FIS Rules for Conduct", says the rules were approved by the FIS Congress in 2002 and is marked "version 2016"; it is hosted by the Slovak ski federation. FIS's own current file is titled "FIS Code of Conduct for Skiers and Snowboarders". It carries no edition on its face, and its file data show it was created on 24 August 2023. The 2023 wording is gender-neutral where the 2016 wording used "he", but the substance of the ten rules is the same in both. FIS says the rules are guidance and do not replace the specific rules of any ski area, course, park or competition.

The ten rules, paraphrased from the FIS 2023 file

1. Respect for others: skiers and snowboarders must behave so that they do not endanger or prejudice others.
2. Control of speed: they must move in control, adapting speed and manner of skiing or riding to their ability, the terrain, snow, weather and the density of traffic.
3. Choice of route: whoever comes from behind must choose a route that does not endanger those ahead.
4. Overtaking: overtaking is allowed above or below, on the right or the left, as long as enough space is left for any voluntary or involuntary movement of the person being overtaken.
5. Entering, starting and moving upwards: anyone entering a marked run, starting again or moving upwards must look up and down the slope first.
6. Stopping on the piste: unless it is absolutely necessary, stopping in narrow places or where visibility is restricted should be avoided, and after a fall there the person should move clear as soon as possible.
7. Climbing and descending on foot: anyone climbing or descending on foot must keep to the side of the piste.
8. Respect for signs and markings: all signs and markings must be respected.
9. Assistance: at accidents, everyone is duty bound to assist. (This site records the rule only and gives no first-aid content.)
10. Identification: everyone involved in an accident, and every witness, whether responsible or not, must exchange names and addresses.

What FIS says the rules are for

FIS's 2016 general comments call the rules an ideal pattern of conduct for a responsible and careful skier or snowboarder, aimed at avoiding accidents. They add that failing to respect the rules could expose a person to civil and criminal liability after an accident. This site does not cover how the courts of any country treat the rules. The 2016 document also contains separate FIS Environmental Rules for Skiers and Snowboarders. In Switzerland, the accident-prevention body BFU said in December 2024 that snow-sport participants on pistes must follow the FIS rules and the rules of SKUS, the Swiss commission for the prevention of accidents on snow-sport runs.

Where the rules came from

FIS's congress history records that the 26th Congress, at Beirut in May 1967, distributed advice and rules for circulation on skis. Its page for the 43rd Congress, at Portoroz in June 2002, records a revision of the Rules of Conduct to include provisions for snowboarding and carving, which fits the 2016 copy's statement that the rules were approved in 2002. Claims that the ten rules were first drawn up in 1967 rest on operators' pages and are not used here.

FIS's other codes

• Cross-country: on 6 September 2023 FIS released a separate ten-rule Cross-Country Code of Conduct, saying not all rules of the general code fit every discipline. It covers respect for others and signs, choice of tracks, overtaking, encounters, poles, speed control, keeping the trail clear, accidents and identification.
• Snow parks: FIS publishes a Code of Conduct for Snow Parks. Its text could not be read; the copy found links to a FIS rules-for-conduct document whose file name and data carry the dates 2 August 2016 and a gender-neutral revision of 31 March 2020, and those dates are unconfirmed.
• Training: FIS publishes a Code of Conduct for Training and Safety for teams running training courses, seen only in search results.

The NSAA Your Responsibility Code (2022)

Which text

The US National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) publishes "Your Responsibility Code (2022)". The NSAA says it first developed the Skier Responsibility Code in 1962 and has revised it several times since, including to cover snowboarders and others.

The 2022 version grew from seven points to ten: existing points were updated, one was split in two, and two new points were added, on impairment by alcohol or drugs and on what to do after a collision or incident. The NSAA notes that ski areas are bringing in the new wording gradually because signs take time to replace, so older seven-point signs may still be seen.

The ten points, paraphrased from the NSAA page

The code is written as instructions to the reader; it is paraphrased here as what each point asks of people on the hill.

1. Staying in control, so as to be able to stop or avoid people and objects.
2. Treating people ahead or downhill as having the right of way, and avoiding them.
3. Stopping only where visible from above, and not blocking a trail.
4. Looking uphill and avoiding others before starting downhill or entering a trail.
5. Preventing runaway equipment.
6. Reading and obeying all signs, warnings and hazard markings.
7. Keeping off closed trails and out of closed areas.
8. Knowing how to load, ride and unload lifts safely, and asking the lift attendant for help if needed.
9. Not using lifts or terrain when impaired by alcohol or drugs.
10. After a collision or incident, sharing contact information with the other people involved and a ski area employee.

The NSAA's page states that winter sports involve a risk of serious injury or death, and that a person's knowledge, decisions and actions affect their own safety and that of others. It also runs a slope-safety website, Ski Safety U.S.

How the two codes compare

This comparison is this site's own reading of the two documents, not a disagreement between them.

What studies and accident bodies publish about collisions is on collisions and the codes. The signs that Rule 8 and Point 6 refer to are on trail difficulty markings.