Malta

Ships intending to fly the Maltese flag must be registered in the Registry of Ships at the Merchant Shipping Directorate, Malta.

Registration takes place in 2 stages. The vessel is first provisionally registered and upon satisfaction of certain requirements it is registered ‘permanently’.

Provisional Registration
The following is a list of the principal requirements for provisionally registering a vessel in Malta:
• An Application for the Registration of a Vessel under the Malta Flag, giving the vessel’s descriptive details including;
• Present name, and if a change of name is intended, the proposed name ( a name may be reserved beforehand)
• Propulsion (steam or motor)
• Service (dry cargo, tanker, pleasure yacht etc.)
• Has the vessel ever been registered in Malta?
• Country under laws of which the ship was last documented
• Classification society
• Proposed date of registry
• Port where ship will be at time of registry
• Number of seamen and apprentices for whom accomodation is certified
• Gross tonnage
• Net tonnage
• Length (meters)
• Breadth (meters)
• Depth (meters)
• Description of stem and stern
• Framework
• Number of decks
• Number of masts
• Number of bulkheads
• Where and when built
• Full name and full address of builders
• Number, type and description of engines
• Number of cylinders
• Power of Engines
• Full name and full address of engine makers and
• Name and office address of ship’s manager (including telephone, telex and fax numbers)
• Valid Maltese Endorsements of Certificates of Competency of the master and officers to serve on board (if available). Alternatively, as a minimum, there should be, for each officer, an acknowledgement issued by the Malta Administration of receipt of the relative application accompanied by certified copies of the seaman’s passport, medical certificate, certificate of competency and relative endorsements under the Convention, one coloured photograph and the relative funds;
• An Application for the issuance of a Minimum Safe Manning Certificate in respect of a Malta-flagged vessel;
• A copy of the current International Tonnage Certificate 1969 as issued under the authority of the flag prior to the Malta flag);
• Confirmation from the vessel’s Classification Society indicating, the current name and Class I.D. No; the IMO Number; the Class notation (i.e. bulk carrier, oil tanker, chemical tanker or passenger vessel, etc.) held by the vessel; the validity dates of all the statutory (Load Line, SOLAS and MARPOL) certificates held by the vessel; and a clear specification of any exemptions and/or conditions granted to the said statutory certificates; if no exemptions and/or conditions have been granted under the current flag jurisdiction, this must be clearly indicated by Classification Society;
• In the case of vessels intended to carry 1,000 tons of oil or more as cargo, a copy of the Blue Card issued by the relevant P & I Club to permit issuance of CLC Certificate;
• For the Provisional Ship Radio Station Licence, the AAIC number of the Accounting Authority entrusted with the handling of radio traffic accounts;
• Funds for payment of registration fees and other ancillary fees and charges; and
• Confirmation that legal title of the vessel has passed to the owner free from encumbrances (or otherwise); a faxed copy of the Bill of Sale from the last registered owner to the present owner and a fax copy of the Transcript or Extract of Register from the out-going flag administration would normally suffice for this purpose.

NOTE: With regards to the Declaration of Ownership, such Declaration is usually signed by an authorised representative in Malta at the Registry of Ships in the presence of a Registry official.

Permanent Registration
In order to qualify for ‘permanent’ registration status, the following requirements must be satisfied: Within one month of provisional registration, renewable for good reason by another one month, the following documents must be presented:
• The Deletion Certificate (original) from the previous Register, translated into the English Language as necessary; and
• The (original) Bill or Bills of Sale transferring legal title of ownership from the last registered owner appearing on the previous Register to the current owner; and
• The vessel’s Carving and Marking Note, duly endorsed as required.

Within six months of provisional registration, renewable for good reason for an aggregate of another six months, the following documents must be presented:
• A Radio Licence Application Form, duly completed with all the descriptive particulars of the equipment installed on board, together with a copy of the current valid Safety Radio Certificate and accompanying Form R as issued to the vessel by its Classification Society and an EPIRB test report; and
• A certified copy of the International Tonnage Certificate as issued to the vessel in terms of the 1969 Convention on behalf of the Government of Malta and an original Certificate of Survey issued in respect of the vessel in terms of Section 14 of the Merchant Shipping Act; and
• Confirmation by Classification Society of the validity of the statutory certificates as issued to the vessel on behalf of the Government of Malta; and
• The owners’ or technical managers’ undertaking to return the Provisional Certificate of Malta Registry to the Registrar as soon as possible, and, in any case, within thirty days of receipt of the Permanent Certificate.

A Permanent Certificate of Malta Registry is not quite what it implies: it is only valid for one year and is renewable annually on payment of the relative tonnage tax.

Transfers of Ownership
A registered ship or a share therein may be transferred by a bill of sale. The bill of sale shall contain such description of the ship as is contained in the surveyor’s certificate or some other description sufficient to identify the ship to the satisfaction of the Registrar, and shall be executed by the transferor in the presence of, and attested by, a witness or witnesses.
For this purpose corporate authorities of both sellers and buyers will have to be produced to the Registrar. It is usual for sellers to appoint a representative to sign, execute and deliver a bill of sale on the basis of a power of attorney issued for that purpose.
The transferee shall not be entitled to be registered as owner thereof until he, or in the case of a body corporate, the person authorised to make declarations on behalf of that body corporate, has made a declaration referring to the ship and containing
• A statement of qualification of the transferee to own a Maltese ship, or if a body corporate of such circumstances as prove it to be qualified to own a Maltese ship; and
• A declaration that, to the best of his knowledge and belief, no unqualified person or body of persons is entitled as owner to any interest in the ship or share therein.

Transfer of the vessel does not affect the validity of any mortgage security attaching to it though it is clear that an unauthorised transfer usually constitutes an event of default in terms of the security documentation.

If in the mortgage, the mortgagee prohibited the mortgagor from transferring the vessel to third parties without his express consent, the Registrar is bound not to register the transfer (except in the case of a court-ordered sale).

Upon entry of a transfer of a registered ship or a share therein in favour of a person qualified to own a Maltese ship the Registrar shall notify accordingly the holder of any registered mortgage.

The vessel’s official number and call sign remain the same. The only changes entered on the vessel’s register are the name and address of the new owner. If the permanent registration procedure was at the time of the registration of the transfer still incomplete, the new owners would have to satisfy the outstanding requirements.

The new owners are also bound to apply for a new radio licence by the completion of the relative survey form, regardless of the fact that a licence may still be current and valid.

Where a transfer of ownership involves also a change of technical management the ISM Code and ISPS Code Certification would also be affected. A new CSR would have to be issued to reflect the changes.

Deletion from the Malta Flag
Voluntary Closure of Registry
Where the owner of a Maltese ship desires to close the register of a ship he shall make an application to that effect to the Registrar giving all such particulars and information as the Registrar may require for the purpose including the reason for closure and the new registry of the ship.

The Registrar may refuse such application if all liabilities and obligations in respect of the ship towards the Government of Malta and any body corporate established by law, whether for fees, charges, fines or otherwise have not been paid, and shall refuse such application unless the consent in writing of all mortgagees whose mortgage is duly registered in respect of the ship is produced to him.

Where any such application is acceded to, the Registrar shall make an entry thereof in the register and thereupon the ship shall cease to be a Maltese ship and the registry of the ship shall be considered as closed except so far as relates to any unsatisfied mortgages or privileges entered therein.

A Deletion Certificate and a ‘closed’ CSR are only issued upon surrender of all certificates of Registry to the Registrar.

Closure of registry on sale of ship pursuant to court sale or sale by mortgagee in possession
The register will be closed when the purchaser of a ship pursuant to a court sale or to a sale by a mortgagee in possession is not a person who is qualified to own a Maltese ship.

Compulsory closure of registry
Registration of a ship onto Malta’s register will/may be terminated or revoked in the following circumstances
• Where the Minister has ordered such closure in the national interest or in the interest of Maltese shipping
• Where the Registrar has directed such closure if;
• The annual fees have not been duly paid in accordance with the Merchant Shipping Act
• The formalities in relation to the documents and evidence after provisional registration are not complied with within the maximum periods therein specified;
• In the event of a registered ship being either actually or constructively lost, taken by the enemy, burnt or broken up, or ceasing, whether by reason of a transfer to persons not qualified to own a Maltese ship or for any other reason, to be a Maltese ship;
• The owner fails to observe the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act
• It is established that the ship will not or cannot be registered under the Merchant Shipping Act
• Where required, any conditions established by the Minister are not observed for a period in excess of a month;
• The owner fails to pay any fine imposed under the Merchant Shipping Act, or fails to pay any penalty within one month of their being demanded in writing by the Registrar; or
• The owner fails to be in possession of a valid certificate of registry, whether provisional or otherwise, for a period in excess of a month.
The Registrar shall give one month’s notice in writing to the registered owner and any registered mortgagee of the intention of closure of registry unless the cause of such closure is remedied. The reason for closure and the expiry date for compliance will be specified in such notice.
The documents required to effect deletion are the following:
• A written application to the Registrar informing him of the nationality of the buyers and requesting closure of the register.

NOTE: a deletion certificate is issued by the Registrar only if the original certificates issued in respect of the previously Malta flagged vessel at the time the vessel was so flagged are all returned.
A “Deletion” Continuous Synopsis Record will also be issued.

An original request is required and the all original Provisional and Permanent Certificates of Registry issued by the Malta Registry of Ships are required (Renewals of the Certificate of Registry are not required).

If the application is signed by the Maltese representatives of the Shipping Organisation which owns the vessel, the Power of Attorney empowering the representatives to sign such application must be duly witnessed by an attorney and the attorney’s signature must then be certified by an Honorary Consul of Malta. Alternatively, such Power of Attorney may be notarised and apostilled.