Mauritius

It is obligatory for every 'Mauritius' ship of 24 meters in length or more to be registered under the Merchant Shipping Act 2007.

Every ship seeking registration must carry insurance against risks of loss or damage to third parties.

The Port of Registry is Port Louis.

The Register of Mauritius Ships (the "Register") is under the responsibility of the Director. The Register is divided into the following 6 Parts:

Part One Ships that are not bareboat chartered may be registered under this Part.
Part Two Bareboat chartered ships may be registered under this Part.
Part Three Ships under construction may be registered under this Part.
Part Four Fishing vessels. Fishing vessels of 24 meters or more in length may be registered after a fishing license has been obtained in relation to the fishing vessel from the Ministry of Agro Industry and Fisheries in accordance with the requirements of the Fisheries and Marine Resources Act 2007.
Part Five Pleasure vessels. If it is intended that a pleasure vessel that is registered under this Part will be operated within Mauritius waters, a license to do so should be obtained from the Ministry of Tourism, Leisure and External Communications in accordance with the requirements of the Tourism Authority Act 2008.
Part Six Submersible craft may be registered under this Part.
A ship shall only be registered under one Part but registration may be transferred from one Part to another as may be appropriate according to the particular circumstances.

Types of Registration

'First registration' Where a ship is being registered for the first time in Mauritius whether provisional or permanent registration
'Permanent registration' Where a ship is permanently registered after fulfillment of all of the registration procedures
'Provisional registration' Where a ship is at a port outside of Mauritius at the time of application for first registration and this is covered under Section 8 below. Provisional registration is valid for a period not exceeding the earlier of the expiration of 3 months from the date of the certificate of provisional registration or the date of arrival of the ship at the Port of Port Louis.
'Registration Anew' Where the ownership of a ship is changed and the owner applies to the Registrar to register the ship anew. The Registrar follows the same procedure as in the case of a first registration and upon surrender of the existing certificate of registration and compliance with all the other requirements for registration, the Registrar registers the ship anew and issues a new certificate of registration.
'Interim registration' Where there is a written contract for the transfer of a ship or a share in a ship and it is intended that on execution of the relevant bill of sale the ship will be entitled to be registered in Mauritius. The Registrar may register the ship on an interim basis and issue a certificate of registration which is valid for 21 days from its date of issue.
In order to obtain permanent registration of the ship, the transferee of the ship shall deliver the relevant documents required for permanent registration together with the bill of sale executed under the contract to the Registrar within 21 days of the date of issue of the interim certificate. The Registrar shall then make the relevant entries in the Register and issue a certificate of registration.

How to obtain Provisional Registry of a Ship

The requirements in respect of age, class, proof of liability insurance and international conventions (see Vessel Eligibility) also apply to any ship seeking provisional registration.

A provisional registration is valid until the earlier of the expiration of 3 months from the date of the provisional certificate or the date of arrival of the ship at the Port of Port Louis and under the Act has the same effect as a certificate of registration.

The Act provides for a provisional registry certificate to be issued where a ship becomes entitled to be registered whilst at a port outside Mauritius. It can be issued by a Proper Officer if the Proper Officer is satisfied as to the ownership of the ship which he will normally be on production of application to register (together with the relevant documents of title and declaration of ownership.

The requirements for survey and carving and marking (that are needed for Permanent Registry) need not be fulfilled for provisional registration.

On receipt of the above documents and payment of fees, the Proper Officer issues a provisional certificate of registry (Provisional Certificate of Mauritius Registry). The Proper Officer is required to forward a copy of the provisional certificate to the Registrar at the first convenient opportunity.

How to obtain Permanent Registration of a Ship

The requirements to be observed before 'permanent registration' can be effected are as follows:

Application for Registry

Every application for the registration of a ship must be made to the Registrar on the prescribed form. If the owner is a body corporate the Regulations also require production of:

(a) a copy of certificate of incorporation certified to be a true copy by a director or its company secretary;

(b) a copy of resolutions of its board of directors, certified to be a true copy by a director or its company secretary, authorizing a director or the company secretary, or an original power of attorney signed by a director authorizing one or more named persons, to effect registration of the ship in Mauritius.

Declaration of Ownership

Every application for registration must be accompanied by a declaration of ownership. The declaration must be made by the person who is to be registered as owner of the ship or a share in the ship, or the person authorized to make the declaration on behalf of the relevant body corporate or maritime entity. The declaration must:

(a) refer to the ship as described in the certificate of a builder or a surveyor;

(b) contain a statement of the number of shares in the ship the legal title to which vests in the party making the declaration and whether the shares are held alone or jointly with any other person;

(c) state that the ship is seaworthy;

(d) state the name of the ship's master and particulars of his certificate of competency number;

(e) where the ship was previously registered in another country, to state that the ship has been deleted from such register free and clear of registered encumbrances and provide evidence of same by way of production of a deletion certificate.

Evidence of Title to Ownership

The evidence of ownership normally to be produced consists of:

(a) for a new ship, the builder's certificate; or

(b) for a ship which is not new, the bill of sale or other equivalent document acceptable to the Registrar, evidencing the most recent transfer of ownership.

There is no form of builder's certificate prescribed by the Act.

Foreign Registry: An application in respect of a ship which has immediately before the application been registered in the registry of a foreign state shall be accompanied by a certified extract of the register of the foreign registry pertaining to that ship.

Name, Carving and Marking

(a) Name: A ship must be described only by the name under which it is registered. A change in the name of a ship can only be made with the written permission of the Registrar.

(b) Carving and Marking: An official number will be allocated and the ship must be carved. Before registration a ship shall be marked permanently and conspicuously to the satisfaction of the Director in the following manner:

(i) Its name shall be marked on each of its bows and its name and port of registration shall be marked on its stern;

(ii) Its official number and net tonnage shall be marked on a main part of the ship's permanent structure that is readily visible and accessible in a manner specified by a Surveyor;

(iii) A scale of meters (if the ship was built after 1 May 1998) or feet (if the ship was built before 1 May 1998) denoting its draught of water shall be marked on each side of its stem and its stern post.

Once the ship has been carved and marked in accordance with the requirements of the Act a Surveyor shall inspect the carving and marking of the ship. The Surveyor shall sign the prescribed form (Ship's Carving and Marking Note) and return it to the Director.

The Director has the power to exempt a ship or class of ships from any carving and marking requirements subject to such conditions as he may impose.

Survey: Before registration, a ship shall be surveyed and have its tonnage ascertained by a Surveyor. The Surveyor shall thereafter grant a Certificate of Survey for delivery to the Registrar specifying the ship's tonnage and build and other particulars required by the Director.

Where a ship intended to be registered in Mauritius has already been measured according to the International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships 1969 in a foreign country, the Director may treat the ship as being of the tonnage denoted in its previous certificate of registration without the ship being re-measured if such a ship is in possession of a valid International Tonnage Certificate.

A Surveyor may determine that a ship should be re-measured and issued with a new tonnage certificate.

Additional Documents to be produced for Registration (See Vessel Eligibility)

Copies of:

(a) Certificate of Class Maintenance issued by a classification society recognized by Mauritius;

(b) Proof of liability insurance;

(c) Mauritius Load Line Certificate issued under the provisions of the International Load Line Convention 1966;

(d) Mauritius Cargo Ship Safety Equipment Certificate issued under the provisions of SOLAS 1974;

(e) Mauritius Cargo Ship Safety Radio Certificate under the provisions of SOLAS 1974;

(f) (In case of a passenger ship) Mauritius Passenger Ship Certificate under the provisions of SOLAS 1974;

(g) Mauritius Cargo Ship Safety Construction Certificate under the provisions of SOLAS 1974;

(h) Mauritius Oil Pollution Prevention Certificate under the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships 1973 (as modified by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto);

(i) Any other certificate under any other further convention to which Mauritius has acceded at the time of first registration.

If Mauritius accedes to any further Convention after the date of first registration, the ship shall comply with that additional Convention and procure the issue of the relevant certificates under the additional Convention.

Existing certificates issued by a foreign state which is a party to the Convention to which Mauritius has acceded at the date of first registration may be accepted by the Director for issue of a provisional registration certificate of the ship. New Mauritian certificates issued under the Conventions must be submitted to the Director before expiry of existing certificates and not later than 90 days of issue of the provisional or permanent certificate of registration, whichever shall first occur.

On completion of the above requirements, the form of permanent certificate of registry is issued by the Registrar.

On registration of the ship, the Registrar will retain in his possession a copy of any builder's certificate or bill of sale or other evidence of title produced on registration, as well as any certificate of measurement or survey, and all declarations made in connection with the registration.

If at any time a change occurs in relation to a registered ship and that change affects the eligibility of the ship to be registered, the owner of the ship must notify the Registrar as soon as practicable after the change occurs. The notification must be in writing, signed by the owner and must specify the nature of the change and the name and the official number of the ship.

How to change the Name of a Mauritius Ship

Any change in name requires the approval of the Registrar. If the Registrar approves the proposed change of name he shall issue a marking note to the owner. On receipt of the marking note the owner shall cause the ship to be marked with the new name in the prescribed manner. Once the ship has been marked in the prescribed manner the owner shall complete the marking note and return it to the Registrar.

On receipt of the duly completed marking note the Registrar shall record the change of name in the Register, cancel the existing certificate of registry and issue a new certificate of registry to the owner showing the new name and particulars of the change of name.

Registration forms are available on the Registry website.