Merchant Ships

Introduction

The Isle of Man Ship Registry is committed to high standards and to the maintenance and development of a high quality fleet.

Ships of virtually all types are accepted for registry, the Manx fleet including bulk carriers, tankers, gas and chemical carriers, offshore support vessels, FPSOs, container ships, cargo ships and Ro-Ro ferries.

However, some ships are not accepted for registry. These are as follows:

• Ships which are not classed with one of the accepted Classification Societies
• Ships of under 500 GT unless they are operating locally in and around the Isle of Man
• Ships greater than 15 years of age
• Single hull oil tankers
• Ro-Ro passenger ships & passenger ships operating in areas outside the Irish Sea
• High Speed Craft operating outside the Irish Sea area
• Floating Dry Docks
• Harbour and estuarial craft operating outside Manx waters
• Pilgrim Ships
• Ships engaged in the carriage of irradiated nuclear fuel

General procedures for placing a ship on the Manx register

Details of the registry procedures are in the Registry section. Other than the procedures for registry it is an absolute requirement that every ship proposed for registry in the Isle of Man is visited by an Isle of Man surveyor prior to registry. The attending surveyor is required to report on the ship’s suitability for registry in the Isle of Man to the registrar and only on receipt of a positive report from the surveyor, can registry proceed.

An owner or manager seeking to register a ship in the Isle of Man should initially make contact with the registrar (registry@shipping.dti.gov.im) to ensure that there are no impediments to registry and with one of the Principal Surveyors (survey@shipping.dti.gov.im) to arrange a suitable date and place for the initial inspection.

Isle of Man surveyors are all based in the Ship Registry’s Head Office in Douglas. The initial request should be followed up by a copy of the ship’s general arrangement plan and copies of her existing statutory certificates (for an existing ship). The owner will also need to submit the proposed manning scales for the ship with clarification of how the proposed scales meet the Hours of Rest requirements. A surveyor will be assigned and he will travel to the ship in the agreed port to make an inspection.

Initial Inspection

This will take between one and two days and will cover:

• The general condition of the ship
• An internal check on selected tanks
• Safety equipment
• MARPOL compliance
• ISM compliance
• Crewing, manning and certification and capability of the crew
• Crew accommodation standards
• Crew welfare and working conditions

Depending on the current status of the ship’s certification the attending Isle of Man surveyor will also complete surveys for IOPP and SEC if necessary.

Following inspection

If possible the surveyor will return to the Isle of Man and prepare all the necessary certificates for the ship and these will be couriered to the port where the actual change of registry is to take place. The certificates will normally be sent to a representative of the ship’s Classification Society who will then hand them over as soon as the registry process is complete.

It is also possible for inspection and registry to be completed at the same time. In this case the surveyor will confirm to the registrar that the ship is suitable and he will then date and hand over the certificate of registry as soon as he receives confirmation that the registry transfer process is complete. For this process to work it is essential that there are no defects in the ship and that as much information as possible is provided before the surveyor attends in order that he is able to prepare short term certificates in advance.

After Registry

The Isle of Man Ship Registry takes great care to ensure that all ships flying the Manx flag are a credit to the Island.

Following registry the Ship Registry will send a surveyor to visit the ship at 2½ yearly intervals timed to fit in with the ship's ISM certification. For ships entered in the Alternative Fees Scheme these visits and the issue of any necessary certification is free of charge. For other ships the visit will be charged at normal rates. At the 2½ yearly visits the attending surveyor will:

• Complete an ISM audit and issue any necessary SMC
• Complete a general inspection
• Complete an inspection of crew accommodation, welfare and working conditions in accordance with ILO178 and issue a report

Port State Control

The Isle of Man flag is highly regarded by the world’s Port State Control Authorities and it is the intention of the Ship Registry that this position will be maintained. Should a ship be detained by Port State Control, the owner or manager is required to notify the Ship Registry immediately and the Ship Registry, if it considers that the detention is genuine, will send a surveyor to investigate the matter. The costs of this visit will be borne by the owner or manager. On the other hand, should the Ship Registry consider that the detention is unwarranted it will not visit and will take up the matter with the appropriate persons with a view to having the detention record removed. In order to assist in this, owners and managers are requested to provide full details of any detention immediately.

Casualties

In the event that a ship is involved in a casualty the owner or manager is required to notify the Ship Registry immediately. The Ship Registry has a duty to investigate casualties and publishes its reports (see Casualties page). The Ship Registry will send an investigator as quickly as possible to any casualty that requires investigation.

Useful Documents

There is a range of useful documents for Merchant Vessels to download for free (see Merchant Vessel Page).