About Provisional Registration Certificates

The purpose of this page is to provide an outline of the process of granting a provisional registration certificate. The grant of a Provisional Registration Certificate is described fully in sections 22, 22A and 22B of the Shipping Registration Act 1981 and Shipping Registration Regulations 14 and 15.

Introduction

A Provisional Registration Certificate (PRC) is a temporary navigation document for use prior to the permanent registration of a ship or to replace a lost Registration Certificate.

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Where and how granted

Both the Registrar of Ships and a proper officer of an Australian Embassy or High Commission can grant a PRC for

an unregistered ship that becomes entitled to be registered while abroad
an unregistered ship that is to depart from an Australian port to a place outside Australia
a registered ship as a temporary replacement for a Registration Certificate.

However, a PRC can be granted for an unregistered ship only if an application for permanent registration has been lodged with the Registrar of Ships or with the proper officer of the Australian Embassy or High Commission. These documents must include at least the:

Application for Registration
Declaration of Ownership and Nationality
Lodgement fee

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The Application

An application consists of:

The completed application form
Lodgement fee
Where the application is signed by the master of the ship, documentary evidence of his appointment as master and of his authority to sign the application
The tonnage certificate (if any) that is in force in relation to the ship
The instrument (if any) by which ownership of the ship passed to the person named as owner in the application
Where the ship has at any time been registered under the law of a foreign country, documentary evidence that the ship is no longer registered under that law, or documentary evidence that steps have been taken, or are proposed to be taken, to close the registration of the ship under the law of that country on or before the grant of the PRC. Warning: A Certificate cannot be granted before the closure of a foreign registration. If you want the grant of a Certificate to coincide with the closure of a foreign registration, please make arrangements for the foreign registry to supply a written undertaking to close registration on or before a specified date.

The application may be signed by the ship's owner or master and may be lodged either with the Registrar of Ships or an Australian Embassy or High Commission office.

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Validity

A PRC is valid for 6 months from the date of issue or until the ship arrives in an Australian port, whichever is the sooner.

If necessary, the owner or master may apply to the Registrar for an extension of the PRC. The application for extension must be made before the PRC expires. The extension fee is $A82.

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Fees

The GST does not apply to services supplied by the Shipping Registration Office.

The lodgement fee is $A155.

Cheques should be made payable to: AUSTRALIAN MARITIME SAFETY AUTHORITY

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last updated: 25 July 2006