FOR 1992-07-30 no. 593: Regulations relating to the Registration of Ships in the Norwegian Ordinary Ship Register
Laid down by the Resolution in Council of 30 July 1992 under and in pursuance of ss. 11, 13, 14, 15 and 38 of Norwegian Act no. 39 of 24 June 1994 relating to Maritime Affairs (the Maritime Act). Proposed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Amended 13 Sep 1996 no. 910, 20 Dec 1996 no. 1156, 17 Dec 1999 no. 1354, 11 Nov 2002 no. 1313, 3 Dec 2004 no. 1544.
CONTENTS
Chapter 1. General provisions.
Section 1. Application
Section 2. What constitutes a ship
Section 3. Registration authority
Section 4. Contents of the register
Section 5. Journal of documents
Section 6. Payment of fees
Chapter 2. Registration procedures etc.
Section 7. Reporting ships for registration in the Ship Register
Section 7a. Details included in the Certificate of Nationality
Section 7b. Issuing a Certificate of Nationality
Section 7c. Handing over and keeping the Certificate of Nationality
Section 7d. Provisional Certificate of Nationality
Section 8. Registration of shipping partnerships
Section 9. Application for registration in the Shipbuilding Register
Section 10. Transfer from the Shipbuilding Register to the Ship Register
Section 11. Entry in the Journal of Document
Section 12. Provisional entries
Section 13. Returning clearly deficient documents
Section 14. Entry in the Ship Register
Chapter 3. Requirements concerning documentation, attestation of signatures, etc.
Section 15. Duty of disclosure
Section 16. Clarity of writing and phrasing
Section 17. Documents in a foreign language
Section 18. Attestation of signatures
Section 19. Copies of documents for registration
Section 20. Auxiliary documents
Chapter 4. Refusing registration and considering appeals. Deletion etc.
Section 21. Refusing registration and considering appeals
Section 22. Consent to certain transactions from holders of rights
Section 23. Deletion of registered documents
Chapter 5. Other provisions
Section 24. Filing and shredding
Section 25. Certificate of registration - annotations – mortgage certificates
Section 26. Notification of change. Notification to the Maritime Directorate
Section 27. Dispatching documents, transcripts, etc.
Section 28. Office hours – access to registers, etc.
Section 29. Announcements under ss. 29 and 36 of the Maritime Act
Section 30. Commencement
Chapter 1. General provisions
Section 1. Application
The present Regulations apply to ships registered in the Norwegian Ordinary Ship Register.
Section 2. What constitutes a ship
Within the context of these regulations, “ship” will refer to any type of ship covered by s. 11 of the Maritime Act, as well as any structure referred to in s. 33 of the Maritime Act, unless otherwise stated or given by the context. Structures listed under s. 507 of the Maritime Act will also be considered ships. Structures listed under s. 39 of the Maritime Act may be recorded in the Ship Register on the owner’s request.
The Shipbuilding Register shall make up a separate section of the Ship Register and will be a record of ships under construction which on completion will be entered in the main register. Equally, contracts for the building of ships, and statements from a shipyard that they have decided to build a ship on their own account, will also be considered ships under construction. In all cases, registration is subject to the ship being built in Norway.
Section 3. Registration Authority
The Norwegian Ordinary Ship Register shall be kept by an official appointed by the Ministry of Trade and Industry as Registrar for the Ship Registers, which make up a separate administrative agency under the Ministry, with offices in Bergen.
The Registrar may delegate the authority vested in him under s. 11(1) of the Maritime Act to another official at the Registrar’s office. However, decisions to refuse registration of a document, decisions to make corrections, decisions on appeals, and any other decision that may give rise to doubt, must always be made by the Registrar.
A decision to delegate authority must always be rendered in writing. Any such mandate must state the name of the person to whom authority is being transferred and whether his/her delegated authority is subject to restrictions beyond that which follows from subsection 2 above.
Section 4. Contents of the Register
The Ship Register is a central computer-based register of documents relating to ships or interests in ships, cf. ss. 13 and 20 of the Maritime Act.
For all ships, the Register shall contain the shipbuilder’s name and address, and the yard number if possible.
In all other respects, the Register shall at all times be kept in accordance with the Ministry’s current requirements.
Section 5. Journal of documents
A journal shall be kept of all documents, including notifications, which are received by the Ship Register for registration. All Register departments shall use the same journal of documents.
The journal of documents is a computer-based facility. Hardcopies and electronic backups of today’s entries shall be made on a daily basis. Hardcopies shall be kept at the Register in a separate file.
Section 6. Payment of fees
In order to secure registration or annotation in the Ship Register, and to obtain an abstract confirming a mortgage in respect of the Ship Register, fees shall be paid according to the rules that apply for similar transactions under Chapter 6, cf. Chapter 1 of Act no. 86 of 17 December 1982 relating to Court Fees, albeit with the exception of a special certificate of mortgage or other certified excerpt from the Register, which is subject to only half the normal fee. Fees are payable in advance.
A document is not regarded as having been received, and shall therefore not be entered in the Register, until the necessary fee has been paid.
Chapter 2. Registration procedures etc.
Section 7. Reporting ships for registration in the Ship Register
The owner of a ship which is subject to mandatory registration, or for which registration is requested, cf. the provisions of s. 2, shall report the vessel for registration with the Ship Register. If the ship is owned by a shipowning partnership, the submission shall be made by the managing owner. For other companies, the business manager, or a Director with full powers of attorney, shall report the ship for registration.
The submission shall be made by completing and returning a form prescribed by the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
The submission shall include a copy of the ship’s certificate of tonnage (proof of identity for vessels under 15 metres) issued or approved by the Maritime Directorate or someone authorised by the Directorate, the name certificate (waived for ships under 15 metres and for structures listed under s. 33 of the Maritime Act) issued by the Maritime Directorate, and the builder’s certificate, deed or other document proving the owner’s title to the ship. A declaration shall be submitted on a form prescribed by the Ministry of Trade and Industry stating that the nationality conditions have been met, cf. ss. 1, 4 and 33 of the Maritime Act.
Furthermore, yet except in the cases listed in the final subsection of the Maritime Act’s s. 14, a certified statement from the shipbuilder should be enclosed to verify that the ship was delivered or commissioned on the shipyard’s own account. This applies similarly for structures, cf. s. 33 of the Maritime Act.
The choice of home port, cf. s. 8 of the Maritime Act, is made by notification according to s. 13 of the Maritime Act.
For ships transferred from abroad, a certificate of deletion or other certificate issued by a foreign register must be enclosed, as in accordance with the final sentence of s. 13 of the Maritime Act. If the certificate of tonnage was issued by or on behalf of a foreign authority, a declaration shall be enclosed from the Maritime Directorate, or from a person authorised by the Directorate, stating that the ship has a valid classification and that on completion of a survey it will be fitted out and equipped according to the provisions in the Seaworthiness Act.
For ships which are being transferred from the Norwegian International Ship Register, a certificate of deletion shall be enclosed. A certified abstract from the Register shall also be enclosed. All registered encumbrances on ships entered in the Norwegian International Ship Register may, with the consent of the encumbrancers, be transferred to the Norwegian Ordinary Ship Register at the same time as the ship is being registered in the latter and deleted from the Norwegian International Ship Register.
For ships which are not being transferred from abroad, nor from the Norwegian International Ship Register, and which have not been recorded in the Shipbuilding Register and thus are not being transferred under the provisions of s. 10 above, a declaration of any record there might be of the ship in the Register of Moveable Property must be enclosed, as well as a certificate issued by the Register of Moveable Property (transcript of the owner’s sheet). Such transcript from the Register of Moveable Property is required in order to ensure that any enforcement proceedings that might be recorded in the Register of Moveable Property be entered in the Ship Register, cf. s. 41 of the Maritime Act. If the ship has had other owners in the course of the last five years, the owner should, if possible, provide information to this effect and enclose a transcript from the Register of Moveable Property for each of these.
For ships covered by Act no. 1 of 5 December 1917 on the Registration and Marking of Fishing Vessels, a certified copy of the Certificate of Fishing Vessel Registration must be enclosed. If the ship is less than 10 meters in length and is not covered by the above Act on fishing vessels, the owner will have to, in order to have the ship registered, give a written declaration that the ship will be used, solely or mainly, for the purpose of trade, stating the nature of such trade, cf. s. 11 (3) of the Maritime Act.
Annex XIII to the EEA Agreement (Regulation (EU) no. 789/2004) on the transfer of cargo and passenger ships between registers within the Community and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) no. 613/91 has the same validity as Norwegian legislation, subject to the details and limitations which follow from Protocol 1 to the Agreement and the Agreement in general.
Section 7a. Details included on the Certificate of Nationality
The Certificate of Nationality shall provide details of the ship’s name, call sign, IMO identification number, place and year of building, gross and net tonnage, type of ship, home port, register, and the owner’s name and address. The Certificate of Nationality will be issued on the form prescribed by the Ship Registers.
Section 7b. Issuing a Certificate of Nationality
Ships for which registration is mandatory shall have their Certificate of Nationality issued as soon as the ship has been registered. At the notification of changes with respect to the ship’s registered name, owner or home port, a new Certificate of Nationality will be issued to be exchanged for the previous one. This applies similarly for ships for which registration is not mandatory and which have had a Certificate of Nationality issued on the owner’s request.
If a Certificate of Nationality has been lost or rendered unreadable, a replacement Certificate of Nationality may be issued by the Registrar on the ship owner’s /master’s written request. The replacement certificate will be stamped «duplicate ».
If a Certificate of Nationality has been lost, this must be confirmed by the ship’s owner /master on the submission on his request for a replacement Certificate of Nationality. If the Certificate of Nationality has been damaged, the damaged document must be submitted along with the request for a replacement document. If a misplaced Certificate of Nationality should re-appear after a duplicate has been issued, the ship’s owner/master must immediately return the duplicate to the Registrar.
The Ship Registers shall retain a copy of any Certificate of Nationality issued.
Section 7c. Handing over and keeping the Certificate of Nationality
The Certificate of Nationality shall be handed over to the ship’s owner /master or a person he has duly authorised. The document may also be handed over via the Maritime Directorate’s stations. If the ship is abroad, the Certificate of Nationality should be sent to the shipowners for forwarding to the shipmaster.
The shipowners shall send a written confirmation to the Ship Register that the Certificate of Nationality has been received. The shipowners shall ensure that any Certificate of Nationality currently held aboard, or any provisional Certificate of Nationality, be returned to the Register.
Ships subject to mandatory registration and ships in foreign trade, must keep the original Certificate of Nationality aboard at all times.
Section 7d. Provisional Certificate of Nationality
If a ship is abroad when the Certificate of Nationality is being issued, and the document cannot be expected to reach the ship before its departure, a Provisional Certificate of Nationality may be issued by the relevant consulate/embassy on the Ship Registers’ specific instructions in each case.
A Provisional Certificate of Nationality may also be issued if the requirements for permanent registration with the Ship Register have not yet been met, but are expected to be met within a reasonable period of time.
If a ship is in Norway when the Certificate of Nationality is being issued, a Provisional Certificate of Nationality may, in the scenarios listed above, be issued by the Maritime Directorate’s stations on the Ship Registers’ specific instruction in each case.
Section 8. Registration of shipping partnerships
Every business with a ship-owning object, and with members who hold unlimited liability for the company's obligations either jointly and severally or in proportion to their interests in the business, shall be entered in the Ship Register as a shipping partnership, cf. s. 101 of the Maritime Act.
Part owners may be registered as the owner of more than one ship provided the ownership and the relative parts are the same for each ship.
The owners must give the shipping partnership a name. It must not be possible to mistake the name for that of any other shipping partnership in the Register. The name of the shipping partnership shall be stated on the notification submitted to the Registrar.
The shipping partnership shall in the Register be designated as the holder of the title to the ship.
Section 9. Application for registration in the Shipbuilding Register
Applications for registration in the Shipbuilding Register must be made out on the form prescribed by the Ministry of Trade and Industry and must contain the information listed therein. However, the application should list any record there might be of the ship in the Register of Moveable Property, and must enclose a certificate issued by the Register of Moveable Property (transcript of the owner’s sheet).
Ships may be registered in the Shipbuilding Register even if they have been ordered by a foreign national, as this register is not subject to the nationality requirements that apply for fully commissioned ships.
Section 10. Transfer from the Shipbuilding Register to the Ship Register
When a ship is reported for registration in the Ship Register, it must be stated whether the ship is recorded in the Shipbuilding Register, cf. the provisions of s. 7 above.
The Registrar shall terminate the registration in the Shipbuilding Register and transfer any registered rights to the Ship Register. The date and time of entry in the journal of documents, which forms the basis for establishing the ship’s priority, shall be noted in the Norwegian International Ship Register. If the registered rights relate to ownership transfers, only the most recent transfer shall be included. Encumbrances which have been deleted will not be transferred. The Shipbuilding Register and the Ship Register shall each include cross references.
Section 11. Entry in the Journal of Documents
Documents shall be entered consecutively in the journal according to the date and time of receipt for registration. Documents arriving in the same post will be considered to have arrived at the same time. Documents received with the morning post shall be considered to have arrived at the beginning of office hours. The document journal number, date and time shall be noted on the document.
Documents registration numbers shall run consecutively in series of a calendar year. A single journal number shall be used even if the document relates to more than one ship. Copies of the document, cf. the rules in s. 19 below, shall be annotated in the same way. Auxiliary documents, cf. the rules in s. 20 below, which are to be kept at the office, shall have an annotation with details of which document they accompany. This is achieved by referring to the document's journal number.
The journal should include only a brief abstract of the document, but must clearly indicate the document to which the entry relates, its date and time, and the main rights established within it, using key words if necessary. The objects to which rights have been established, and the fees paid, must be specified in detail.
In respect of documents received for registration, requisitioners may request a receipt stating the date and time of registration. The Registrar may request that requisitioners submit completed receipts for signature.
Section 12. Provisional entries
When a deadline has been set for corrections under s. 16(2) of the Maritime Act, and when an appeal has been lodged against a refusal to register information, the document shall be provisionally entered in the Register. An annotation must be made to the effect that the registration is provisional. Certificates of registration, mortgage certificates and transcripts shall state that the document has only been provisionally entered in the Register, cf. the rules in s. 25 below.
Section 13. Returning clearly deficient documents
A document that clearly cannot be registered may be returned to the requisitioner without having been allocated a journal number. Such document should be sent back by return, and only if there is reason to believe that this will not result in loss of priority. The document shall be accompanied by a note to the requisitioner explaining why the document cannot be registered and that it has not been entered in the journal of documents. He shall also be informed that the document may be entered in the journal on his request. Should such request be made, the document shall be entered in the journal on the day the request is received.
If a document received for the second time still cannot be registered, the Registrar shall refuse registration according to the provisions of s. 21 below.
Section 14. Entry in the Ship Register
A document is entered (abstracted) in the Ship Register by recording its journal number, the date and time of its receipt, the designation of the document, and a short abstract of the main rights established within it, including all financial encumbrances. The same applies for enforcement proceedings. The notification, the certificate of tonnage, ship's data and information concerning ownership, etc., shall be entered in accordance with the current rules for keeping the Register.
Chapter 3. Requirements concerning documentation, attestation of signatures, etc
Section 15. Duty of disclosure
If the Registrar requires further information in connection with a registration, he may request that the requisitioner supply such information, unless it is available in protocols and documents held in the Register's archives.
Section 16. Clarity of writing and phrasing
Documents submitted for registration shall be presented in legible writing and must be phrased in a manner which leaves no doubt as to the extent of the rights established and their place of entry. The document should be brief and, if possible, contain only information that may be registered, cf. s. 20 of the Maritime Act. If the document contains information that cannot be registered, this should be presented separately at the end of the document. If a document has not been edited accordingly, the requisitioner may be instructed to replace it with a new document.
The parties shall be uniquely identified. For individuals who have been allocated a Norwegian national identity number (date of birth + personal identity number), this must be stated. Individuals who have not been allocated such a number must instead give their year and date of birth.
Section 17. Documents in a foreign language
Documents submitted for registration must be written in Norwegian, Danish, Swedish or English, but a translation of the document into Norwegian may nevertheless be requested if this is necessary in order to ascertain how the document is to be understood and entered in the Register. The translation must be certified by a translator authorised by Norwegian authorities.
A certificate of registration, cf. the rules in s. 25 below, shall be added to the original document.
The translation shall be regarded as an auxiliary document, cf. the rules in s. 20 below.
Copies of both the original and the translation shall be submitted.
An auxiliary document in a foreign language need not be translated if the Registrar is in no doubt about its contents.
Section 18. Attestation of signatures
In cases where a signature must be certified, cf. s. 15(2) of the Maritime Act, it may be attested by two witnesses who are of age and resident in Norway, or by a Norwegian
- judge or deputy judge,
- rural policeman or his deputy,
- bailiff or deputy bailiff approved by the District Court,
- arbitrator,
- lawyer or authorised legal assistant,
- state authorised or registered public accountant,
- notary public.
The signature may also be certified by a foreign notary public.
The office of a Norwegian notary public may also be executed by Norwegian Foreign Service officials stationed abroad, insofar as the official is competent to carry out the duties of a notary, cf. s. 20 of the Foreign Service Act of 18 July 1958. In foreign countries, which office is entrusted with the duties of a notary public will depend on the law of the country in question.
With respect to signatures on behalf of a foreign company, organisation or other body corporate, the notary must also certify that the signatory/signatories hold a power of attorney.
The signature of a foreign notary public should generally be authenticated by a Norwegian Foreign Service official.
The issuer of a document cannot attest his own signature. Nor may a person acquiring a right through a document, or his/her spouse, parents, children or siblings or a person in his/her employment, attest the issuer's signature. If the document is issued to a Norwegian bank or insurance company, employees of the bank or insurance company may nevertheless attest the issuer's signature. The same applies for civil servants if the document is issued to the state or a local authority.
If the Registrar sees no objection, he may accept a document for registration even if the signature has not been attested in the prescribed manner.
Section 19. Copies of documents for registration
A copy may be a carbon copy, duplicate, transcript or similar. The copy must be a correct and easily legible reproduction of the original document or that part of it which is being registered, and sufficiently durable for storage in archives. The copy must be of a normal good quality.
If a document contains information which cannot be registered, cf. s. 20 of the Maritime Act, the omission of such information from the copy may be requested.
If a document has been prepared or submitted by a credit institution under public supervision, a public bank or public fund, or by a practising lawyer, these shall in their annotations certify that the copy is a correct reproduction of the document or that part of the document which is being registered. The same applies when the document is issued by a public agency.
If the copy has been certified by any of those mentioned in paragraph 3 above, or by a notary public, the Registrar need not check the accuracy of the copy unless he finds special reason to do so.
The Registrar must ascertain that an uncertified copy is a correct reproduction of the document or that part of the document which is being registered. If a copy which ought to have been certified is found not to be certified, the Registrar may request that a certified copy be presented instead.
If a copy is incorrect or incomplete and the necessary corrections cannot appropriately be made at the Registrar's office, the Registrar may request a new copy or, if he finds reason to do so, make a new copy himself. The same applies if there is no copy accompanying the document.
If a document applies to more than one ship, the Registrar may request one copy for each ship.
Documents, or parts of documents, which relate to enforcement proceedings, need not be submitted with an accompanying copy unless the Registrar finds reason to request one.
If the registration concerns a short-term annotation, the Registrar may waive the requirement of a copy.
Section 20. Auxiliary documents
A document which cannot be registered may be presented as an auxiliary document when it serves as evidence of matters that have a bearing on the registration or deletion of another document (the principal document). If a principal document is issued on the basis of an authorisation, an auxiliary document must be presented to verify such authorisation. If the authorisation conveys a right to issue a deed or mortgage document, cf. s. 15(2) of the Maritime Act, the rules in s. 18 above concerning the attestation of signatures shall apply to the signature of the person granting the authority.
Information concerning the auxiliary document shall be given on the copy of the principal document which is kept at the Registrar's office.
If the auxiliary document is a transcript from an official protocol or a certification issued by a public agency on the strength of information contained in an official protocol or document, it is not necessary to keep the auxiliary document at the Registrar's office. Unless there are provisions to the contrary, other auxiliary documents shall be kept at the office, either originals or certified copies. The Registrar may request a copy which is suitable for storage in the archives of the office, and that such copy shall only contain matters of relevance to the registration or deletion, as the case may be.
A single auxiliary document is sufficient even when the registration applies to more than one ship.
Chapter 4. Refusing registration and considering appeals. Deletion etc.
Section 21. Refusing registration and considering appeals
Until a certificate of registration, cf. s. 17(1) of the Maritime Act, has been signed, registration of a document may be refused.
If a document is not accepted for registration, the requisitioner and others directly concerned shall receive immediate advice of the refusal by recorded delivery or other verifiable means. The advice shall include the reasons for refusal, and must provide details of the right to appeal to the Ministry of Trade and Industry, and that any such appeal must reach the Registrar within three weeks of the date on which notification of refusal was sent. If the Registrar sets a later deadline, this later deadline must be specified instead. The note shall include information that legal action cannot be taken unless a formal appeal has been submitted.
Furthermore, the advice should contain a brief account of the provisions in s. 32 of the Public Administration Act, cf. the final paragraph of the Maritime Act’s s. 19.
The same applies for other rejected applications, cf. the final paragraph of the Maritime Act’s s. 16. This includes requests for corrections, title entries, etc.
On receipt of an appeal the Registrar shall prepare the case and without delay send the declaration of appeal and the case documents to the Ministry, unless he decides himself to rescind or change his previous decision.. As far as possible, anyone acting as an opposing party, or who may be regarded as an opposing party, shall be asked to submit a statement before the appeal is forwarded to the Ministry. In any case, this individual should be notified of the appeal no later than on the forwarding date. The Registrar shall himself supply whatever information is necessary for the consideration of the appeal, including the date on which the document was entered in the journal of documents and the date of receiving the appeal. Copies of this statement shall be sent to the appellant and any other interested parties whose addresses are known. The necessary documents in the case, or any copies of such documents, shall be sent to the body considering the appeal.
A short statement to the effect that registration has been refused should be added to the relevant document entry in the journal of documents. A similar annotation shall be added to the provisional entry in the Register. If the decision is reversed, a statement to that effect shall be added in the journal of documents, whereas the refusal annotation in the Register should be deleted.
A copy of the decision to refuse registration, or of decisions not to proceed in other matters, shall be kept in a separate file at the Registrar's office. The Ministry's decision, and the court ruling if any, shall be placed in the same file.
Section 22. Encumbrancer’s consent to certain transactions
For a registered encumbrancer to consent to the deletion of a ship, etc., from the Ship Register or the Shipbuilding Register, the individual giving such consent must verify that he is in fact the correct party. If the encumbrance is a negotiable mortgage deed, cf. s. 11 of the Act of 17 February 1939 relating to Instruments of Debt, this must generally be presented in original, annotated with the consent, and the wording of the deed, or a continuous series of transfer annotations, must demonstrate that the consenting party is the encumbrancer. If the deed carries a restrictive clause - not to order - making it non-negotiable, it is not necessary to submit the original document. Consent may then be given in a separate declaration.
The rules in this Section apply similarly when the establishment of an interest in the ship or other relevant transaction requires the consent of the encumbrancer due to the registered restrictions to the title holder’s right of disposition.
An endorsement consenting to a deletion or other transaction shall from the point of view of registration be dealt with like other endorsements on previously registered documents (entry in the journal of documents, calculation of fees, annotations and copies).
Section 23. Deletion of registered documents
When a document is deleted, it shall be noted in the Register that the document has been deleted, with its journal number and the date and time of deletion. A certificate of deletion shall be added to the document according to the provisions of s. 25(1) below. On the first page, a stamp or similar imprint shall be placed to clearly show that the document has been deleted.
In connection with the deletion, the retained copy shall also indicate the grounds for deletion, the journal number and the date and time of entry in the journal. The copy should also be clearly stamped and must be transferred to a separate file for deleted documents, arranged in chronological order for each calendar year. Copies which cannot be legally shredded, must be kept separate.
If an encumbrancer consents to the deletion of an encumbrance, the document showing the consent, or a copy of such document, shall be attached to the copy of the principal document, which should then be processed as described above, cf. s. 29 of the Maritime Act. The same applies when a document is registered as evidence that an encumbrance has been discontinued.
Chapter 5. Other provisions
Section 24. Filing and shredding
Copies of registered documents shall be filed in document folders. In the Ship Register, the document folders shall be arranged alphabetically by ship name; in the Shipbuilding Register they shall be arranged alphabetically by the name of the shipbuilding yard and by the ship’s yard number within that shipyard.
Auxiliary documents, or copies of auxiliary documents, shall be filed in the ship’s document folder.
Documents relating to mortgages only may be shredded five years after the end of the year in which they were deleted from the register concerned.
Auxiliary documents may be destroyed at the same time as the documents to which they relate, or after having been stored for ten years.
Section 25. Certificates of registration - annotations – mortgage certificates
A certificate of registration, cf. s. 17(1) of the Maritime Act, is issued when the document has been permanently recorded in the Ship Register / Shipbuilding Register. The date and time of registration, and the number under which the document was entered in the Register, must also be certified, as well as the registration fee paid, or whether the registration was free of charge. If there is a mismatch between the ship details provided in the document and those recorded in the Register, this shall be noted on the certificate.
When encumbrances are noted on a document, cf. section 17(2) of the Maritime Act, or included in a special mortgage certificate, cf. section 17(3) of the Maritime Act, or in a certificate of deletion, cf. section 28(3) and section 32(4) of the Maritime Act, the annotation shall state the designation of the encumbrance or document and the date/time of its registration. A brief statement on the general nature of the encumbrance must also be made - including its nominal amount or value as the case may be - and the name of the encumbrancer. If the encumbrance has not been permanently recorded in the Register, this must be stated.
In the event of advance registration, cf. the final paragraph of s. 14 of the Maritime Act, the date and time when the document is considered to have been entered in the journal of documents shall be stated, cf. s. 24(4) of the Maritime Act.
Annotations, special mortgage certificates or certificates of deletion may be issued in the form of copies of the relevant pages of the Register.
Section 26. Notification of change. Notification to the Maritime Directorate
If the details of a ship entered in the Ship Register should change, cf. s. 13(1) of the Maritime Act, the owner shall notify the Registrar, cf. s. 13(2) of the Maritime Act. The owner does not, however, need to report a new measurement (re-measurement) of the ship, nor the ensuing amendments in the new tonnage certificate, cf. section 3 below.
Any notification of change concerning a ship's data shall be accompanied by written evidence of such changes. If the ship's name is changed, a name certificate issued by the Maritime Directorate shall be enclosed (not required for vessels under 15 metres). For a change of home port, it is sufficient for the owner to declare in writing where the new home port will be. Changes of ownership are considered to have been reported as and when the document conferring title is submitted for registration. The title deed must be accompanied by an auxiliary document declaring - on a form prescribed by the Ministry of Trade and Industry - that the nationality conditions have been satisfied, cf. ss. 1, 4 and 33 of the Maritime Act.
Any notification from the Maritime Directorate or its authorised attorney concerning a new measurement (or a new tonnage certificate) of a ship entered in the Ship Register shall be registered at the Registrar's office free of charge.
If the Registrar has reason to believe that there has been a change in any of the details recorded in the Ship Register or Shipbuilding Register, and no mandatory notification has been submitted within the deadline set, cf. s. 13(2) of the Maritime Act, he shall promptly seek to clarify the matter and when necessary request the person responsible for notifications to submit the new details by return. Should the Registrar be made aware of any reason to delete the ship, he shall proceed according to the provisions of s. 28 of the Maritime Act. With respect to the Shipbuilding Register, refer to s. 32(2)(3) of the Maritime Act.
The police, the Norwegian Ship Control, Customs and Excise, and Control Officers appointed under the Act of 5 December 1917 on the Registration and Marking of Fishing Vessels, are all obliged to make statements and conduct investigations with respect to ships and ships under construction, if the Registrar should request them to do so in pursuance of his duties as laid down in laws and regulations.
Section 27. Dispatching document, transcipts etc.
Anyone may request a certified transcript of documents entered in the journal of documents and registers kept by the Registrar, including mortgage certificates.
The documents shall be dispatched - and transcripts issued - in the order in which the documents or the request arrived. Should the requisitioner indicate that rapid dispatch is of particular importance to him, documents for registration, transcription, certification etc. may be processed out of turn. In such cases it must always be ascertained whether there is a document among those entered in the journal of documents and not yet recorded in the Register, which must be annotated as an encumbrance on the document or certificate requested.
Requisitioned lists of particular groups of documents entered in the journal of documents are issued in such order as the Registrar shall decide.
The Registrar may give permission for uncertified lists or abstracts concerning registration to be issued, for instance in connection with historical studies or other scholarly research.
Section 28. Office hours - access to registers, etc.
On ordinary working days, office hours for registrations shall be from 9 am to 3 pm. If on certain days, such as Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve, the office closes before 3 pm, the office must be open for registrations from 9 am until closing time. In special cases the Ministry of Trade and Industry may consent to shorter office hours.
Outside these hours it must be possible to deliver documents for registration on all weekdays, including Saturdays and Norwegian national holidays, between 7 am and 12 midnight, if this is necessary for the sake of simultaneous deletion from or registration in foreign registers. The same applies when dictated by concern for foreign holders of rights. Delivery of documents outside office hours must always be arranged with the Registrar.
During office hours members of the public shall have access to the Register and the copy archives. Documents in the copy archives must never be lent out for use outside the office.
It is permitted to restrict telephone enquiries to office hours.
Section 29. Announcements under ss. 29 and 36 of the Maritime Act
Requests for potential encumbrancers or owners to contact the Registrar shall be published once in the Official Gazette and in at least one newspaper with nationwide circulation. The requisitioner must pay the cost of the announcement.
When the address of an encumbrancer or owner is known, the Registrar should also notify that person by registered letter.
Section 30. Commencement
The present Regulations come into force on 1 August 1992, except for the final paragraph of s. 7 which shall come into force as decided by the Ministry of Trade and Industry. The Regulations of 22 November 1975 concerning the registration of ships etc. are repealed from the same date.