CANADA SHIPPING ACT
PART I
PART I
Canadian
Register of Ships and Registrars
Appointment of Chief
Registrar
12. The Minister is to appoint an officer to be known as
the Chief Registrar.
Duties of Chief Registrar
13. (1) The Chief Registrar is responsible for
establishing and maintaining a register to be known as the Canadian Register of Ships.
Records
(2) The Register is to contain records of the information and documents
specified by the Chief Registrar in respect of a Canadian ship, including
(a) its name and description;
(b) its official number;
(c) its register tonnage;
(d) the name and address of its owner; and
(e) details of all mortgages registered in respect of it.
Registrars
14. (1) The Chief Registrar may appoint registrars that
the Chief Registrar considers necessary.
Duties of registrars
(2) A registrar is to perform the duties and responsibilities that the
Chief Registrar assigns to the registrar.
Immunity
15. The Chief Registrar and the registrars are not
personally liable for anything they do or omit to do in good faith under this Act.
Mandatory
registration -- ships that exceed 15 tons
16. (1) Every ship that exceeds 15 tons gross tonnage, is
owned only by qualified persons and is not registered in a foreign country must be
registered under this Part.
Obligation of owner
(2) Every owner of a ship described in subsection (1) shall ensure that it
is registered under this Part.
Mandatory
registration -- government ships
(3) Every government ship that exceeds 15 tons gross tonnage must be
registered under this Part.
Optional registration
17. Unless they are registered in a foreign country, the
following ships may be registered under this Part:
(a) a ship that is owned only by qualified persons and that does not
exceed 15 tons gross tonnage;
(b) a ship that is owned by a corporation incorporated under the laws of a
country other than Canada if one of the following is acting with respect to all matters
relating to the ship, namely,
(i) a subsidiary of the corporation that is incorporated under the laws of
Canada or a province,
(ii) an employee or director in Canada of any branch office of the
corporation that is carrying on business in Canada, or
(iii) a ship management company incorporated under the laws of Canada or a
province; and
(c) a ship that is in the exclusive possession of a qualified person under
a financing agreement under which the person will acquire ownership on completion of the
agreement.
Ships registered
in a foreign country
18. A ship registered in a foreign country that is
bare-boat chartered exclusively to a qualified person may be listed under this Part as a
bare-boat chartered ship for the duration of the charter if, for the duration of the
charter, the registration is suspended in respect of the right to fly the flag of that
country.
Ships under construction
19. A ship that is about to be built or that is under
construction in Canada may be temporarily recorded in the Register as a ship being built
in Canada.
Ships built outside Canada
20. Notwithstanding sections 16, 17 and 18, the Minister
may direct the Chief Registrar to refuse to register or list a ship built outside -Canada.
Application
21. (1) An application for the registration, listing or
recording of a ship must be made in the form and manner and include the information and be
accompanied by the documents specified by the Chief Registrar.
Further evidence
(2) In addition to the specified information or documentation, the Chief
Registrar may require an applicant to provide evidence, including declarations, that the
Chief Registrar considers necessary to establish that a ship is required or entitled to be
registered or is entitled to be listed or recorded.
Names of ship
22. (1) Every ship must be named in the form and manner
specified by the Chief Registrar before being registered or listed.
Approval of names
(2) The Chief Registrar may, on application, approve the name of a ship
before it is registered or listed and approve a change in the name of a Canadian ship.
Disallowance of names
(3) The Chief Registrar must disallow any name if
(a) it is the same as the name of a Canadian ship;
(b) it is likely, in the opinion of the Chief Registrar, to be confused
with the name of a Canadian ship or with a distress signal;
(c) it is likely, in the opinion of the Chief Registrar, to be offensive
to members of the public; or
(d) its use is prohibited under any other Act of Parliament.
Requiring renaming
(4) The Minister may order that a Canadian ship be renamed if the Minister
considers that its name would prejudice the international reputation of Canada.
Shares
23. (1) For the purposes of registration, the property in
a ship is divided into 64 shares.
Registered owners
(2) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), only owners, or joint owners, of a
ship or of one or more shares in a ship may be registered in the Register as owners of the
ship or shares, as the case may be.
Registered
owners -- financing agreements
(3) In the case of a ship described in paragraph 17(c) (a ship subject to
a financing agreement), persons referred to in that paragraph are to be registered in the
Register as the owners of the ships.
Bare-boat charters
(4) In the case of a ship described in section 18 (a bare-boat chartered
ship), no person is to be registered in the Register as an owner of the ship.
Registration of joint
owners
(5) No more than five persons may be registered in the Register as joint
owners of a ship or a share in a ship.
Disposition of
registered joint interests
(6) A registered jointly owned interest in a ship or a share in a ship may
be disposed of only by all of the joint owners.
Registration of
fractions prohibited
(7) No person may be registered as the owner of a fractional part of a
share in a ship.
No effect on beneficial
owners
(8) This section does not affect the beneficial interests of a person
represented by or claiming through an owner of a ship or a share in a ship.
Trusts not recognized
(9) No notice of a trust may be entered in the Register.
Certificates of registry
24. (1) If the Chief Registrar is satisfied that all of
the requirements of registration or listing have been met with respect to a ship, the
Chief Registrar must register or list the ship, as the case may be, in the Register and
issue a certificate of registry.
Information
(2) Every certificate of registry in respect of a ship must contain the
information specified by the Chief Registrar, including
(a) its name and description;
(b) its official number;
(c) its register tonnage; and
(d) the name and address of
(i) in the case of a ship described in paragraph 17(b) (a ship owned by a
foreign corporation), its authorized representative,
(ii) in the case of a ship described in section 18 (a bare-boat chartered
ship), the bare-boat charterer, and
(iii) in any other case, its owner.
Validity of
certificates of registry
(3) Certificates of registry are valid for the period that the Minister
specifies.
Provisional certificates
25. (1) The Chief Registrar may, on application, issue a
provisional certificate in respect of a ship that is required or entitled to be registered
under this Part if the ship
(a) is in a foreign port and a person intends to register it under this
Part; or
(b) is in a port in Canada and the Chief Registrar is satisfied that
permission to operate the ship should be granted before a certificate of registry can be
issued.
Issuance
(2) The Chief Registrar may, on application, issue a provisional
certificate in respect of a ship that is not required or entitled to be registered under
this Part if the Chief Registrar is satisfied that the ship needs to undergo sea trials.
Validity
(3) A provisional certificate is valid for the purpose and the period that the Chief
Registrar specifies.
Application
(4) An application for a provisional certificate must be made in the form and manner
and include the information and be accompanied by the documents specified by the Chief
Registrar.
Lost certificates
26. If a certificate of registry or provisional certificate is
mislaid, lost or destroyed, the Chief Registrar, on application made by the authorized
representative of the ship in the form and manner and including the information and
accompanied by the documents specified by the Chief Registrar, must issue a replacement
certificate of registry or provisional certificate, as the case may be.
Marking
27. (1) The authorized representative of a Canadian ship shall, in the
form and manner specified by the Chief Registrar, mark the ship with its name, its
register tonnage, its official number and any other information that the Chief Registrar
specifies.
Validity of certificate of
registry
(2) A ship's certificate of registry is not valid until the ship has been marked in
accordance with subsection (1).
Maintenance of markings
(3) The authorized representative shall ensure that the ship is kept marked.
Defacing, etc., markings
(4) No person shall deface, alter, conceal or remove the markings of a Canadian ship.
Notification of changes
28. (1) The authorized representative of a Canadian ship shall notify
the Chief Registrar within 30 days after any of the following occurs:
(a) the ship is lost, wrecked or removed from service;
(b) there has been a change in the owner's or a registered mortgagee's name or address;
(c) there has been a change in the information provided with the application under
section 21; or
(d) in the case of a ship described in section 18 (a bare-boat chartered ship),
(i) the right to fly the flag of the foreign country is reinstated, or
(ii) the charterer ceases to have complete control and possession of the ship.
Notification of alteration
(2) If a Canadian ship is altered to the extent that it no longer corresponds with its
description or particulars set out on the certificate of registry, the authorized
representative of the ship shall
(a) notify the Chief Registrar within 30 days after the alteration; and
(b) arrange for a new tonnage certificate to be provided to the Chief Registrar.
Notification of changes
(3) If for any reason a Canadian ship does not have an authorized representative, its
owner shall notify the Chief Registrar
(a) of that fact as soon as possible in the circumstances; and
(b) within 30 days after any of the events referred to in subsection (1) or (2) occurs.
Notification of completion
of construction
(4) Within 30 days after completion of the construction of a ship that is recorded as
being built in Canada, the person in whose name the ship is recorded shall notify the
Chief Registrar of that fact and of the name and address of its owner.
Amendments
29. The Chief Registrar may amend the Register or a certificate of
registry to give effect to changes of which the Chief Registrar has been notified under
section 28 or to correct any clerical errors or obvious mistakes.
Suspension and cancellation
30. (1) Subject to the regulations, the Chief Registrar may suspend or
cancel the registration or listing of a Canadian ship if
(a) it is not marked in accordance with subsection 27(1);
(b) its certificate of registry has expired;
(c) it does not have an authorized representative; or
(d) its authorized representative has not complied with section 28.
Cancellation
(2) Subject to the regulations, the Chief Registrar must cancel the registration or
listing of a Canadian ship if
(a) it has been lost, wrecked or removed from service;
(b) it is no longer required or entitled to be registered or entitled to be listed
under this Part; or
(c) in the case of a registered ship, a tonnage certificate provided by a tonnage
measurer indicates that the ship should be re-registered.
Notice before cancellation
(3) If a Canadian ship is not required or entitled to be registered under this Part
after its ownership changes, the Chief Registrar must, before cancelling its registration
under paragraph (2)(b), give the owners and registered mortgagees
(a) notice, in accordance with the regulations, of the change in ownership; and
(b) an opportunity that, in the opinion of the Chief Registrar, is sufficient to
transfer the ship or shares to a qualified person or to make an application under section
46.
Cancellation of registration
(4) Except in the case of a ship described in paragraph 17(c) (a ship subject to a
financing agreement), the Chief Registrar must cancel the registration of a ship if a
person who acquires the ship or a share in it does not, within the prescribed period,
provide evidence that satisfies the Chief Registrar that the ship is required or entitled
to be registered under this Part.
Registration of mortgages not
affected
31. The cancellation of the registration of a ship does not affect the
registration of mortgages in respect of the ship.
Reinstatement
32. The Chief Registrar may reinstate the registration or listing of a
ship if, in the Chief Registrar's opinion, the registration or listing of the ship should
not have been cancelled.
Carrying on board ship
33. (1) Subject to subsection (3), no person shall operate a ship in
respect of which a certificate of registry or provisional certificate has been issued
unless the certificate is on board the ship.
Delivery of certificate
(2) A person who is in possession of a ship's certificate of registry or provisional
certificate shall deliver it to the person who is entitled to operate the ship.
Delivery of certificate
(3) A person who is in possession of a certificate of registry or a provisional
certificate issued under this Part shall deliver it to the Chief Registrar on request.
Detention of certificate
(4) A certificate of registry or provisional certificate is not subject to detention
because of any title to, lien on, charge on or interest in the ship that is claimed by an
owner, mortgagee, charterer or operator of the ship, or by any other person.
Right to fly Canadian flag
34. (1) A Canadian ship has the right to fly the Canadian flag.
Obligation to fly flag
(2) The master of a Canadian ship shall fly the Canadian flag
(a) when signalled to do so by a government ship or a ship under the command of the
Canadian Forces; or
(b) when entering or leaving, or while moored at or anchored in, a port.
Exception
(3) The Chief Registrar may, on application, suspend the registration of a Canadian
ship in respect of the right to fly the Canadian flag while the ship is shown on the
registry of a foreign country as a bare-boat chartered ship.
Appointment of tonnage measurers
35. The Minister may appoint persons, to be known as tonnage
measurers, to calculate ships' tonnage.
Fees and travel expenses
36. A tonnage measurer may withhold the tonnage certificate in respect
of a ship until the person requesting it pays the tonnage measurer's fees and travel
expenses. The Minister may set limits on the fees and travel expenses that may be charged.
Mortgage of ship or share
37. (1) The owner of a ship registered under this Part, of a share in
one or of a ship recorded as being built in Canada may give the ship or share, as the case
may be, as security for a mortgage to be registered under this Part.
Filing of mortgage
(2) A mortgage is to be filed with the Chief Registrar in the form and manner specified
by the Chief Registrar.
Date and time of registration
(3) A mortgage is to be registered in the order in which it is filed, indicating the
date and time of the registration.
Entry of discharge of mortgage
38. On receipt of satisfactory evidence that a mortgage has been
discharged, the Chief Registrar is to enter the discharge in the Register.
Priority of mortgages
39. (1) If more than one mortgage is registered in respect of the same
ship or share in a ship, the priority among the mortgages is according to the date and
time of registration.
Consent to change in priority
(2) The priority of mortgages may be changed if all of the mortgagees file their
written consent with the Chief Registrar.
Mortgagee not treated as owner
40. A mortgage of a ship or a share in a ship does not have the effect
of the mortgagee becoming, or the mortgagor ceasing to be, the owner of the ship, except
to the extent necessary to make the ship or share available as security under the
mortgage.
Mortgagee has power of sale
41. (1) A mortgagee of a ship or a share in a ship has the absolute
power, subject to any limitation set out in the registered mortgage, to sell the ship or
the share.
Restriction
(2) If there is more than one registered mortgage of the same ship or share, a
subsequent mortgagee may not, except under the order of the Federal Court or of a court of
competent jurisdiction whose rules provide for in rem procedure in respect of ships, sell
the ship or share without the agreement of every prior mortgagee.
Mortgage not affected by
bankruptcy
42. The mortgage of a ship or a share in a ship is not affected by the
bankruptcy of the mortgagor after the date of the registration of the mortgage, and the
mortgage is to be preferred to any right, claim or interest in the ship or share of the
other creditors of the bankrupt or any trustee or assignee on their behalf.
Transfer of mortgages
43. (1) A registered mortgage of a ship or a share in a ship may be
transferred to any person, in which case the instrument effecting the transfer must by
filed in the form and manner specified by the Chief Registrar.
Entry of particulars
(2) The Chief Registrar is to enter the particulars of the transfer in the Register.
Transmission of interest of
mortgagee
44. (1) If the interest of a mortgagee in a ship or a share in a ship
is transmitted on death or bankruptcy, or by any lawful means other than by a transfer
under section 43, the person to whom the interest is transmitted must file with the Chief
Registrar the evidence of the transmission that the Chief Registrar specifies.
Entry of particulars
(2) The Chief Registrar is to enter the particulars of the transmission in the
Register.
Transfer
45. If the ownership of a Canadian ship or a share in one changes and
the ship is still required or entitled to be registered under this Part,
(a) the owner must provide the Chief Registrar with the evidence, including
declarations, that the Chief Registrar considers necessary to establish that the ship is
required or entitled to be registered; and
(b) the Chief Registrar must amend the Register and the ship's certificate of registry
to reflect the change.
Order for sale
on acquisiton by an unqualified person
46. If an unqualified person acquires a Canadian ship, other than a
ship described in paragraph 17(b) (a ship owned by a foreign corporation), a ship
described in paragraph 17(c) (a ship subject to a financing agreement) or a ship described
in section 18 (a bare-boat chartered ship), or a share in one, any interested person may
apply to the Federal Court, or any court of competent jurisdiction whose rules provide for
in rem procedure in respect of ships, for an order that the ship or share, as the case may
be, be sold to a qualified person.
Power of court to prohibit
transfer
47. On the application of any interested person, the Federal Court, or
any court of competent jurisdiction whose rules provide for in rem procedure in respect of
ships, may make an order prohibiting for a specified period any dealing with a Canadian
ship or a share in one.
Regulations
48. The Governor in Council may make regulations
(a) respecting the registration, listing and recording of ships;
(b) respecting the issuance and renewal of certificates of registry;
(c) respecting the suspension and cancellation of the registration of a Canadian ship;
(d) respecting the naming and marking of ships;
(e) respecting the port of registration;
(f) respecting the form and manner of notifying the Chief Registrar of changes under
section 28;
(g) respecting the evidence that owners of ships previously registered in a foreign
country must provide to prove that the ships are no longer registered in a foreign
country;
(h) respecting the calculation of the tonnage of ships and the issuance of certificates
of tonnage;
(i) to implement the International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969,
signed at London on June 23, 1969, including any amendments, whenever made, to the Annexes
or Appendix to that Convention;
(j) respecting the payment of fees for services provided in the administration of this
Part and prescribing the amount of the fees;
(k) prescribing anything that may be prescribed under this Part; and
(l) generally for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Part.
Entries and Documents
Copies of entries
49. A person may examine or obtain copies of any entries in the
Register with respect to a ship.
Documents admissible in evidence
50. The following documents are admissible as evidence in any court in
Canada, in the manner provided by this Act:
(a) either of the following that purports to be signed by the Chief Registrar or a
registrar:
(i) a certified copy of any entry in the Register, or
(ii) in the case of electronic data, a printout of any entry in the Register;
(b) a certificate of registry or a provisional certificate issued under this Part; and
(c) every declaration made under this Part.
Contavention of Act or regulations
51. (1) Every person commits an offence who contravenes
(a) subsection 16(2) (failure to register);
(b) subsection 27(l) (failure to mark);
(c) subsection 27(3) (maintenance of markings);
(d) subsection 27(4) (defacing, altering, concealing or removing markings);
(e) subsection 28(l) (failure to notify - authorized representative);
(f) subsection 28(2) (failure to notify of alteration - authorized representative);
(g) subsection 28(3) (failure to notify - owner);
(h) subsection 28(4) (failure to notify of completion of construction);
(i) subsection 33(1) (operation of ship without a certificate on board);
(j) subsection 33(2) (failure to deliver certificate to person entitled to operate
ship);
(k) subsection 33(3) (failure to deliver certificate to Chief Registrar);
(l) subsection 34(2) (failure to fly Canadian flag);
(m) an order made under subsection 22(4) (renaming of ship); or
(n) a provision of the regulations made under this Part.
False or misleading
information, etc.
(2) Every person commits an offence who, for the purpose of applying for the
registration, listing or recording of a ship or the registration of a mortgage under this
Part or of complying with this Part or the regulations, provides any person with false or
misleading information.
Punishment
(3) Every person who commits an offence under subsection (1) or (2) is liable
(a) on conviction on indictment,
(i) if the offence is committed knowingly, to a fine of not more than $50,000 or to
imprisonment for a term of not more than two years, or to both, and
(ii) if the offence is committed negligently, to a fine of not more than $10,000 or to
imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or to both; and
(b) on summary conviction,
(i) if the offence is committed knowingly, to a fine of not more than $10,000 or to
imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or to both, and
(ii) if the offence is committed negligently, to a fine of not more than $5,000 or to
imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or to both.
Continuing offence
(4) If an offence under this Part that arises out of a contravention of subsection
16(2) (failure to register) or 27(1) (failure to mark) is committed or continued on more
than one day, the person who committed the offence is liable to be convicted for a
separate offence for each day on which the offence is committed or continued.
Words in parentheses
(5) The words in parentheses in paragraphs (1)(a) to (m) and subsection (4) form no
part of those paragraphs but are inserted for convenience of reference only.
Acquired rights
52. (1) Every ship registered in Canada when this Part comes into
force is deemed to be registered under this Part until the ship's ownership changes.
Expiry of certificates of registry
(2) A certificate of registry issued under this Act before this Part comes into force
expires no later than three years after this Part comes into force.
Exemption from registration
(3) A ship exempt from registration under this Act before this Part comes into force
continues to be exempt until two years after this Part comes into force.
53 to 106 [repealed, 1998, c.16 s.3]
Small vessel licensing
108. The Governor in Council may, notwithstanding anything in this
Part, make regulations
(a) providing for the licensing of vessels that are exempted from registry under this
Act;
(b) providing for the marking of licensed vessels;
(c) prescribing forms for licences and the forms for applications for licences;
(d) providing for the designation of persons to be issuers of licences;
(e) prescribing the fees to be paid for licences;
(f) providing for the disposition, notwithstanding the Financial Administration Act, of
licence fees collected by licence issuers;
(g) prescribing the records to be kept and returns to be made by licence issuers; and
(h) prescribing a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars or imprisonment for a term
not exceeding six months or both to be imposed on summary conviction as punishment for
contravention of a regulation made under this section.
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