The fee to be paid for an application for a certificate of survey is 1⋅54 fee units.
3 Fee for survey of new domestic commercial vessel
(1) The fee to be paid for the survey of the design phase of a new domestic commercial vessel of a size specified in Column 2 of the following Table is the amount calculated by multiplying the length of the vessel in metres by the amount specified for that class of vessel in Column 3 or 4 of the Table opposite that size of vessel.
| Column 1<br>Item | Column 2<br>Size of vessel | Column 3<br>For all Class 1 vessels fee per metre of the length of vessel | Column 4<br>For all other Classes of vessels fee per metre of the length of vessel |
| 1 | For new vessels of or not exceeding 7·5 metres in length | 3⋅14 fee units | 3⋅14 fee units |
| 2 | For new vessels exceeding 7·5 metres in length and less than 20 metres in length | 5⋅05 fee units | 4⋅4 fee units |
| 3 | For new vessels of or exceeding 20 metres in length | 6⋅64 fee units | 5⋅65 fee units |
(2) The fee to be paid for the survey of the construction and commissioning phases of a new domestic commercial vessel of a size specified in Column 2 of the following Table is the amount calculated by multiplying the length of the vessel in metres by the amount specified for that class of vessel in Column 3 or 4 of the Table opposite that size of vessel.
| Column 1<br>Item | Column 2<br>Size of vessel | Column 3<br>For all Class 1 vessels fee per metre of the length of vessel | Column 4<br>For all other Classes of vessels fee per metre of the length of vessel |
| 1 | For new vessels of or not exceeding 7·5 metres in length | 5⋅65 fee units | 5⋅65 fee units |
| 2 | For new vessels exceeding 7·5 metres in length and less than 20 metres in length | 5⋅05 fee units | 4⋅4 fee units |
| 3 | For new vessels of or exceeding 20 metres in length | 4⋅4 fee units | 3⋅14 fee units |
4 Fee for booking a survey for existing domestic commercial vessel
The fee to be paid at the time of booking a survey for an existing domestic commercial vessel is 8⋅4 fee units.
5 Fee for survey of existing domestic commercial vessel
The fee to be paid for the survey of an existing domestic commercial vessel of a size specified in Column 2 of the following Table is the amount specified for that class of vessel in Column 3 or 4 of the Table opposite that size of vessel.
| Column 1<br>Item | Column 2<br>Size of vessel | Column 3<br>Class 1 vessels | Column 4<br>All other Classes |
| 1 | For vessels of or not exceeding 5 metres in length | 8⋅85 fee units | 5⋅85 fee units |
| 2 | For vessels exceeding 5 metres in length or of or not exceeding 10 metres in length | 19 fee units | 12⋅65 fee units |
| 3 | For vessels exceeding 10 metres in length or of or not exceeding 20 metres in length | 25⋅3 fee units | 16⋅9 fee units |
| 4 | For vessels exceeding 20 metres in length or of or not exceeding 35 metres in length | 38 fee units | 25⋅3 fee units |
| 5 | For vessels exceeding 35 metres in length | 57 fee units | 38 fee units |
6 Fee for additional visit for an existing vessel survey
The fee to be paid for each additional visit by a surveyor authorised by the National Regulator that is required for the purposes of an existing domestic commercial vessel survey is 8⋅4 fee units.
7 Fee for considering application for variation of conditions of a safe construction certificate
The fee to be paid for an application to vary the conditions of the safe construction certificate for a domestic commercial vessel or a fleet of domestic commercial vessels is 2⋅1 fee units.
8 Fee for survey for alteration to service category of vessel
(1) The fee to be paid for each hour spent by a person authorised by the National Regulator conducting a survey of the design phase of an alteration to the service category of a domestic commercial vessel is 6⋅3 fee units.
(2) The fee to be paid for each inspection of a domestic commercial vessel for the purposes of a survey of the construction and commissioning phases of an alteration to the service category of the vessel is 8⋅4 fee units.
9 Fee for issue or renewal of safe construction certificate
The fee to be paid for the issue or renewal of a safe construction certificate for a domestic commercial vessel is 4⋅6 fee units.
10 Fee for issue of duplicate safe construction certificate
The fee to be paid for the issue of a duplicate safe construction certificate for a domestic commercial vessel is 4⋅6 fee units.
11 Application fee for issue, variation or renewal of certificate of competency
The fee to be paid for an application for the issue, variation or renewal of a certificate of competency is 1⋅54 fee units.
12 Fee for issue or renewal of certificates
The fee to be paid for the issue or renewal of a certificate of competency is 4⋅6 fee units.
13 Fee for variation of certificates
The fee to be paid for the variation of a certificate of competency is 2⋅9 fee units.
14 Fee for issue of duplicate certificate
The fee to be paid for the issue of a duplicate certificate of competency is 4⋅6 fee units.
15 Examination fees for certificates
(1) The fee to be paid by a person who sits a written examination conducted by or on behalf of the National Regulator for the issue, variation or renewal of a certificate of competency is 3⋅34 fee units.
(2) The fee to be paid by a person who sits an oral examination conducted by the National Regulator for the issue, variation or renewal of a certificate of competency is 6⋅7 fee units.
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Endnotes
1 General information
See www.legislation.vic.gov.au for Victorian Bills, Acts and current Versions of legislation and up-to-date legislative information.
Minister's second reading speech—
Legislative Assembly: 8 May 2013
Legislative Council: 30 May 2013
The long title for the Bill for this Act was "A Bill for an Act to adopt in Victoria a national approach to the regulation of marine safety in relation to domestic commercial vessels, to make consequential amendments to the Marine Safety Act 2010, to make consequential amendments to other Acts and for other purposes."
The Marine (Domestic Commercial Vessel National Law Application) Act 2013 was assented to on 18 June 2013 and came into operation on 1 July 2013: Special Gazette (No. 226) 25 June 2013 page 1.
INTERPRETATION OF LEGISLATION ACT 1984 (ILA)
Style changes
Section 54A of the ILA authorises the making of the style changes set out in Schedule 1 to that Act.
References to ILA s. 39B
Sidenotes which cite ILA s. 39B refer to section 39B of the ILA which provides that where an undivided section or clause of a Schedule is amended by the insertion of one or more subsections or subclauses, the original section or clause becomes subsection or subclause (1) and is amended by the insertion of the expression "(1)" at the beginning of the original section or clause.
Interpretation
As from 1 January 2001, amendments to section 36 of the ILA have the following effects:
• Headings
All headings included in an Act which is passed on or after 1 January 2001 form part of that Act. Any heading inserted in an Act which was passed before 1 January 2001, by an Act passed on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Act. This includes headings to Parts, Divisions or Subdivisions in a Schedule; sections; clauses; items; tables; columns; examples; diagrams; notes or forms. See section 36(1A)(2A).
• Examples, diagrams or notes
All examples, diagrams or notes included in an Act which is passed on or after 1 January 2001 form part of that Act. Any examples, diagrams or notes inserted in an Act which was passed before 1 January 2001, by an Act passed on or after 1 January 2001, form part of that Act. See section 36(3A).
• Punctuation
All punctuation included in an Act which is passed on or after 1 January 2001 forms part of that Act. Any punctuation inserted in an Act which was passed before 1 January 2001, by an Act passed on or after 1 January 2001, forms part of that Act. See section 36(3B).
• Provision numbers
All provision numbers included in an Act form part of that Act, whether inserted in the Act before, on or after 1 January 2001. Provision numbers include section numbers, subsection numbers, paragraphs and subparagraphs. See section 36(3C).
• Location of "legislative items"
A "legislative item" is a penalty, an example or a note. As from 13 October 2004, a legislative item relating to a provision of an Act is taken to be at the foot of that provision even if it is preceded or followed by another legislative item that relates to that provision. For example, if a penalty at the foot of a provision is followed by a note, both of these legislative items will be regarded as being at the foot of that provision. See section 36B.
• Other material
Any explanatory memorandum, table of provisions, endnotes, index and other material printed after the Endnotes does not form part of an Act.
See section 36(3)(3D)(3E).
2 Table of Amendments
This publication incorporates amendments made to the Marine (Domestic Commercial Vessel National Law Application) Act 2013 by Acts and subordinate instruments.
Marine (Domestic Commercial Vessel National Law Application) Act 2013, No. 36/2013
| Assent Date: | 18.6.13 |
| Commencement Date: | Ss 22(5), 80, 99 on 1.7.13: Special Gazette (No. 226) 25.6.13 p. 1 |
| Note: | S. 80 repealed Pt 10 (ss 23–80) on 1.7.14; s. 99 repealed Pt 11 (ss 81–99) on 1.7.14; s. 22(5) repealed s. 22 on 31.12.17 |
| Current State: | This information relates only to the provision/s amending the Marine (Domestic Commercial Vessel National Law Application) Act 2013 |
Transport Legislation Amendment Act 2023, No. 34/2023
| Assent Date: | 21.11.23 |
| Commencement Date: | Ss 32, 127(Sch. 1 item 5) on 22.11.23: s. 2(1) |
| Current State: | This information relates only to the provision/s amending the Marine (Domestic Commercial Vessel National Law Application) Act 2013 |
Statute Law Revision Act 2025, No. 41/2025
| Assent Date: | 21.10.25 |
| Commencement Date: | S. 3(Sch. 1 item 22) on 22.10.25: s. 2 |
| Current State: | This information relates only to the provision/s amending the Marine (Domestic Commercial Vessel National Law Application) Act 2013 |
Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law Act 2012 of the Commonwealth
Note
This Act will be amended by the Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law (Consequential Amendments) Act 2012 of the Commonwealth and the Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law Amendments Act 2013 of the Commonwealth. See Annexure 2 and Annexure 3.
MARINE SAFETY (DOMESTIC COMMERCIAL VESSEL) NATIONAL LAW BILL 2012
The Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law Bill (the Bill) is a component of the national transport reform package, which is intended to improve safety and reduce the regulatory burden and costs on the Australian rail, heavy vehicle and maritime industries. The maritime component of this reform package will be implemented through three key projects.
Firstly, national shipping reforms designed to ensure the long-term future of the Australian shipping industry through tax regulation and training. Secondly, the revision of the Navigation Act 1912 (to be replaced by the Navigation Act 2012) will modernise the regulatory framework and provide much-needed confidence and certainty for industry.
This Bill represents the third and final component of the maritime reform package. As a key component of the National System for commercial vessel safety that will commence on 1 January 2013, this Bill introduces a new National Law for the regulation of domestic commercial vessel safety and establishes a National Marine Safety Regulator (the National Regulator). The policy basis for the National Law derives from the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Inter‑Governmental Agreement (IGA) on Commercial Vessel Safety Reforms, signed on 19 August 2011. The IGA also determined that the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) will be the National Regulator.
There are currently eight different marine safety regulatory systems, involving the Commonwealth, the six States and the Northern Territory, that govern the operation of domestic commercial vessels in Australia. The overarching objective of the Bill is to provide for the consistent national regulation of the domestic commercial vessel industry across Australia.
This objective is to be achieved through a regulatory framework that:
(a) promotes continuous improvement in marine safety;
(b) promotes public confidence in the safety of marine operators;
(c) ensures effective identification and management of safety risks; and
(d) seeks to reduce regulatory burden without compromising safety.
Consistent with these objectives, the Bill:
(a) establishes the National Regulator for the purposes of performing functions and exercising powers under this Bill;
(b) establishes a system for the issue of national certificates in relation to:
i. vessel identification;
ii. vessel survey;
iii. the commercial operation of vessels; and
iv. seafarer competencies;
(c) establishes offences where a vessel identification or a certificate is required and not held or not complied with;
(d) establishes General Safety Obligations (GSOs) for individuals who have a role in the production and operation of commercial vessels, to ensure the safety of the vessel, their own safety and the safety of others, so far as is reasonable;
(e) establishes a system within which to conduct compliance and enforcement activities; and
(f) provides for the consistent application of nationally agreed standards across Australia.
The IGA provides that the Commonwealth will apply the National Law to the extent of the Commonwealth’s constitutional reach, and each jurisdiction will apply the National Law to any ‘gap’ in the Commonwealth’s constitutional reach. This approach achieves the consistency objective of the IGA.
Vessels which operate internationally, foreign vessels and vessels which maintain certification under the international convention for Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) will be regulated by the Commonwealth under the proposed Navigation Act 2012 and are outside with scope of the Bill. This approach will continue to be applied when the revised Act is introduced. Defence vessels and recreational vessels are also outside the application of the Bill. However, interstate vessels that are currently regulated under the Navigation Act 1912 will be covered under the National Law from its commencement.
State and Territory agencies will be responsible for the effective day-to-day operation of the National Law, under delegation from the National Regulator. The jurisdictions will retain responsibility for the regulation of waterways, the management of ports and associated issues, such as classifying waters, setting speed limits and the regulating alcohol consumption.
DEVELOPMENT OF THE BILL
This Bill has been developed with the State and Territory jurisdictions to implement the decision of COAG on 19 August 2011 to create a single National Law to regulate the safety of all commercial vessel operations in Australian waters and to establish a single National Regulator for commercial vessel safety from 1 January 2013.
Extensive consultation has been undertaken on the development of the Bill with the States and Territories, including through the Standing Council on Transport and Infrastructure (SCOTI), the Transport and Infrastructure Senior Officials Committee (TISOC), the Maritime Agencies Forum, the National Marine Safety Committee, seven workshops with jurisdiction officials and numerous discussions and correspondence with State and Territory agency contacts.
Public consultation has also informed the development of the Bill, including consultation on the Regulatory Plan from June to October 2011 (outlining the proposed elements of the Bill), a detailed discussion paper in mid-December 2011 (providing an overview of the Bill) and the draft Bill itself (released in February 2012). Comments and feedback from 19 formal public submissions that were received on the draft Bill have been considered and incorporated into the Bill as appropriate. A report detailing the responses to these submissions (including the changes made to the Bill as a result) was also released in May 2012.
Government agencies have also been consulted on the development of the Bill, including the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, the Attorney General’s Department, the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, SafeWork Australia, and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.
The text of the Bill has been unanimously agreed by SCOTI at its meeting of 18 May 2012.
ABBREVIATIONS
AAT Administrative Appeals Tribunal
AMSA Australian Maritime Safety Authority
COAG Council of Australian Governments
Constitution Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia
Criminal Code The Code established by the Criminal Code Act 1995
EEZ Australia’s Exclusive Economic Zone
EVU Enforceable Voluntary Undertaking
GSO General Safety Obligation
IGA The Inter-Governmental Agreement for Commercial Vessel Safety Reform signed on 19 August 2011
Inspector A Marine Safety Inspector appointed under Part 6 of the Bill
National Law Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law set out in Schedule 1 of the Bill
National Regulator The National Regulator established under Part 2 of the Bill
NMSC National Marine Safety Committee
NSCV National Standard for Commercial Vessels
OBPR Office of Best Practice Regulation
RIS Regulation Impact Statement
SCOTI Standing Council on Transport and Infrastructure
SOLAS International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea
The Bill/this Bill Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law Bill 2012
The Act/this Act Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law Act 2012
TISOC Transport and Infrastructure Senior Officials Committee
USL Code Uniform Shipping Laws Code
WHS Act Work Health and Safety Act 2011
The COAG IGA underpinning the commercial vessel safety reform articulates the intentions of the jurisdictions in establishing the National Regulator arrangements. Jurisdictions have committed to achieving the objective of the reforms with minimum legal and administrative costs and no overall increase in regulatory burden as a result of commencement of the National System.
Full cost-recovery is a longer-term aspiration. States and Territories not fully recovering costs from industry will consider moving progressively to full cost recovery in the long-term. Any State or Territory-based subsidisation of operators will take into account implications for the National System.
At the commencement of the scheme, States and Territories will continue to adjust current cost recovery or fee charging arrangements at a rate of their own discretion. The Commonwealth has undertaken not to impose upon industry any new fees or charges for National System related purposes unless otherwise agreed by SCOTI. States and Territories have agreed to comply with Competitive Neutrality Policy and Principles outlined in the COAG Competition Principles Agreement in any instance when a fee for service is charged in competition with the private sector.
From the commencement of the National System, and until alternate arrangements have been agreed by SCOTI, all jurisdictions will contribute to the funding of the National Regulator. The first year of funding of AMSA’s costs of the National System have been set at $4 million (in June 2011 dollars). To facilitate the establishment of new service delivery arrangements, the Commonwealth will meet $1 million of the National Regulator’s costs for the first year of operation of the National System (2013). As arrangements are bedded down, jurisdictions will work to identify any efficiencies to be gained through the National System.
The funding contributions for AMSA’s costs as the National Regulator for year one (2013) will be:
a) National Marine Safety Committee (NMSC) funding (as per existing State and Territory contributions under the NMSC agreed funding formula) – $2,000,000
b) Commonwealth – $1,000,000
c) New South Wales – $288,800
d) Victoria – $238,800
e) Queensland – $238,800
f) Western Australia – $113,800
g) South Australia – $77,700
h) Tasmania – $30,500
i) Northern Territory – $11,100
j) Australian Capital Territory – $0
The funding formula for AMSA’s costs as the National Regulator (beyond 2013), until any alternate arrangements have been unanimously agreed by SCOTI, will be:
a) Commonwealth – 10%
b) New South Wales – 26%
c) Victoria – 21.5%
d) Queensland – 21.5%
e) Western Australia – 10.25%
f) South Australia – 7%
g) Tasmania – 2.75%
h) Northern Territory – 1%
i) Australian Capital Territory – 0%
These funding arrangements will be reviewed by SCOTI in the first half of 2016, or a later date agreed by SCOTI.
REGULATORY IMPACT STATEMENT
The commercial vessel safety national reform was first initiated in July 2009 when COAG decided to take a national approach to regulating the safety of all domestic commercial vessels in Australian waters by 2013. COAG’s decision reflects recommendations made by the Australian Transport Council (ATC).
ATC’s recommendations were informed by a Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS), which explored perceived problems with the current regulatory framework and considered alternate options for national reform of maritime safety regulation.
This Bill is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.
The Bill engages the following human rights:
Right to privacy
Part 6 of the National Law Bill contains provisions on enforcement powers that enable Marine Safety Inspectors (inspectors) appointed by the National Regulator (the Australian Maritime Safety Authority) to detain, board, inspect and search domestic commercial vessels; and gather information and seize things in relation to domestic commercial vessel safety regulation and compliance.
The National Law Bill has been drafted consistently with the principles stipulated in The Guide to Framing Commonwealth Offences, Infringement Notices and Enforcement Powers (the Guide) developed by the Criminal Justice Division of the Attorney‑General’s Department.
In addition, the National Law Bill provides for enforcement powers equivalent to those provided in current Commonwealth legislation including:
⦁ Work Health and Safety Act 2011, Section 163 – Powers of entry;
⦁ Crimes Act 1913, Section 3T – Searches without warrant in emergency situations;
⦁ Quarantine Act 1908, Section 66AB – The monitoring of premises; and,
⦁ Customs Act 1901, Section 185 – Power to board and search etc. ships and aircraft.
Section 8.6 of the Guide (Entry and Search Without a Warrant) states that “a search without a warrant will only be permitted where the inherent mobility of the conveyance means there may not be time, or it would be impractical, to obtain a warrant”.
Domestic commercial vessels are inherently mobile. The nature of the commercial activities undertaken by these vessels often means that they do not follow any predictable pattern or timetable. This means that monitoring and compliance activities need to be undertaken as and when an opportunity presents, frequently while the vessel is at sea. The vessels may also be operating in geographically remote areas, a great distance from port and with limited or no mobile telephone access. In these circumstances, obtaining a warrant is impractical and may limit the regulator’s capacity to undertake their safety regulatory role in a responsive manner. For this reason, the enforcement powers are appropriate and proportionate for the task.
The guide at 8.6 (exception for licensed premises) sets out that “a person who obtains a licence or registration for non-residential premises can be taken to accept entry to those premises by an inspector for the purpose of ensuring compliance with the licensing or registration conditions”. The Senate Scrutiny of Bills Committee has said that these powers can be conferred “where a person has accepted a commercial benefit subject to being monitored by this means”.
The safety regulation of domestic commercial vessel activity is not new and regulation has occurred under State and Territory legislation for some time. Owners and masters of domestic commercial vessels are aware that the safety requirements pertaining to domestic commercial vessels are subject to regulatory oversight, and by applying for the unique identifier and certificates that allow them to operate as a commercial vessel they are implicitly accepting that their compliance with the regulatory requirements will be monitored.
Generally, inspectors will be required to seek the express and informed consent of the relevant person or obtain a warrant prior to entering a premise. However, an inspector may enter a premise that is not a residential premise without consent or warrant in order to gain access to the domestic commercial vessel (see clause 96). An inspector may also board a domestic commercial vessel without warrant or consent to monitor compliance, or to issue an improvement, infringement or other notice.
Inspectors, when undertaking monitoring activities, routinely wear uniforms. However, an inspector must, in order to exercise their powers lawfully under clauses 96 and 97, also show his or her identity card if requested to do so. Similarly, a police officer who is appointed as an inspector, but who is not wearing a uniform, must show his or her police identification if requested to do so.
If, in the course of undertaking monitoring activities in relation to a domestic commercial vessel, an inspector believes that something is evidential material and that there is a serious or urgent need to exercise powers to preserve the evidential material, or it is otherwise impracticable to obtain a warrant, then clause 100 allows an inspector to take a sample of the material, secure the material for up to 72 hours or seize the material.
These powers are limited to use in relation to a vessel, which because of its inherent mobility, may make obtaining a warrant impractical (for example, if the vessel is in a remote area with no mobile telephone reception) or may require that action is taken immediately to ensure that evidential material is not lost or compromised. The 72 hour statutory time limit to secure a thing, balances the possibility that the safety operation may be a significant distance from the nearest port, whilst ensuring that a person’s property is not inappropriately retained.
To ensure that the National Regulator can monitor the use of this power and the circumstances in which it is used, an inspector who exercises these powers will be required to report to the National Regulator on the exercise of the powers and the grounds for his or her belief that these powers needed to be exercised without warrant.