Short title
1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the Marine Navigation Levy Act 1989.
© 2026 Zoe. All rights reserved.
Zoe is a legal information platform. Always consult the Federal Register of Legislation for authoritative text.
Commonwealth act
This Act creates a per‑ton levy on sea‑going ships, binding the Crown and collected under the Marine Navigation Levy Collection Act (ss 5–6). Rates are set in four tonnage bands with specified cent amounts or prescribed alternatives (s7). The Governor‑General may make regulations to change prescribed amounts but any increase is capped at 15% in any 12‑month period (s8). Ship owners/operators therefore bear a recurring, tonnage‑based charge that raises operating costs and is administered through the Collection Act (s4–8).
Want the full deep dive?
Zoe can write the in-depth analysis on top of the summary above: how it works, who it affects and what each part actually does.
Direct links to the current provisions in Marine Navigation Levy Act 1989.
This Act may be cited as the Marine Navigation Levy Act 1989.
(1) Subject to subsection (2), this Act commences on a day to be fixed by Proclamation. (2) If this Act does not commence within the period of 6 months beginning on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent, it commences: (a) if the first day after the end of that period is the first day of a quarter—on that day; or (b) in any other case—on the first day of the quarter next following the end of that period.
In this Act:
Collection Act means the Marine Navigation Levy Collection Act 1989.
ton means a whole ton.
tonnage, in relation to a ship, means:
(a) where the net tonnage of the ship has been determined by a method consistent with the provisions of the International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969—the net tonnage so determined; or
(b) in any other case—the net registered tonnage of the ship.
Note: The text of the Convention is set out in Australian Treaty Series 1982 No. 15 ([1982] ATS 15). In 2012, the text of a Convention in the Australian Treaty Series was accessible through the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (www.austlii.edu.au).
In this Act, expressions have the same meaning as in the Collection Act.
This Act binds the Crown in right of each of the States, of the Australian Capital Territory and of the Northern Territory.
Levy payable in respect of a sea‑going ship in accordance with the Collection Act is imposed.
(1) Where levy is payable in respect of a ship, the amount of levy is the amount, or the total of the amounts, worked out using whichever of the levy rates apply to the ship. (2) For the purposes of this Act, each of the following rates is a levy rate in relation to a ship: (a) 63 cents, or such other amount (if any) as is from time to time prescribed, for each of the first 5,000 tons of the ship’s tonnage; (b) 53 cents, or such other amount (if any) as is from time to time prescribed, for each ton by which the ship’s tonnage is more than 5,000 tons but not more than 20,000 tons; (c) 43 cents, or such other amount (if any) as is from time to time prescribed, for each ton by which the ship’s tonnage is more than 20,000 tons but not more than 50,000 tons; (d) 33 cents, or such other amount (if any) as is from time to time prescribed, for each ton by which the ship’s tonnage is more than 50,000 tons.
(1) The Governor‑General may make regulations for the purposes of subsection 7(2). (2) The regulations must not prescribe an amount for the purposes of paragraph 7(2)(a), (b), (c) or (d) that increases the amount applicable under that paragraph by more than 15% in any period of 12 consecutive months.
Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.
This Act may be cited as the Marine Navigation Levy Act 1989.
(1) Subject to subsection (2), this Act commences on a day to be fixed by Proclamation. (2) If this Act does not commence within the period of 6 months beginning on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent, it commences: (a) if the first day after the end of that period is the first day of a quarter—on that day; or (b) in any other case—on the first day of the quarter next following the end of that period.
In this Act:
Collection Act means the Marine Navigation Levy Collection Act 1989.
ton means a whole ton.
tonnage, in relation to a ship, means:
(a) where the net tonnage of the ship has been determined by a method consistent with the provisions of the International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969—the net tonnage so determined; or
(b) in any other case—the net registered tonnage of the ship.
Note: The text of the Convention is set out in Australian Treaty Series 1982 No. 15 ([1982] ATS 15). In 2012, the text of a Convention in the Australian Treaty Series was accessible through the Australian Treaties Library on the AustLII website (www.austlii.edu.au).
In this Act, expressions have the same meaning as in the Collection Act.
This Act binds the Crown in right of each of the States, of the Australian Capital Territory and of the Northern Territory.
Levy payable in respect of a sea‑going ship in accordance with the Collection Act is imposed.
(1) Where levy is payable in respect of a ship, the amount of levy is the amount, or the total of the amounts, worked out using whichever of the levy rates apply to the ship. (2) For the purposes of this Act, each of the following rates is a levy rate in relation to a ship: (a) 63 cents, or such other amount (if any) as is from time to time prescribed, for each of the first 5,000 tons of the ship’s tonnage; (b) 53 cents, or such other amount (if any) as is from time to time prescribed, for each ton by which the ship’s tonnage is more than 5,000 tons but not more than 20,000 tons; (c) 43 cents, or such other amount (if any) as is from time to time prescribed, for each ton by which the ship’s tonnage is more than 20,000 tons but not more than 50,000 tons; (d) 33 cents, or such other amount (if any) as is from time to time prescribed, for each ton by which the ship’s tonnage is more than 50,000 tons.
(1) The Governor‑General may make regulations for the purposes of subsection 7(2). (2) The regulations must not prescribe an amount for the purposes of paragraph 7(2)(a), (b), (c) or (d) that increases the amount applicable under that paragraph by more than 15% in any period of 12 consecutive months.