Shipping Registration Regulations 1981

What these rules do

These regulations set out the practical steps, paperwork and fees needed to register a ship in Australia under the Shipping Registration Act 1981. They cover two separate systems:

• General Register – for most Australian ships operating domestically or internationally
• International Register – a special register for ships that trade internationally and meet specific crewing and insurance requirements

Key things covered

• Applications: Detailed lists of documents required, such as builder’s certificates (proving who built the ship and where), declarations of ownership and nationality, tonnage certificates, and proof of marking.
• Ship marking: Technical rules for painting the ship’s name, home port and official number on the bow and stern (including specific font sizes: at least 100mm high with 20–25% stroke thickness) and carving the official number into the main beam.
• Certificates: How to obtain full registration certificates, provisional certificates (for ships abroad or when documents are lost), and temporary passes for short voyages.
• Buying and selling: Procedures for transferring ownership (bills of sale), recording inheritances or court orders, and lodging caveats (warnings that someone claims an interest in the ship).