Circular No. 07/2018/TT-BGTVT on inspection of ships

CIRCULAR

Regulations on inspection of ships

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Pursuant to the Vietnam Maritime Code on November 25, 2015;

Pursuant to Decree No. 12/2017/NĐ-CP dated February 10, 2017, issued by the Government on the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Transport;

At the proposal of the Director of the Legal Department and the Director General of the Vietnam Maritime Administration;

The Minister of Transport issues this Circular to regulate the inspection of foreign ships operating in Vietnamese seaports.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular regulates the inspection of safety conditions at sea, maritime security, maritime labor, and prevention of environmental pollution for foreign ships operating in Vietnamese seaports.

Article 2. Applicability

1. This Circular applies to organizations and individuals related to the inspection of foreign ships operating in Vietnamese seaports.

2. This Circular does not apply to the inspection of Vietnamese ships.

Article 3. Explanation of Terms

In this Circular, the following terms are understood as follows:

1. Ship means a foreign ship.

2. Deficiency means a technical or operational condition of the ship, certificates and documents of the ship, crewing arrangements and crew that do not comply with international conventions on safety at sea, maritime security, maritime labor, and prevention of environmental pollution of which Vietnam is a member, discovered during the inspection of the ship.

3. Clear evidence means one of the following specific evidences:

a) The ship lacks equipment or such equipment does not operate according to international conventions of which Vietnam is a member;

b) The ship or crew does not have certificates or certificates are no longer valid according to international conventions of which Vietnam is a member;

c) The ship does not have documents according to international conventions of which Vietnam is a member;

d) The ship has serious structural or hull damage or deficiencies that endanger the watertight integrity or stability of the ship;

đ) The ship has serious deficiencies in equipment affecting safety at sea, maritime security, maritime labor, and prevention of environmental pollution;

e) Crew members do not know or do not perform essential activities related to safety at sea, maritime security, maritime labor, and prevention of environmental pollution;

g) Crew members on board the ship cannot communicate with each other according to international conventions of which Vietnam is a member;

h) Crew members, including the master, issue false alarms that are not properly canceled;

i) The competent authority receives notification that the ship does not comply with regulations on safety at sea, maritime security, maritime labor conditions, and prevention of environmental pollution;

k) The ship does not have measures to ensure maritime security.

4. Port State Control Officer is a civil servant or staff member of the Vietnam Maritime Administration who holds a Port State Control Officer Card to conduct inspections of safety at sea, maritime security, prevention of environmental pollution, and maritime labor conditions on foreign ships moored or anchored in Vietnamese seaports.

5. Detention of a ship means the Port State Control Officer does not allow the ship to leave the port when serious deficiencies of the ship listed in Appendix No. 02 issued together with this Circular are found and requires the master to rectify them before allowing the ship to leave the port.

6. Initial inspection means the Port State Control Officer boarding the ship to inspect the general condition of the ship, equipment, crew, certificates, and related documents of the ship.

7. Detailed inspection means the Port State Control Officer inspects the ship when clear evidence as stipulated in Clause 3 of this Article is found.

8. Re-inspection means the inspection conducted after the crew of the ship rectifies deficiencies identified by the Port State Control Officer during the previous inspection to confirm that the deficiencies have been rectified.

9. Follow-up inspection means the inspection carried out by the Port State Control Officer to verify the rectification of deficiencies of the ship pointed out by the foreign Port State Control Officer during the previous inspection.

10. Ship below convention means a ship with a smaller tonnage or technical specifications than those specified in the convention.

11. Substandard ship means a ship with a hull, machinery, equipment, operation, or crew below the standard of relevant conventions, including one or more of the following factors:

a) Lack of equipment as required by the convention;

b) Equipment layout does not comply with the convention's requirements;

c) Serious damage to the ship or equipment due to improper maintenance;

d) Crew operates equipment unsuitably with basic operation procedures;

đ) Inappropriate manning or crew holding inappropriate certificates.

13. Recognized organization means an organization meeting the conditions stipulated in Resolution A.739(18), amended by Resolution MSC.208(81), and authorized by the flag state administration to provide assessment services and issue necessary certificates for ships flying its flag.

14. Valid certificate means a certificate directly issued by a member state of the convention or by a recognized organization, valid to meet the requirements of the relevant convention and appropriate to the characteristics of the ship, crew, and equipment.

15. Tokyo MOU is the regional cooperation organization for port state control in Asia-Pacific.

16. APCIS (Asia-Pacific computerized information system) is the system for storing, statistics, and exchanging data on ship inspections of Tokyo MOU.

16. APCIS (Asia-Pacific computerized information system) is the system for storing, compiling, and exchanging data on ship inspections under the Tokyo MOU.

Article 4. Principles for inspecting ships

1. Ship inspections shall be carried out according to the division of duties by the Director of the Maritime Port Authority, conducted by at least two (02) State Marine Port Inspectors. The Director of the Maritime Port Authority may arrange for professionals to assist the State Marine Port Inspectors.

2. When boarding a ship for inspection, State Marine Port Inspectors must present their State Marine Port Inspector identification card to the ship's captain or the watch officer on duty on the ship.

3. During the ship inspection process, State Marine Port Inspectors shall avoid unduly delaying or unjustifiably detaining ships. The primary goal of the inspection is to prevent ships from sailing when they do not ensure maritime safety, maritime security, seafarer labor conditions, or pose a threat to environmental pollution. State Marine Port Inspectors consider decisions to detain ships until deficiencies are rectified or allow ships to sail with certain deficiencies, depending on the specific nature of each voyage.

4. When conducting ship inspections, State Marine Port Inspectors must comply with the provisions set forth in Appendix No. 01 attached to this Circular.

Chapter II

CONTENT AND PROCEDURE FOR INSPECTION

Article 5. International Conventions Applied

1. Ship inspections apply the provisions of international conventions that Vietnam is a member of, including:

a) The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea 1974 and its amendments (SOLAS); the 1988 Protocol relating to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea 1974 and its amendments (SOLAS Protocol 1988);

b) The International Convention on Load Lines 1966 (LOAD LINES); the 1988 Protocol relating to the International Convention on Load Lines 1966 (LOAD LINES Protocol 1988);

c) The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships 1973 and its amendments; the 1978 and 1997 Protocols relating to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships 1973 (MARPOL);

d) The International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers 1978 and its amendments (STCW);

đ) The International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships 1969 (TONNAGE);

e) The International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-Fouling Systems on Ships 2001 (AFS);

g) The Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC);

h) The International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972 (COLREG).

2. In cases where the international conventions specified in Clause 1 of this Article are amended or supplemented, or where Vietnam newly joins relevant international conventions concerning maritime safety, maritime security, seafarer labor conditions, and the prevention of environmental pollution, State Marine Port Inspectors shall apply these new provisions during ship inspections.

Article 6. Criteria for Selecting Ships for Inspection

1. When there are clear evidence as stipulated in Clause 3 of Article 3 of this Circular, ships will be inspected upon entering the port.

2. In the absence of clear evidence, the selection of ships for inspection within a time window is based on the risk level of the ship as defined by the Tokyo MOU's APCIS.

Article 7. Initial Inspection

1. Before boarding a ship for inspection, State Marine Port Inspectors must assess the general condition of the ship, including: paint condition, rusting or unrepaired damage around the ship.

2. State Marine Port Inspectors determine the type of ship, year of construction, technical specifications to apply the appropriate convention provisions.

3. Upon boarding the ship, State Marine Port Inspectors check the ship's certificates and related documents. If the certificates are in compliance and the State Marine Port Inspectors evaluate that the ship's maintenance work has been carried out in accordance with regulations, the State Marine Port Inspectors conclude the inspection and prepare the ship inspection report (Form A) as prescribed in the State Marine Port Inspection Handbook (PSC Manual).

Article 8. Detailed Inspection

After conducting an initial inspection, the Port State Control Officer shall conduct a detailed inspection of the general condition of the ship, equipment, bridge, deck, cargo hold, engine room, pilot boarding area on board the ship, and basic procedures of the ship. Based on specific conditions, the Port State Control Officer decides to inspect part or all of the aforementioned contents.

Article 9. Authority of the Port State Control Officer

Upon completion of the inspection, if the ship has deficiencies, the Port State Control Officer has the authority:

1. To require the ship to rectify deficiencies before departure.

2. To allow the ship to rectify deficiencies at the next port.

3. To allow the ship to rectify deficiencies within fourteen days.

4. To allow the ship to rectify deficiencies within three months.

5. To allow the ship to rectify deficiencies according to an agreed plan.

6. To detain the ship.

7. Other actions: specify the permitted action.

8. To confirm that the deficiencies have been rectified.

Article 10. Inspection Report of the Ship

1. After completing the inspection, the Port State Control Officer must prepare an inspection report for the ship according to Form A and Form B as specified in the Port State Control (PSC) Manual of the Tokyo MOU (Form B is only prepared when the inspection finds deficiencies in the ship). In cases where the inspection is stopped, deficiencies first discovered and those found during a re-inspection (if any) should be recorded in Form B.

2. The Port State Control Officer provides the master of the ship with an inspection report.

3. For serious deficiencies leading to detention of the ship as stipulated in Appendix No. 02 issued together with this Circular, the Port State Control Officer must clearly record in the inspection report the specific provisions of the convention.

4. The Port State Control Officer applies the notification forms, deficiency codes, organization survey codes or recognized organizations, port inspection codes, flag state codes, ship type codes, and authority codes as specified in the Port State Control (PSC) Manual of the Tokyo MOU to prepare the inspection report of the ship.

Article 11. Notification of Ship Detention, Suspension of Inspection, and Release of Ship

1. In cases of ship detention or suspension of inspection, the Port State Control Officer immediately notifies the flag state authorities and relevant parties in writing. After the ship has rectified serious deficiencies and met the requirements of the convention, the Port State Control Officer conducts a re-inspection and notifies the flag state authorities and relevant parties about the release of the ship.

2. Serious deficiencies leading to ship detention are specifically defined in Appendix No. 02 issued together with this Circular.

3. Notification of suspension of inspection according to the form specified in the Port State Control (PSC) Manual of the Tokyo MOU.

Article 12. Rectification of Deficiencies and Permission for Ship Departure from Port

1. In cases where serious deficiencies as stipulated in Appendix No. 02 issued together with this Circular threaten maritime safety, maritime security, seafarers' working conditions, or cause environmental pollution, the Port State Control Officer ensures that these deficiencies are rectified before the ship departs from the port.

2. In cases where deficiencies leading to ship detention cannot be rectified at the inspection port, the Director of the Marine Port may permit the ship to proceed to the nearest repair port chosen by the master and approved by the authorities of that port. At the same time, the flag state authorities coordinate with the Marine Port on the conditions ensuring the safety of the ship's voyage to the nearest repair port. In such cases, the Marine Port must notify the authorities of the destination port and relevant parties.

Article 13. Re-inspection

1. After the deficiencies on board the ship have been fully rectified, the master shall notify the State Port Inspector to organize a re-inspection on board the ship. In cases where the deficiencies have been satisfactorily rectified in accordance with the provisions of the convention, the State Port Inspector shall record the results in the inspection report.

2. In cases where the deficiencies have not been satisfactorily rectified, the State Port Inspector shall require the ship to continue rectifying them.

3. The State Port Inspector may use images as evidence of the rectification of deficiencies on board the ship instead of conducting a direct re-inspection under the ship.

Article 14. Subsequent Inspection

1. In cases where the APCIS shows that the ship arriving at a Vietnamese port has some deficiencies that have not been rectified, the State Port Inspector shall board the ship to inspect these unrectified deficiencies.

2. The State Port Inspector has the right to inspect within the scope of the unrectified deficiencies from the previous inspection, or to expand the scope of inspection to other maritime safety, maritime security, maritime labor, and marine pollution prevention matters.

Article 15. Handling Complaints

1. The master, shipowner, classification society, or any related organizations or individuals have the right to complain about the detention of the ship by the Maritime Port Authority. The State Port Inspector must inform the master of this right at the time of recording the inspection report. A complaint does not affect the decision to detain the ship.

2. After completing the inspection, in cases where the master, shipowner, classification society, or any related organizations or individuals are unsatisfied with the inspection results of the State Port Inspector, the parties have the right to complain about the inspection results of the State Port Inspector. The complaint process is carried out as follows:

a) The master, shipowner, classification society, or any related organizations or individuals submit complaints directly to the State Port Inspector regarding unsatisfactory contents, specifying the relevant convention provisions to prove their complaints are correct. The State Port Inspector receives the complaints, reports to the Director of the Maritime Port Authority before responding to the master, shipowner, classification society, or any related organizations or individuals. The maximum response time is 15 days from the date of receipt of the complaint.

b) After receiving the response from the State Port Inspector, if the master, shipowner, classification society, or any related organizations or individuals remain unsatisfied, they have the right to continue submitting complaints to the Vietnam Maritime Administration. The Vietnam Maritime Administration will consider and resolve the complaint and respond within 60 days from the date of receipt of the complaint.

c) In cases where the resolution by the Vietnam Maritime Administration is unsatisfactory, the master, shipowner, classification society, or any related organizations or individuals have the right to continue submitting complaints to the Tokyo MOU Secretariat. The resolution by the Tokyo MOU Secretariat is the final result.

Article 16. Updating Reports to the APCIS System

1. Within a maximum of two days after the completion of inspection, the State Marine Port Inspector updates the inspection report onto the APCIS software; within five days, the Vietnam Maritime Administration or the Marine Port Inspection Office authorized by the Vietnam Maritime Administration shall approve the inspection report on the APCIS system.

2. In cases where information on the APCIS needs to be corrected, the Vietnam Maritime Administration or the Marine Port Inspection Office shall have the responsibility to check and update the information accurately.

Article 17. Ships of States Not Parties to the Convention

1. There shall be no preference given to ships of states not parties to the convention.

2. For ships of states not parties to the convention and without a Convention Certificate, the State Marine Port Inspector shall assess the crew and ship's compliance with safety requirements based on the provisions of the convention.

3. Where the crew and ship hold certificates other than those required by the convention, the State Marine Port Inspector shall consider the contents of these certificates when assessing the condition of the ship.

Article 18. Ships Under the Convention

1. The State Marine Port Inspector shall evaluate the conformity of certificates and documents issued by the flag state authority or recognized organizations. In this case, the State Marine Port Inspector limits the scope of inspection to confirm that the ship complies with the certificates and documents issued.

2. Where provisions do not apply to ships under the convention, the State Marine Port Inspector shall assess the degree of compliance with maritime safety, maritime security, seafarers' working conditions, and environmental protection requirements, taking into account the expected duration of the voyage, nature of the voyage, size and type of ship, equipment, and nature of cargo.

Article 19. Substandard Ships

1. Crew members and organizations or individuals related to the safety of the ship, lives of crew members and passengers, and environmental protection shall inform the Marine Port Inspection Office about substandard ships. Such notification may be made in writing, directly, or through other appropriate means. In the case of direct notification, the Marine Port Inspection Office shall record the name of the organization and individual providing the information.

2. The Marine Port Inspection Office is responsible for receiving and processing information about substandard ships and has the right to refuse entry of such ships into the port or to inspect them immediately upon their arrival at the port.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 20. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from April 1, 2018.

2. Replace the phrase ", Representative of the Marine Port Inspection Office" with the phrase "or Representative of the Marine Port Inspection Office authorized by the Director of the Marine Port Inspection Office in accordance with the law" in Clause 3, Article 6 of Circular No. 30/2016/TT-BGTVT dated October 28, 2016, issued by the Minister of Transport regarding procedures for submitting and confirming maritime protest.

Article 21. Organization of Implementation

The Head of the Ministry’s Office, the Head of the Ministry’s Inspectorate, the Heads of Departments, the Directors of the Vietnam Maritime Administration, the Director of the Vietnam Ship Survey Bureau, the Heads of agencies, organizations, and individuals concerned are responsible for implementing this Circular./.