Circular No. 10/2001/TT-BGTVT on guiding the use of copies of certificates of registration for ships and inland waterway vessels to operate when they are pledged or mortgaged to borrow funds from credit institutions.

CIRCULAR

Regarding the use of copies of the ship registration certificate and copies of inland waterway vessel registration certificates for the operation of vessels when they are pledged or mortgaged to borrow funds fromcredit institutions

Pursuant to Article 39 of Decree No. 178/1999/NĐ-CP dated December 29, 1999 of the Government on collateral for loans of credit institutions and Circular No. 839/CP-KTTH dated September 11, 2000 of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Transport hereby provides guidance on the use of copies of ship registration certificates and copies of inland waterway vessel registration certificates for the operation of vessels when these vessels are pledged or mortgaged to borrow funds from credit institutions as follows:

I. EXPLANATION OF TERMS:

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

1. "Vessel": means a ship or an inland waterway vessel;

2. "Pledged or mortgaged vessel": means a ship or an inland waterway vessel that the owner has pledged or mortgaged to borrow funds from credit institutions;

3. "Registration certificate": means the ship registration certificate or the inland waterway vessel registration certificate;

4. Registration authority:

- For ships: the ship registration and crew authority;

- For inland waterway vessels: the transport departments or transport public works departments;

5. Collateral registration authority:

- For ships: the ship registration and crew authority;

- For inland waterway vessels: the national collateral registration authority and its branches;

6. "International route": means a maritime route or an inland waterway route from a Vietnamese port to a foreign port and vice versa;

7. "Domestic route": means a maritime route or an inland waterway route between Vietnamese ports.

II. USE OF REGISTRATION CERTIFICATES:

1. Use of original registration certificates:

The original registration certificate must be used in the following cases:

a. When the vessel operates on international routes;

b. When the vessel operates on domestic routes without being pledged or mortgaged at credit institutions to borrow funds or has completed the pledge or mortgage period at credit institutions or has fulfilled the obligation secured by the vessel.

2. Use of copies of registration certificates:

Copies of registration certificates may only be used for vessels operating on domestic routes during the period the vessel is pledged or mortgaged at credit institutions to borrow funds, including any extended debt repayment periods secured by the vessel (if applicable).

III. COPIES OF REGISTRATION CERTIFICATES:

1. The copy of the registration certificate referred to in Clause 2, Section II of this Circular shall have legal validity for vessel operation only if it meets the following conditions:

a. The copy of the registration certificate has been certified by a Notary Public;

b. On the copy of the registration certificate referred to in Point a, Clause 1 of this section, there must also be confirmation from the credit institution where the vessel was pledged or mortgaged.

2. Credit institutions shall confirm only one copy of the registration certificate after it has been certified by a Notary Public.

3. In accordance with the guidance of the Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam in Circular No. 06/2000/TT-NHNN1 dated April 4, 2000 and the Ministry of Justice in Circular No. 1448/TP-CC dated August 17, 2000, the confirmation by the credit institution on the copy of the registration certificate shall read: "the original is kept at... from... month... year... until... month... year..." and signed by the General Director (Director) or Deputy General Director (Deputy Director) and stamped by the credit institution; or signed by the Director (Deputy Director) and stamped by a unit authorized to decide on lending by the credit institution. Additionally, the statement "For use in accordance with Decree No. 178/1999/NĐ-CP" must be added to the copy.

IV. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE VESSEL OWNER, CREDIT INSTITUTIONS AND REGISTRATION AUTHORITIES:

1. Responsibilities of the vessel owner and user:

a. When pledging or mortgaging a vessel to borrow funds from credit institutions, the vessel owner must register the collateral transaction with the collateral registration authorities in accordance with Decree No. 08/2000/NĐ-CP dated March 10, 2000 of the Government on collateral registration.

b. The vessel owner and user may only use a lawful copy of the registration certificate in the case provided for in Clause 2, Section II of this Circular.

2. Responsibilities of credit institutions:

a. Within 24 hours of receiving a pledge or mortgage of a vessel, the credit institution must immediately notify the vessel registration authority so that the registration authority does not process the transfer of the vessel or issue a new original registration certificate (except when the registration authority is also the collateral registration authority).

b. If the pledge or mortgage period expires and the vessel owner has not fulfilled the debt obligation and the credit institution agrees to extend the debt, the credit institution must clearly note this on the copy of the registration certificate referred to in Section III of this Circular, and simultaneously notify the vessel registration authority for their knowledge and monitoring.

c. When the vessel owner has fulfilled the debt obligation secured by the vessel, the credit institution must return the original registration certificate after recovering the copy of the registration certificate, and simultaneously notify the vessel registration authority.

3. Responsibilities of the vessel registration authority:

After receiving notification from the credit institution regarding the pledge or mortgage of the vessel at credit institutions or when the vessel owner has fulfilled the debt obligation secured by the vessel, the vessel registration authority must record in the National Ship Register or the Inland Waterway Vessel Register to serve as a legal basis for resolving related issues.

V. IMPLEMENTATION:

1. This Circular shall take effect fifteen days from the date of signature.

2. The Director of the Vietnam Maritime Administration and the Director of the Vietnam Inland Waterways Administration are responsible for implementing this Circular.

3. The heads of relevant Bureaus and Departments under the Ministry, Directors of Provincial Departments of Transport or Provincial Departments of Transport and Public Works, Directors of Ship Registration Authorities and Seafarers' Regional Offices, Directors of Port Control Authorities, national agencies for collateral transaction registration, credit institutions, owners of vessels, users of vessels, and all related organizations and individuals shall be responsible for implementing this Circular.

4. In the course of implementation, if there are any difficulties, organizations and individuals shall promptly reflect them to the Ministry of Transport for study and resolution.