HONG KONG SAR, CHINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Christopher Andrew Potts, Crump & Co
nance (Chapter 415). This is not a prerequisite for full registration, but a substantive registration for a lim - ited duration, primarily to facilitate the process when original documentation is not immediately available; instead, photocopies or scanned copies of the title documents can be produced at the time of registra - tion. A certificate of provisional registry is valid for one month, and can be extended for up to one more month under justifiable special circumstances. For local or foreign vessels operating in Hong Kong for a definite, short period, the MD also issues temporary licences for specific operations without requiring full registration (Chapters 548 and 313). Dual Registration Hong Kong does not permit dual registration. A ship will cease to be registrable in Hong Kong if it is, or subsequently becomes, registered in any other place outside Hong Kong. A demise/bareboat charterer can register a ship in Hong Kong but must declare it will not be registered elsewhere while under Hong Kong registration, with this registration being valid for the charter’s duration. 1.6 Registration of Mortgages The Registrar of Shipping within the Hong Kong Ship - ping Registry, operated by the MD, maintains the reg - istration of mortgages. Mortgages are recorded on the ship’s entry in the Shipping Register. If the mortgage is created by a Hong Kong-incorporated company, it must also be filed with the Companies Registry within one month of its creation. Registration of a mortgage must be in the form “RS/ M1 MD 641”, in A3 size. When a ship is provisionally registered, the mortgagee is also required to produce a “Confirmation by Mortgagee” to the Registrar. A ship mortgage must be executed under the corpo - rate seal of the owning company, in accordance with its constitution. If the mortgage is signed by an attor - ney in fact, the power of attorney must be produced (original or certified copy), witnessed by a named wit - ness and notarised if executed outside Hong Kong.
If a company does not have a common seal, it must provide a “Declaration of No Seal” made by a director or secretary. This declaration must be sworn in Hong Kong before the Registrar, a justice of the peace, a notary public, a commissioner for oaths or a solicitor; if made overseas, it must be sworn before a notary public. The Registry accepts various forms of corpo - rate seals, including a simple seal marked “(Corporate Seal)” or a legal opinion – or notary statement – con - firming that the company is not legally required to have a seal and that the signatory has proper author - ity to execute the document. 1.7 Ship Ownership and Mortgages Registry Hong Kong allows public access to ownership and mortgage information recorded on the Hong Kong Shipping Register as it is a public record for transpar - ency on legal ownership and charges. The Transcript of Register contains the ship’s current and past records including the status of mortgages as entered in the register. Anyone may request an official Transcript of Register, either certified or uncertified, by completing request forms available on the MD’s website when applying to the Registrar of Shipping and paying the required fee. Hong Kong ship finance is predominantly debt driven, typically provided by banks through bilateral or syndi - cated loans. A typical ship loan or facility outlines the terms of the loan, interest, repayment schedules, and the rights and obligations of both the borrower and the lender. It includes key operative provisions such as: • representations and warranties, covering owner - ship of the vessel, validity of security, financial condition, assets and corporate status; • conditions precedent to drawdown, including deliv - ery of security and insurance documents; • covenants, requiring compliance with insurance, maintenance and reporting obligations and restrict - ing disposals or changes of ownership; 2. Ship Finance and Leasing 2.1 Ship Loan Finance Debt Financing
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