ISRAEL Law and Practice Contributed by: Joseph Sprinzak and Rahel Rimon, J.SPRINZAK
1.4 Requirements for Ownership of Vessels A vessel owned by the State of Israel, an Israeli citizen or a company registered in Israel or owned by a foreign company, where more than 50% of the shares in the vessel are owned by an Israeli citizen, must be registered in the Israeli vessel registry. Israeli law allows the registration in Israel of a vessel, less than 50% of which is Israeli-owned, upon a special application to the Minister of Transport. Similarly, where more than 50% of a vessel is Israeli-owned, the owner may apply to the Minister of Transport for permission not to register the vessel. A non-Israeli may register an interest in an Israeli vessel, provided that this registration does not preclude the vessel from being registered as an Israeli vessel and, as previously noted, a foreign vessel controlled by Israeli interests must be reg - istered in Israel. Vessels under construction in Israel or abroad may also be registered in certain circumstances. 1.5 Temporary Registration of Vessels Temporary registration of vessels is permissible in accordance with Section 16 of the Shipping (Vessels) Law – 1960 in respect of vessels locat - ed in foreign ports. The temporary registration is effective for six months but may be extended for up to one year. In all cases, the temporary reg - istration lapses within seven days of the vessel first reaching an Israeli port. Dual registration is not permitted, except in the case of foreign vessels controlled by Israeli inter - ests. See 1.3 Domestic Legislation Applicable to Ship Registration .
1.6 Registration of Mortgages The process for registration of a mortgage before the Registrar of Vessels is a simple commercial financing procedure. The agreement, setting out the degree of the mortgage and conditions for repayment, must be drafted in writing, and one copy thereof must be delivered to the Registrar and entered into the vessel’s file. When both parties have signed the mortgage deed before the Registrar, the Registrar approves the deed and registers it in the Register on the page corresponding to the vessel in question. The same procedure is followed when the owner of the vessel wishes to “increase the mortgage amount”, “transfer the mortgage”, “change the terms of the mortgage” or “delete the mortgage” from the Register of Vessels. If a lien is imposed on a vessel by virtue of a competent court decision, and a written order is produced to the Registrar, the Registrar will record the court’s order in the Register of Ves - sels, without being under an obligation to notify the vessel owner that such an entry has been made. Finally, it should be noted that, if the gran - tor of the mortgage (the mortgagor) is a com - pany, the mortgage must also be registered as a charge with the Registrar of Companies. All documents submitted to the Registrar may be drawn up in English or Hebrew. 1.7 Ship Ownership and Mortgages Registry According to Section 109 of the Shipping (Ves - sels) Law – 1960, the Vessels Registry and all documents filed with the Registrar in connection with the registration, cancellation of registration or other transaction in connection with a vessel shall be open for inspection by any person. Addi - tionally, under the Freedom of Information Law – 1999, every Israeli citizen or resident has the
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