Shipping 2025

ARGENTINA Law and Practice Contributed by: María Belén Espiñeira, International Transport & Logistics Legal Consultants – MB Espiñeira & Abogados

The Argentine Maritime Authority’s inspectors are empowered to conduct onboard inspections, check the validity of the pertinent certificates and documents, and verify the general condi - tion of the vessel, her equipment and her crew. If there is evidence of non-compliance with the requirements set forth by the aforementioned international conventions, a more detailed inspection can be carried out, and if they pose a serious risk to navigation or the maritime envi - ronment, foreign vessels may be detained until the deficiencies are fixed. 1.3 Domestic Legislation Applicable to Ship Registration In Argentina, ship registration is regulated by: • the Argentine Navigation Law; • Law 19,170; • the Argentine Maritime, River and Lake Navi - gation Regime (Decree 37/2025); and • Maritime Ordinance 9/02. For vessels with a gross tonnage of less than three, Maritime Ordinance 2/19 shall apply. The authority handling domestic registration of vessels is the National Register of Ships, under the ambit of the Argentine Maritime Authority, which is ultimately under the Ministry of National Security. 1.4 Requirements for Ownership of Vessels According to Section 52 of the Argentine Navi - gation Law, the requirements that must be met to have a vessel registered in the Argentine National Registry of Ships are the following:

• compliance with the construction and sea - worthiness requirements set forth by the Argentine Maritime Authority (Section 52.a); • the ship-owner should be domiciled in Argen - tina; • where the ship-owner is an entity, it shall be established in accordance with the Argentine regulations (Section 52.c); and • where the ship-owner is a foreign company, it must have a branch or another kind of perma - nent representation established in Argentina according to the applicable domestic law (Section 52.c). 1.5 Temporary Registration of Vessels Under Argentine law, the temporary registra - tion of vessels in the National Registry of Ships is not provided for. Nevertheless, Decree Law 19,492/44 (regarding national cabotage), as rati - fied by Law 12,980, and the Law on the Devel - opment of the Argentine Merchant Fleet and Regional Fluvial Integration (No 27,419) provide that – under specific circumstances and after complying with formal requirements – foreign vessels may receive the same treatment as Argentine-flag vessels and enjoy all the rights and obligations of registered Argentine vessels, without being registered in the National Registry of Ships. 1.6 Registration of Mortgages Maritime mortgages are registered in the Nation - al Registry of Ships. To register a mortgage attached to a vessel with a gross tonnage of ten or more, the following documentary requirements must be complied with: • The mortgage agreement must be executed in a public deed or an authenticated private agreement, including:

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