SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Mathiew Christophe Rajoo, Probin Dass and Tan Hui Tsing, DennisMathiew
1. Maritime and Shipping Legislation and Regulation 1.1 Domestic Laws Establishing the Authorities of the Maritime and Shipping Courts The main domestic laws establishing the author - ities of the maritime and shipping courts in Sin - gapore are: • the High Court (Admiralty Jurisdiction) Act (Cap 123); • the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore Act; • the Merchant Shipping Act; and • the Merchant Shipping (Maritime Labour Con - vention) Act 2014. The High Court of Singapore has jurisdiction to hear maritime cases and there are two or three High Court judges assigned to hear maritime cases. Appeals from the High Court are made to the Court of Appeal. Common maritime claims include those relating to vessel collisions, breach of charterparty obligations, cargo damage, bills The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) is the port authority, port regulator and port planner, and essentially regulates port activ - ities in Singapore. For pollution, the Prevention of Pollution of the Sea Act gives the MPA the power to take meas - ures to prevent pollution, such as denying entry or detaining ships. of lading and demurrage. 1.2 Port State Control For wreck removal, the Wreck Removal Con - vention, which has been adopted by Singapore, requires owners of vessels over 300 gross ton - nage (GT) to take out insurance or provide other
financial security to cover the costs of wreck removal, capped at an amount equal to the limits of liability under the application limitation regime. As a port entry requirement, owners will have to carry a Wreck Removal Convention State cer - tificate (a “WRC State certificate”) to show that they have obtained adequate insurance cover - age or other financial security to cover liability for wrecks. All Singapore-registered ships over 300 GT, therefore, must carry on board a WRC State certificate. This WRC State certificate can be obtained by applying to the MPA Registry Department. Pursuant to Shipping Circular No 8 of 2023, all incidents involving Singapore-registered ships including but not limited to death, occupational accident or injury affecting seafarers, loss of persons from a ship, loss or abandonment of ship, security breaches, material damage to a ship, stranding or disabling of ship, involvement of the ship in a collision, damage to marine infra - structure that could endanger the safety of the ship, severe or potential damage to the environ - ment brought about by damage of the ship, and detention by foreign authorities, must be report - ed to the MPA. 1.3 Domestic Legislation Applicable to Ship Registration The MPA handles the domestic registration of vessels. An overview of an application for regis - tration as a Singapore ship can be found via the MPA website. The relevant domestic legislation includes the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations. 1.4 Requirements for Ownership of Vessels Owners of Singapore-flagged ships must be Singapore citizens/permanent residents or bod - ies corporate incorporated in Singapore with a
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