Flag of convenience

Advantages

The registration of ships under a flag of convenience has many advantages for the owners of the ships.

an financial advantage on the one hand, which is sought by 100% of the users,
on the other hand a certain laxism concerning the checks, this last part is really exploited only by some not very scrupulous ship-owners.

One cannot say that the registration under flag of convenience is a sufficient condition to classify the ship under-standards .

The company which benefits from a flag of convenience (it is often represented in this country only by one letter-box) avoids the taxes thus that it would have to pay in its country of origin and facilitates the steps of recording largely; the country which provides the service of flag of convenience is remunerated for that.

The flags of convenience make it possible to be freed from many regulations, on safety and the environment. An annual visit of the ship by the authorities of the house is obligatory, but these visits are very often delegated and carried out by third employees of companies (companies of classification), this reveals that many ships in spite of are very left with the abandonment by the ship-owners, at least expensive work but necessary are cancelled or delayed. These not very scrupulous ship-owners arrange themselves so that these ships attend the least most often possible the European ports and states-uniens; when these voyages are essential, the ships are frequently stopped by the authorities of the port with obligation of repair. (see site of SOFT Paris: Taken in the meshs of the net/files accompanied by the photographs).

The International federation of the workmen of transport makes the following report: “the risks are greater on board boats carrying a flag of convenience. In 2001,63 % of the losses in absolute tonnage were related to thirteen flags of convenience. The first five houses many lost boats are all of kindness: Panama, Cyprus, Saint-Vincent, Kampuchea and Malta. ”

It is unfortunately notable that in spite of the made efforts, the situation hardly improves. The ships under-standards, under flag of convenience, break the prices of transport. The countries known as rich, in answer, build themselves their own house ( (a) ) with an aim of fighting against the loss of Fret.

France and the RIF house

To fight against the escape of the national registrations, the France creates in 1986 its house (a) , RIF (French international Register) and then carries out registrations for the tradind ships in TAAF, with Port-with-French in the Îles Kerguelen and for the cruising ships to Wallis and Futuna. This registration is strictly administrative, Kerguelen not including/understanding any permanent population and Port with the not offering French that a simple landing stage.

This house, known as Kerguelen house, offers to the French companies arming with the ships of tax reductions and wage. They can thus employ up to 65% of foreign sailors except European Union who are remunerated by the conditions of their country of origin. The remainder of the crew, whose captain and officer as a second, must be French, the State refunding 50% of the social contributions then.

RIF is open only to the ships armed with the trade with the long course or the international Cabotage, and the ships armed with the pleasure of more than 24 meters overall, other than those which are exploited with the only national coastal traffic, fishing and the harbor assistance and of the conveying ships of passengers ensuring of the intracommunity regular lines.

The French government considers it regrettable that the International federation of the workmen of transport class this house like flag of convenience.

The success of RIF is prone to the classification except flag of convenience by the ITF (because much of French ship-owners committed themselves not transporting their goods under flag of convenience) like with the renewal of a gravitational GIE tax.

Shipwrecks and oil slicks

With this system, compound with others, it is often difficult to establish responsibilities at the time of a shipwreck or an oil slick. For example for the shipwreck of the Prestige, the Propriétaire was a society based in Liberia, the house was of the Bahamas, the Armateur was a Greek company, the training certificate with navigation had been delivered by an american company after an inspection in Dubai, the Affréteur was a company registered in Switzerland Crown Ressources and subsidiary of the Russian group Alfa, the crew was Rumanian and Filipino and the Greek officers, as for the goods, it was Russian oil charged in Latvia bound for Singapore.

Fish pirate

The fisherman-pirates of Légine S who illegally operate in water of the exclusive economic Zone around the French southern islands (Îles Crozet, Îles Kerguelen, Îles Saint-Paul and Amsterdam) use flags of convenience.

Those are, by order of decreasing importance and according to Lloyd: Belize (22%), Honduras (21%) Panama (11%) Taiwan (9%) etc

To see on this subject the very documented work of Jacques NOUGIER " Pirate of légines - Southern-" Indian Ocean; with the editions of Harmattan, 2003 ISBN 2-7475-4459-1

List flags of convenience according to ITF (2005)

Antigua-and-Barbuda
((a) of the Netherlands)
the Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Bermuda
Bolivia
(Burma)
Kampuchea
Cyprus
France, (RIF: register MADE ((a)))
Germany (register GI ((a)))
Gibraltar ((a) of the United Kingdom)
Honduras
Lebanon
Malta
Marshall
Maurice
Mongolia
Panama
Grenadian Sri Lanka
Saint-Vincent-and them
Tonga
Vanuatu

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