Article 7 of the Saudi Commercial Maritime Law
المادة 7 من النظام البحري التجاري · الفصل الثالث: تسجيل السفينة
Article 7 bars a self-propelled ship from sailing under the Kingdom's flag without registration, refers the procedures to the regulations, and exempts specific vessels by length, tonnage and type.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
1- لا يجوز لأي سفينة ذاتية الدفع أن تبحر رافعة علم المملكة إلاَّ إذا كانت مسجلة وفقاً لأحكام هذا النظام, وتحدد اللوائح إجراءات التسجيل وشروطه, وإصدار الشهادة.
2- تعفى من التسجيل الوحدات البحرية الآتية:
أ- السفن التي يقل طولها عن أربعة وعشرين متراً.
ب- سفن الصيد التي لا تزيد حمولتها على ثلاثين طنًّا ولا يزيد طولها على عشرين متراً.
ج- سفن النزهة والغوص التي لا تزيد حمولتها على عشرة أطنان ولا يزيد طولها على أحد عشر متراً ولا يصرح لها بالإبحار خارج بحار المملكة الإقليمية.
د- السفن البدائية البناء، والسفن الشراعية، والوحدات البحرية غير ذاتية الدفع، والمواعين والصنادل، وغيرها من المنشآت العائمة التي تعمل عادة داخل الميناء.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 7 explained in plain English
1. The rule: no self-propelled ship may sail under the Kingdom's flag unless it is registered in accordance with the provisions of the law. The regulations set the registration procedures and conditions and the issuance of the certificate; the article does not detail them.
2. Vessels exempt from registration:
- (a) Ships less than 24 meters in length.
- (b) Fishing ships whose tonnage does not exceed 30 tons and whose length does not exceed 20 meters.
- (c) Pleasure and diving ships whose tonnage does not exceed 10 tons and whose length does not exceed 11 meters, and which are not authorized to sail outside the Kingdom's territorial seas.
- (d) Primitively built ships, sailing ships, non-self-propelled maritime units, lighters and barges, and other floating structures that normally operate inside the port.
The practical meaning is that the owner of a small pleasure or fishing boat may not need to register under this article if the description of one of the exempt categories applies to them with all its conditions. A fishing ship, for example, must meet both conditions, tonnage and length, and a pleasure and diving ship must meet tonnage and length and not be authorized to sail outside the territorial seas.
The article does not say whether the exempt vessels are subject to any procedure other than registration. Anyone who owns a ship or boat and wants to check its status can consult a lawyer specializing in commercial cases.
Practical example
Khaled owns a pleasure boat in Jeddah that is 9 meters long with a tonnage of 6 tons, and he is not authorized to sail outside the territorial sea. The conditions of category (c), which is exempt from registration, apply to him.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 7 of the Saudi Commercial Maritime Law
Must every ship flying the Kingdom's flag be registered?
No self-propelled ship may sail under the Kingdom's flag unless it is registered, though some categories are exempt from registration.
Is a small fishing boat exempt from registration?
Fishing ships whose tonnage does not exceed 30 tons and whose length does not exceed 20 meters are exempt.
What are the conditions for exempting pleasure and diving ships?
Their tonnage must not exceed 10 tons, their length must not exceed 11 meters, and they must not be authorized to sail outside the Kingdom's territorial seas.
More articles on Registration of Ships and Maritime Units
- Article 8
Article 8 regulates ship registration offices approved by the Chairman, the ship register and its entries, the registration record and its publication and announcement at the owner's expense, and registration fees.
1- تسجل السفن في مكاتب التسجيل المعتمدة بقرار من الرئيس في أيٍّ من موانئ المملكة. 2- ينشأ في كل مكتب من مكاتب التسجيل سجل خاص يسمى (سجل السفن)، ترقم صفحاته، وتخ
- Article 9
Article 9 bars a ship from sailing under the flag of more than one state, registering a ship already registered in another state before its deletion, and changing flag while sailing or stopped except for a transfer of ownership or registration change.
1- لا يجوز للسفينة أن تبحر، وهي رافعة علم أكثر من دولة. 2- لا يجوز أن تسجل سفينة في سجل السفن إذا كانت مسجلة في سجل سفن دولة أخرى، ما لم تكن قد شطبت من ذلك السج
- Article 10
Article 10 requires, for a ship to be registered, that the Authority or a delegated approved classification society inspect, survey and measure it and assess its tonnage, after the ownership document is submitted.
يشترط لتسجيل السفينة فحصها ومعاينتها وقياسها وتقدير حمولتها من قبل الهيئة أو من تفوضه من إحدى هيئات التصنيف المحلية أو الدولية المعتمدة بعد تقديم وثيقة ملكيتها.
- Article 11
Article 11 requires every Saudi ship to have a name, written at its bow and stern in clear Arabic and Latin letters with its port of registration, and bars the same name for more than one ship in the Kingdom.
أ- يجب على كل سفينة سعودية أن تتخذ لها اسماً، ويجب أن يكتب اسمها على مقدمتها من الجانبين وعلى مؤخرتها بحروف عربية ولاتينية ظاهرة وبلون مختلف عن لونها، ويجب كذلك
- Article 12
Article 12 empowers the registration office to issue a temporary registration certificate valid for one or more voyages, or for six months renewable for up to two years.
يصدر مكتب التسجيل شهادة تسجيل مؤقتة للسفينة، تكون صالحة لرحلة واحدة أو أكثر، أو لمدة ستة أشهر قابلة للتجديد لمدة أقصاها سنتان.
- Article 13
Article 13 allows a Saudi to whom ownership of a ship has passed outside the Kingdom to obtain a temporary registration certificate from a registration office or a Kingdom representative office, valid for six months at most.
إذا انتقلت ملكية السفينة لسعودي خارج المملكة، وانطبقت عليها شروط التسجيل، كان لمالكها الحصول على شهادة تسجيل مؤقتة من أحد مكاتب التسجيل في المملكة أو من ممثلية
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.