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Courtesy of Johann Henry, Harney Westwood & Riegels
The British Virgin Islands (BVI) is a group of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands east of Puerto Rico, lying between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. The geography of the BVI, coupled with its sub-tropical temperatures moderated by trade winds, creates an environment that is a sailor's paradise, and the islands encompass pristine and unspoilt marine enclaves for that perfect sailing holiday. The BVI also comprises a tax neutral port within the Red Ensign Group, and its Register of Ships is a Category 2 Branch of the General Register of British Ships.
It's as easy to register your vessel in the BVI as it is to sail in its relaxed territorial waters among the many islands. For first registrations, an application must be made to the Registrar of Ships using readily available prescribed forms. To prevent name duplication, the proposed name of the vessel must be approved. Also, the vessel must be surveyed by a marine surveyor from one of the approved classification societies or one appointed or authorized by the Registrar, who can prepare a Certificate of Survey and a Tonnage Certificate. The proposed owner must also be qualified to own a BVI-flagged vessel, and a BVI company may be incorporated for this purpose. To prove incorporation and existence, the company's Certificate of Incorporation needs to be submitted with the application. It is critical that proof of title in the form of a Bill of Sale, Builder's Certificate or other evidence of ownership accompany the application for registration as well.
Once the Certificate of Survey/Tonnage Certificate and documentary evidence of title are available, it's then time to prepare the application using the prescribed forms. The owner must execute a form known as "Appointment of Authorized Officer," naming an individual who will apply for registration and sign the application documents on the owner's behalf. This document authorizes the individual to sign the following forms and documents that are required for the application: Application to Register, Declaration of Eligibility, Appointment of Representative Person, Notice of Proposed Name and a letter or certificate addressed to the Registrar confirming the proposed use of the vessel (whether for private, pleasure or commercial purposes).
When all required documents (together with the applicable fees) are provided to the Registrar and found to be in order, the vessel is given an Official Number and the Carving and Marking Note (C&M Note) is issued to the applicant. The C&M Note is generally produced within 24 hours of submission of the application to the Registry and reflects the vessel's Name, Port of Registry, Official Number and Registered Tonnage, which are to be carved/marked on the vessel in accordance with the instructions in the C&M Note. A marine surveyor is required to complete the C&M certifying that the vessel has been marked/carved accordingly. When the original completed C&M Note has been returned to the Registry, the registration of the vessel is completed and the Registry produces the Certificate of British Registry (Blue Book) signifying this.
The BVI port will shortly be seeing some interesting developments. At this time, the BVI Government is working feverishly towards achieving Category 1 status this year. Evidence of the commitment to achieving this goal is to be found in recent statements by the Chief Minister indicating that the government appreciates the need for the jurisdiction to be upgraded to a Category 1 port now. To this end, the Shipping Registry and the Marine Services Department are to be subsumed under the Chief Minister's portfolio to facilitate more directed focus and development. Once Category 1 status is achieved, there will be no limitations on which vessels might be registered in the BVI.
Whether sailing within or outside the BVI, yacht registration in the BVI is a painless, quick and relatively inexpensive flagging exercise, which you should consider.
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