The Merchant Shipping (Load Line) (Amendment) Regulations 2000

16.  For regulation 10 there shall be substituted—

“(1) Subject to paragraphs (2), (4), (5) and (6), the duration of any certificate issued under these Regulations shall not exceed a period of five years beginning with the date of completion of the initial or renewal survey referred to in regulation 8(1)(a) or (b) respectively.

(2) (a) When the renewal survey referred to in regulation 8(1)(b) is completed within three months before the expiry of the existing certificate, the new certificate shall be valid for a period beginning with the date of completion of the renewal survey and ending on a date which does not exceed five years from the expiry of the existing certificate.

(b) When the renewal survey referred to in regulation 8(1)(b) is completed after the expiry of the existing certificate, the new certificate shall be valid for a period beginning with the date of completion of the renewal survey and ending on a date which does not exceed five years from the expiry of the previous certificate.

(c) When the renewal survey referred to in regulation 8(1)(b) is completed more than three months before the expiry of the existing certificate, the new certificate shall be valid for a period beginning with the date of completion of the renewal survey and ending on a date which does not exceed five years from the date of completion of the renewal survey.

(3) If a certificate is issued for a period of less than five years, the Assigning Authority may extend the validity of the certificate beyond the expiry date to the maximum period specified in paragraph (1), provided that the annual surveys applicable when a certificate is issued for a period of five years are carried out as appropriate.

(4) If, after the renewal survey, a new certificate cannot be issued to the ship before the expiry of the existing certificate, the Assigning Authority may extend the validity of the existing certificate for a period which shall not exceed five months. This extension shall be endorsed on the certificate, and shall be granted only where there have been no alterations in the structure, equipment, arrangements, materials or scantlings which affect the ship’s freeboard.

(5) If, at the time when a certificate expires, a ship is not in a port in which it is to be surveyed, the Assigning Authority may extend the validity of the certificate but this extension shall be granted only where it appears proper and reasonable to the Assigning Authority to do so for the purpose of allowing the ship to complete its voyage to the port in which it is to be surveyed. No certificate shall be extended for a period longer than three months beginning with the date of expiry, and a ship to which an extension is granted shall not, on its arrival in the port in which it is to be surveyed, be entitled by virtue of such extension to leave that port without having a new certificate. When the renewal survey is completed, the new certificate shall be valid for a period ending on a date which does not exceed five years from the expiry of the previous certificate before the extension was granted.

(6) A certificate issued to a ship engaged on short voyages which has not been extended under paragraph (3), (4) or (5) of this regulation may be extended by the Assigning Authority for a period of not more than one month beginning with the date of its expiry. When the renewal survey is completed the new certificate shall be valid for a period ending on a date which does not exceed five years from the expiry of the previous certificate before the extension was granted.

(7) In special circumstances, as determined by the Assigning Authority, a new certificate need not be dated from the expiry of the previous certificate before the extension was granted, as required by paragraphs (2), (5) and (6). In these special circumstances, the new certificate shall be valid for a period ending on a date which is not more than five years from the date of completion of the renewal survey.

(8) If an annual survey is completed before the period specified in regulation 8(1)(c) then:

(a) a new anniversary date shall be endorsed on the certificate which shall not be more than three months later than the date on which the annual survey was completed;

(b) the subsequent annual survey required by regulation 8(1)(c) shall be completed at the intervals prescribed by that regulation using the new anniversary date;

(c) the expiry date of the certificate may remain unchanged provided one or more annual surveys are carried out so that the maximum intervals between the surveys prescribed by regulation 8(1)(c) are not exceeded.”.