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The Merchant Shipping (Watercraft) Order 2023

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2023 No. 35

Merchant Shipping

The Merchant Shipping (Watercraft) Order 2023

Made16th January 2023
Laid before Parliament18th January 2023
Coming into force31st March 2023

The Secretary of State makes the following Order in exercise of the powers conferred by section 112(1)(a) and (c), (3) and (5) of the Railways and Transport Safety Act 20031.

In accordance with section 112(7)(c) of that Act, the Secretary of State has consulted such organisations in the United Kingdom as appear to the Secretary of State to be representative of persons who will be affected by this Order.

PART 1 Introductory

I21 Citation, commencement, extent and application

1 This Order may be cited as the Merchant Shipping (Watercraft) Order 2023 and comes into force on 31st March 2023.
2 This Order extends, and applies in relation, to the whole of the United Kingdom.

I12 Interpretation

1 In this Order—
  • the 1995 Act” means the Merchant Shipping Act 19952;
  • applied shipping provision” means a provision applied, together with any modifications made, by this Order;
  • watercraft” has the meaning given in article 3.
2 Except in—
a section 8(1) of the 1995 Act (as applied by article 4(a));
b section 3133 of the 1995 Act (as applied, and modified, by paragraph (4)(c));
c the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 19934 (as applied, and modified, by Schedule 1);
d a reference to a surveyor of ships, a surveyor general of ships or the master of a ship,
a reference in an applied shipping provision to a ship is to be read as including a reference to a watercraft (and cognate expressions are to be construed accordingly).
3 Where an applied shipping provision refers to—
a an enactment;
b part of an enactment;
c provision—
i contained in an enactment, or
ii made under enabling powers contained in an enactment,
to the extent the enactment, part or provision is applied (and to the extent it is modified) by this Order, the reference is to be read as a reference to the enactment, part or provision as so applied (and as so modified).
4 The definitions of terms contained in the following provisions of the 1995 Act apply for the purposes of interpreting an applied shipping provision—
a the following provisions of section 1 (British ships and United Kingdom ships)—
i subsection (1)(d), as if for “is a small ship other than a fishing vessel and” there were substituted “a watercraft”;
ii the definition of “qualified owners” in subsection (2), as if “for the purposes of that paragraph; and” were omitted;
b section 23 (interpretation of Part 2), except for the definition of “the private law provisions for registered ships” in subsection (1);
c section 313 (definitions)—
i as if for the definition of “foreign” there were substituted—
;
ii but the definitions of “harbour” and “harbour authority” do not apply for the purposes of interpreting the applied shipping provisions mentioned in article 11(1);
d section 313A5 (meaning of “qualifying foreign ship”).

I163 Meaning of “watercraft”

1 Subject to paragraph (2), “watercraft” means any type of craft which—
a is capable of moving under its own mechanical power,
b is used, navigated or situated wholly or partly in or on water, and
c is capable of being used to carry one or more persons.
2 Watercraft” does not include a ship or fishing vessel within the meanings given in section 313(1) of the 1995 Act.

PART 2 Registration of watercraft

I34 Registration of watercraft: application of the 1995 Act

The following provisions of the 1995 Act apply in relation to watercraft as they apply in relation to ships—
a section 8 (central register of British ships), as if after subsection (1) there were inserted—
;
b section 9 (registration of ships: basic provisions);
c section 10 (registration regulations);
d section 13 (status of certificate of registration);
e section 14 (offences relating to a ship’s British connection);
f subsection (3) of section 16 (private law provisions for registered ships and liability as owner);
g section 21 (disclosure of information relating to registration by other government departments);
h section 22(1) (forgery of documents: Scotland).

I175 Registration of watercraft: application of the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 1993

Schedule 1 applies and, in some cases, modifies certain provisions of the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 1993 in relation to watercraft.

PART 3 Safety of watercraft

I46 Conduct endangering watercraft, ships, structures or individuals

Section 58 (conduct endangering ships, structures or individuals) applies in relation to watercraft as it applies in relation to ships, as if it read—
.

I57 Power to detain dangerously unsafe watercraft

The following provisions of the 1995 Act apply in relation to watercraft as they apply in relation to ships—
a section 946 (meaning of “dangerously unsafe ship”), as if in subsection (1) for “96, 97 and 98” there were substituted “96 and 97”;
b section 957 (power to detain dangerously unsafe ship), as if—
i in subsection (2), the reference to United Kingdom ships includes a reference to watercraft whether unregistered or registered in the United Kingdom;
ii in the introductory words to subsection (3), the reference to the master of the ship includes a reference to the owner of the watercraft;
c section 968 (references of detention notice to arbitration);
d section 97 (compensation in connection with invalid detention of ship);
e section 2849 (enforcing detention of ship), as if each reference to a master of a ship includes a reference to an operator of a watercraft.

I68 Owner liable for unsafe operation of watercraft

Section 10010 (owner liable for unsafe operation of ship) of the 1995 Act applies in relation to watercraft as it applies in relation to ships, as if it read—
.

I79 Safety and health regulations

Section 8511 (safety and health on ships) of the 1995 Act applies in relation to watercraft as it applies in relation to ships.

I810 Safety and health regulations: supplementary provision

1 Section 8612 (provisions supplementary to section 85: general) of the 1995 Act applies in relation to watercraft safety regulations as it applies in relation to ship safety regulations.
2 In paragraph (1)—
a ship safety regulations” means regulations made in relation to ships under section 85 of the 1995 Act;
b watercraft safety regulations” means regulations made in relation to watercraft under section 85 of the 1995 Act as applied by article 9.

PART 4 Harbour directions in relation to watercraft

I1111 Application of the Harbours Act 1964

1 The following provisions of the Harbours Act 196413 apply in relation to watercraft as they apply in relation to ships—
a section 40A (directions), as if for “the master of a ship” were substituted “the owner or operator of a watercraft”;
b section 40B (procedure);
c section 40C (enforcement), as if for “The master of a ship” were substituted “The owner and operator of a watercraft”;
d section 40D (supplemental).
2 The definitions of “harbour” and “harbour authority” in section 57(1)14 of the Harbours Act 1964 apply for the purposes of interpreting the applied shipping provisions mentioned in paragraph (1).

PART 5 Miscellaneous provisions

I912 Appointment and powers of surveyors in relation to watercraft

The following provisions of the 1995 Act apply in relation to watercraft as they apply in relation to ships—
a section 256 (appointment of inspectors and surveyors), as if subsections (6) to (8) were omitted;
b section 25815 (powers to inspect ships and their equipment, etc.), as if subsection (2) were omitted.

I1013 Powers to make subordinate legislation under the 1995 Act

The following provisions of the 1995 Act apply for the purposes of any power to make subordinate legislation in relation to watercraft conferred by an applied shipping provision as they apply for the purposes of any power to make subordinate legislation in relation to ships conferred by the 1995 Act—
a section 306(1) and (2)16 (regulations, rules and orders, etc.);
b section 306A17 (power to make ambulatory references to international instruments).

I1814 Application of other shipping provisions in relation to watercraft

Schedule 2 applies and, in some cases, modifies certain shipping provisions in relation to watercraft.

SCHEDULE 1 

Application of the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 1993 in relation to watercraft

Article 5

I121 Registration of watercraft: application of the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 1993

1 The following provisions of the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 199318 apply in relation to watercraft as they apply in relation to ships.
2 Regulation 2 (the Register), as if in the introductory words of paragraph (1), for “section 1(1) and (2)” there were substituted “section 8(1), (1A) and (2)”.
3 Regulation 5 (registration on only one Part of the Register).
4 Regulation 6 (trusts not to be entered).
5 Regulation 20 (form of application), as if paragraph (2) were omitted.
6 Regulation 21 (the applicant).
7 Regulation 24 (applications by bodies corporate).
8 Regulation 88 (qualification and entitlement to be registered as a small ship on Part III of the Register).
9 Regulation 89 (persons qualified to be owners of small ships to be registered on Part III of the Register).
10 Regulation 90 (British connection).
11 Regulation 91 (disapplication of Schedule 1 to the Act in respect of small ships).
12 Regulation 92 (applications), as if paragraphs (c) and (ca) were omitted.
13 Regulation 93 (details to be registered and refusal), as if for paragraph (1) there were substituted—
.
14 Regulation 94 (certificate of registry).
15 Regulation 95 (marking).
16 Regulation 96 (period of registration).
17 Regulation 97 (renewal).
18 Regulation 98 (notification of changes to ownership etc.), as if in paragraph (2) the words “the name and” were omitted.
19 Regulation 99 (supplementary information–production of ship).
20 Regulation 100 (termination of registration).
21 Regulation 103 (documents not in the English language to be accompanied by a translation).
22 Regulation 104 (witnessing of documents).
23 Regulation 105 (dispensing with declarations).
24 Regulation 105A (copies of documents).
25 Regulation 106 (supplementary information).
26 Regulation 107 (fees).
27 Regulation 108 (duplicate certificates), as if the reference to “the master” in paragraph (3)(b) includes a reference to “the owner”.
28 Regulation 109 (custody of certificate).
29 Regulation 110 (surrender of certificate on termination or expiry of registration).
30 Regulation 111 (dispensing with production of certificate).
31 Regulation 113 (removal of marks on cessation of registration), as if “or if a marks removal note has been issued in respect of the ship under regulation 87E,” were omitted.
32 Regulation 114 (offences), as if the words “or master” in paragraph (2) were omitted.

I132 Interpretation of the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 1993

1 For the purposes of interpreting the applied shipping provisions mentioned in paragraph 1—
a each reference to a ship in regulations 5, 6, 88, 92, 93(2), 95, 96, 98 to 100, 106, 108, 109, 110, 111, 113 and 114 is to be read as including a reference to a watercraft;
b the definitions of terms contained in regulation 1(2) of the Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 1993 apply as if—
i in the definition of “certificate of registry” the reference to a ship includes a reference to a watercraft;
ii in the definition of “fishing vessel” for “vessel within the meaning of paragraph 2(1)(c) of Schedule 4 to” there were substituted “fishing vessel as defined in section 313(1) of”;
iii in the definition of “owner” at the end there were inserted “and in relation to watercraft means a person able to satisfy the Registrar that they are the owner”;
iv for the definition of “small ship” there were substituted—
.

SCHEDULE 2 

Application of other shipping provisions in relation to watercraft

Article 14

I141 Application of the Merchant Shipping (Distress Signals and Prevention of Collisions) Regulations 1996

The Merchant Shipping (Distress Signals and Prevention of Collisions) Regulations 199619 apply in relation to watercraft as they apply in relation to ships, as if—
a in paragraph (1)(a) of regulation 2 (application)—
i the reference to United Kingdom ships includes a reference to watercraft registered in the United Kingdom under the Merchant Shipping Act 1995, and
ii the reference to other ships includes a reference to other watercraft;
b the references in regulation 5 (exemptions) to any ship or description of ships includes a reference to any watercraft or description of watercraft;
c any reference to a master includes a reference to any person for the time being using a watercraft.

I152 Application of the Merchant Shipping (EPIRB Registration) Regulations 2000

1 The following provisions of the Merchant Shipping (EPIRB Registration) Regulations 200020 apply in relation to watercraft as they apply in relation to ships.
2 Regulation 2 (interpretation), for the purposes of interpreting an applied shipping provision mentioned in this paragraph.
3 Regulation 4 (competent authority).
4 Regulation 5 (requirement for EPIRBs to be registered), as if—
a in paragraph (1) the reference to every United Kingdom ship includes a reference to every watercraft in United Kingdom waters;
b for paragraph (2) there were substituted—
.
5 Regulation 6 (change in registered particulars).
6 Regulation 7 (offences), as if the references to the owner and operator of the ship included reference to the owner (but not the operator) of the watercraft.
7 Regulation 8 (defence).

3 Application of the Merchant Shipping (Vessels in Commercial Use for Sport or Pleasure) Regulations 2025

1 The following provisions of the Merchant Shipping (Vessels in Commercial Use for Sport or Pleasure) Regulations 2025 apply in relation to watercraft as they apply in relation to ships.
2 Regulation 3 (general interpretation), for the purposes of interpreting an applied shipping provision mentioned in this paragraph.
3 Regulation 5 (exemptions) as if in paragraph (2) the reference to a vessel was a reference to watercraft.
4 Regulation 6 (equivalents) as if in paragraph (3) the reference to a small vessel was a reference to a watercraft.
5 Regulation 7 (approvals) as if the reference to a United Kingdom ship was a reference to a watercraft in United Kingdom waters.
6 Regulation 20 (requirements for small vessels) as if in paragraph (1) the reference to a small vessel was a reference to a watercraft.
7 Regulation 23 (offences), as if in paragraph (1)—
a the reference to a vessel was a reference to a watercraft; and
b the reference to the owner and master was a reference to the owner and operator of the watercraft.
8 Regulation 24 (detention of vessels), as if—
a a reference to a vessel was a reference to a watercraft; and
b a reference to the master was a reference to the owner or operator of the watercraft.

Footnotes

  1. I1
    Art. 2 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  2. I2
    Art. 1 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  3. I3
    Art. 4 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  4. I4
    Art. 6 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  5. I5
    Art. 7 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  6. I6
    Art. 8 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  7. I7
    Art. 9 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  8. I8
    Art. 10 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  9. I9
    Art. 12 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  10. I10
    Art. 13 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  11. I11
    Art. 11 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  12. I12
    Sch. 1 para. 1 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  13. I13
    Sch. 1 para. 2 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  14. I14
    Sch. 2 para. 1 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  15. I15
    Sch. 2 para. 2 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  16. I16
    Art. 3 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  17. I17
    Art. 5 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  18. I18
    Art. 14 in force at 31.3.2023, see art. 1(1)
  19. F1
    Sch. 2 para. 3 inserted (12.12.2025) by The Merchant Shipping (Vessels in Commercial Use for Sport or Pleasure) Regulations 2025 (S.I. 2025/1195), reg. 1(1), Sch. 1 para. 23 (with reg. 4)
  20. 1
    2003 c. 20.
  21. 2
    1995 c. 21.
  22. 3
    Section 313 was amended by paragraph 19(2)(a) to (d) and (3) of Schedule 6 to the Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997 (c. 28).
  23. 4
    S.I. 1993/3138.
  24. 5
    Section 313A was inserted by paragraph 20 of Schedule 6 to the Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997, and it was amended by section 2(3) of the British Overseas Territories Act (c. 8).
  25. 6
    Section 94 was amended by paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997.
  26. 7
    Section 95 was amended by paragraph 2 of Schedule 1 to the Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997.
  27. 8
    Section 96 was amended by Schedule 4 to the Arbitration Act 1996 (c. 23) and paragraph 26 of Schedule 10 to the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 (c. 15).
  28. 9
    Section 284 was amended by paragraph 5 of Schedule 1 to the Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997 and S.I. 2015/664.
  29. 10
    Section 100(3) was amended by paragraph 27(6) of Schedule 4 to S.I. 2015/664.
  30. 11
    Section 85 was amended by section 8(2), (3), (4) and (5) of the Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997; section 2(3) of the British Overseas Territories Act 2002; and section 5(4) of the Health Act 2006 (c. 28).
  31. 12
    Section 86 was amended by section 8(6) of the Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997.
  32. 13
    1964 c. 40. Sections 40A to 40D were inserted by section 5(1) of the Marine Navigation Act 2013 (c. 23). Amendments to section 40A(4)(a) were made in relation to Wales by section 30(4) of the Wales Act 2017 (c. 4).
  33. 14
    The definition of “harbour” was amended by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c. 65) and paragraph 33(a) of Schedule 13 to the 1995 Act.
  34. 15
    Section 258 was amended by paragraph 4(2), (3) and (4) of Schedule 1 to the Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997 and paragraph 2(1) of Schedule 10 to the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (c. 9).
  35. 16
    Section 306 was amended by paragraph 18(2), (3) and (5) of Schedule 6 to the Merchant Shipping and Maritime and Security Act 1997; section 1(3) of the Wreck Removal Convention Act 2011 (c. 8); and regulation 3(1)(c) of S.I. 1998/2241.
  36. 17
    Section 306A was inserted by section 106 of the Deregulation Act 2015 (c. 20).
  37. 18
    S.I. 1993/3138, amended by S.I. 1994/541, 1994/1328, 1997/2971, 1998/1915 and 2976, 1999/3206, 2011/1043, 2012/1809, 2017/879, 2018/1221 and 1299, 2019/509 and 746, and 2022/203, 241 and 748.
  38. 19
    S.I. 1996/75, as amended by S.I. 2004/302 and 2015/664
  39. 20
    S.I. 2000/1850.