Netherlands Regulatory Framework (NeRF)

Netherlands Regulatory Framework (NeRF) is a database with the (inter)national legislative framework including instructions and other relevant information for the Netherlands merchant shipping. NeRF is the successor of EasyRules, which hasn’t been updated since the 1st of April 2014. The content of NeRF is provided as service to the maritime industry and is not intended as the official publication instead of the publications form the different sources. In case of deviations the official publication prevails.

Areas of special attention for vessels flying flag of the Netherlands

The ‘Areas of special attention for vessels flying flag of the Netherlands’ gives specific national requirements and interpretations in addition to the international conventions.
This information is listed in the Netherlands Regulatory Framework (Nerf).

Search the content of NeRF

For the basic use of the system a manual is incorporated in NeRF. At this time, NeRF only comprises the regulatory framework for Merchant shipping.
NeRF has different tabs to guide the user more effectively to the searched document. There are different ways how the regulatory framework may be searched:

Home page: this tab contains links for quick reference to relevant documents, a tree structure (identical to EasyRules), recently added documents and a basic search function.
Advanced search: through this tab it is possible to add different filters and search for a specific document e.g. valid on a certain date.
Type of document: provides an overview of the regulatory framework to the type of document based on the type of publication, e.g. international – instructions.
Subject: provides all documents of the regulatory framework sorted by the selected subject (e.g. safety, environment or manning).

Frequently used function (tree structure, search and direct links) are incorporated on the homepage and translated as much as possible into the English language. The English version of the system is being worked on.

For more details about the regulatory framework, please visit ‘Explanation Regulatory Framework’.