Applying for a Nationality Certificate and (provisional) Certificate of Registry

If you, as a shipowner, wish to register a merchant ship in the Netherlands and sail under the Dutch flag, you must apply for a zeebrief (Certificate of Registry). To do so, you will first need a nationaliteitsverklaring (Nationality Certificate). If you wish to start sailing before the Nationality Certificate and Certificate of Registry have been issued, you can apply for a voorlopige zeebrief (provisional Certificate of Registry). In exceptional circumstances, you may submit an urgent request .

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Certificate of Registry and provisional Certificate of Registry

The Certificate of Registry serves as proof of nationality for a seagoing vessel, confirming your right to sail under the Dutch flag. Once you have received the Certificate of Registry, both the recognised organisation and the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT) can issue the required certificates.

If you wish to start sailing as soon as possible, you can apply for a provisional Certificate of Registry. This way, your ship can gain Dutch nationality prior to its registration with Kadaster (the Netherlands’ Cadastre, Land Registry and Mapping Agency).

A provisional Certificate of Registry is valid for 6 months. During this period, you must complete the registration and obtain the definitive Certificate of Registry.

Registering a merchant ship

Before starting the registration process, you must first report the ship as a merchant vessel to be flagged in using the online form for Registration of a newly constructed vessel or a vessel that is flagging in. This step is necessary to obtain a uniek identificatienummer, NSI-nummer (unique identification number, the NSI number).

The registration of your ship under the Dutch flag involves five steps:

Complete the Nationality certificate and Certificate of Registry merchant shipping online form and submit it, along with all required attachments, to the ILT. If any information or attachments are incorrect or missing, you will need to submit a new application.
Receive the Nationality Certificate from the ILT.
Use the Nationality Certificate to apply for the ship's registration with Kadaster.
Kadaster notifies the ILT once the ship has been registered.
Receive the Certificate of Registry from the ILT.

If you wish, you can also apply for a provisional Certificate of Registry during step 1 by indicating this on the same form. If approved, you will receive the provisional Certificate of Registry together with the Nationality Certificate in step 2. You can then proceed with steps 3–5 to obtain the definitive Certificate of Registry.

Ensure you have proof of ownership of the ship, such as a bijlbrief (builder’s certificate ), purchase agreement, or other ownership document, within 4 weeks of applying for the Nationality Certificate.

Owner and ship manager

During registration, you can choose one of the following options on the application form:

Operate the ship yourself from an establishment in the Netherlands. In this case, you are considered the scheepsbeheerder (ship manager) under the Wet zeevarenden (Seafarers Act, in Dutch).
Have the ship operated by a company established in the Netherlands. In this case, you do not need to set up an establishment yourself but will choose domicile at this company’s office. The company is then considered the ship manager under the Seafarers Act (in Dutch). This ship manager may also be the International Safety Management (ISM) manager, but this is not required.

As the owner, your name will appear on the Certificate of Registry. The ship manager serves as the ILT’s point of contact for crew-related matters, such as submitting the bemanningsplan (manning proposal).

Required attachments for applying for a (provisional) Certificate of Registry

When applying for a (provisional) Certificate of Registry, you must submit attachments regarding the owner, the ship manager and the ship itself.

Attachments about the owner and ship manager

As the owner of a seagoing vessel, you must meet requirements regarding the ownership of the ship and the establishment of your business or the business acting as the ship manager to register your vessel in the Netherlands. There are two scenarios:

If you, as the shipowner, have an establishment in the Netherlands, you must provide an extract from the Kamer van Koophandel, KVK (Chamber of Commerce of the Netherlands) for the business operating the ship. This extract must not be older than 3 months.

Additionally, you must provide copies of the necessary documentation based on your legal status:

If you, the owner, are a natural person

If you, as the owner, are a natural person, you must submit a copy of your passport or a statement from a notary with your name, address and nationality.

If you, the owner, are a legal entity

If you, as the owner, are a legal entity, you must provide a copy of the valid articles of association of the company and a statement from a notary listing the names and addresses of the directors.

If you, the owner, are an unincorporated association

If you, as the owner, are an unincorporated association, you must provide a copy of the partnership agreement and a statement from a notary listing the names and addresses of the jointly liable partners or members of the association.

If you, as the owner, do not have an establishment in the Netherlands, you must appoint a ship manager based in the Netherlands to handle the operational management of the ship. In this case, you must submit an extract from the Kamer van Koophandel, KVK (Chamber of Commerce of the Netherlands) for the business acting as the ship manager. This extract must not be older than 3 months.

Additionally, you must provide copies of the necessary documentation based on the legal status of the ship manager:

If the ship manager is a legal entity

If the ship manager is a legal entity, you must provide a copy of the company’s articles of association and a statement from a notary listing the names and addresses of the directors.

If the ship manager is an unincorporated association

If the ship manager is an unincorporated association, you must provide a copy of the partnership agreement and a statement from a notary listing the names and addresses of the jointly liable partners or members of the association.

Attachments about the ship

In addition to the above, you must submit the following attachments about the ship:

A copy of the (provisional) international meetbrief (Tonnage Certificate, in Dutch).
A copy of the purchase contract, builder’s certificate, or other proof of ownership or transfer of ownership under particular or universal title .
A copy of the class certificate for the engine, including the engine’s Revolutions Per Minute (RPM), power output and engine number.

For questions about required documents, please contact the ILT.

Urgent requests for a Nationality Certificate and (provisional) Certificate of Registry

You can only submit an urgent application in situations of proven economic, social, or political importance. The ILT will assess whether this is the case.

For urgent requests, 2 changes apply to the process above.

In step 1, use the Urgent application nationality certificate and Certificate of Registry merchant shipping online form. Submit it via email, using ‘URGENT’ as the first word in the subject line, followed by the ship's name. If all information is correct, you will receive the Nationality Certificate from the ILT within 3 working days. For same-day responses, call the phone number on the application form.
After step 3, send an extract of the registration with Kadaster to the ILT once you have completed the registration form, rather than waiting for Kadaster to notify the ILT.

No copies of Certificates of Registry

The ILT does not issue copies of Certificates of Registry. If you have not received your Certificate of Registry, the ILT can resend it to the address provided on your application form. Ensure the address is correct. For more information, contact the ILT.

Costs of a Certificate of Registry

The fee for issuing a Certificate of Registry is €215, as stipulated by the Regeling tarieven transportsectoren (Transportation Sectors Tariffs Scheme, in Dutch). This fee may also apply if you withdraw your application. Contact the ILT to withdraw your application.