Searching the register of ships

To find details of a particular ship, or ship name, you need to search the register of ships. The options to get ship registration information are explained below.

Get registration details of a particular ship

To search the New Zealand Register of Ships you need to know the ship's name or the ship's official registration number.

Ships registered under registration type Part A, have an official number which is usually a six digit number, eg 123456.

Ships registered under registration type Part B have a registration number which is always "NZ" followed by a number, e.g. NZ123.

There are four ways to get register information:

1. contact Maritime New Zealand’s Registrar of Ships, asking for verbal information about the ship. There is no charge for this information
2. inspect the ship's register entry during normal business hours. The fee for this is NZ$41.00
3. request a certified transcript of the ship's register entry (including details of ownership and any mortgages). The fee for this is NZ$86.00
4. request a computer printout of the ship's register entries (including details of ownership and any mortgages). The fee for this is NZ$86.00. Please note that the Registrar of Ships does not certify printouts as being correct.

Contact Maritime New Zealand’s Registrar of Ships

Check if a name you want to call your ship is available

To find out if a name you want to call your ship is available, use our online search tool or contact Maritime New Zealand’s Registrar of Ships.

Ship name online search tool
Contact Maritime New Zealand’s Registrar of Ships