When and how to close a ship registration (Part A only)

The registered owner must notify Maritime New Zealand’s Registrar of Ships if their ship is no longer entitled or required to be registered or has been lost (at sea).

About closing a registration

Maritime New Zealand does not charge a fee to close a registration. If however you require evidence that the ship is no longer registered in New Zealand, the Registrar of Ships can issue a certified transcript of the closed registry (deletion certificate).

A new owner may need the certified transcript in order to register the ship in another country.

The approximate processing time to close a registration is five working days from when the Registrar of Ships receives the correctly completed documents.

When a ship is no longer entitled to be registered

A ship is no longer entitled to be registered if it has been sold to, or is owned by, someone who is not a New Zealand citizen or a New Zealand body corporate (company). Consequently the registration needs closing.

The ship’s registered owner needs to send Maritime New Zealand’s Registrar of Ships the following:

a copy of the Bill of Sale (form SR14) completed in full by the registered owner(s). The nationality of the purchaser(s) must be included on the form
Ship’s Certificate of Registry (“the blue book”).

Bill of sale - SR14 [PDF: 64kB, 4 pages]