Regulations of the People's Republic of China on International Maritime Transportation
Regulations of the People's Republic of China on International Maritime Transportation
Regulations of the People's Republic of China on International Maritime Transportation
Order of the State Council [2001] No.335
December 11, 2001
These Regulations of the People's Republic of China on International Maritime Transportation were adopted at the 49th Executive Meeting of the State Council on December 5, 2001 and are hereby promulgated. They shall be implemented as of January 1, 2002.
Premier of the State Council: Zhu Rongji
Annex: Regulations of the People's Republic of China on International Maritime Transportation
Chapter I General Provisions
Article 1 These Regulations have been enacted with the primary aims of normalizing the activities of international maritime transportation, protecting fair competition, maintaining order in the international maritime transportation market, and guaranteeing the lawful rights and interests of the parties of international maritime transportation.
Article 2 These Regulations shall be applicable to the business operations of international maritime transportation both inward and outward from the ports of the People's Republic of China and the auxiliary business operations related to international maritime transportation.
The term "auxiliary business operations related to international maritime transportation" as used in the preceding paragraph shall include international ship agencies, international ship management, port handling of international maritime transportation, the storage of goods related to international maritime transportation, container stations, the stacking of international maritime transportation, and other operations.
Article 3 Those engaged in the business operations of international maritime transportation and the auxiliary business operations related to international maritime transportation must abide by the principles of good faith, and must operate their businesses according to law with fair competition.
Article 4 The department in charge of transportation under the State Council and the departments in charge of transportation under the relevant local people's governments shall, according to the provisions of these Regulations, supervise and administrate the business operations of international maritime transportation and carry out the relevant supervision and administration of those auxiliary business operations related to international maritime transportation.
Chapter II Operators of International Maritime Transportation and the Auxiliary Businesses thereof
Article 5 All parties must meet the following conditions in order to operate an international shipping business:
1. Have ships accommodated to international maritime transportation operations, among which there must be Chinese ships.
2. Put the ships into operation in accord with the technological standards of maritime transportation safety as prescribed by the State.
3. Have bills of lading, passenger tickets, or multimode transport documents.
4. Have senior managerial personnel with the practice qualifications as prescribed by the department in charge of transportation under the State Council.
Article 6 In order to operate the international shipping business, the party must file an application with the department in charge of transportation under the State Council and attach the relevant materials meeting the conditions as prescribed in Article 5 of these Regulations. The department in charge of transportation under the State Council shall complete the examination within 30 days from the day of accepting the application and make a decision on whether or not to approve the application. If approval is granted, an International Shipping License shall be issued to the applicant. If approval is not granted, the applicant shall be notified in written form with the reasons for the denial explained.
When examining an application for international shipping operations, the department in charge of transportation under the State Council shall take into consideration the state policies regarding the development of the international maritime transportation industry and the competition in the international maritime transportation market.
If a party applies for the operation of international liner shipping when applying for the operation of international shipping, it must attach the relevant materials as prescribed in Article 17 of these Regulations to be examined and registered by the department in charge of transportation under the State Council.
Article 7 Those operating the non-vessel shipping business must register a bill of lading with the department in charge of transportation under the State Council and must pay a security deposit.
The term "non-vessel shipping business" as used in the preceding paragraph shall refer to the international maritime transportation business operations of a non-vessel shipping operators to accept the cargo of the shipper as the carrier, take the freight charges from the shipper by issuing his own bills of lading or other transport documents, ship the international ocean goods through international shipping operators, and bear the responsibilities of the carrier.
In order to operate non-vessel shipping business within the territory of China, the party must establish an enterprise with legal status within the territory of China according to the law.
Article 8 When filing the application for registration of bill of lading with the department in charge of transportation under the State Council, the non-vessel shipping operator must attach the relevant materials proving the payment of security the deposit in accordance with the provisions of these Regulations.
The sum of the security deposit as prescribed in the preceding paragraph shall be CNY800,000 and an additional security deposit of CNY200,000 shall be required for each branch established. The security deposit must be paid to a special account opened in a bank within the territory of China.
The security deposit shall be used to pay the debts and fines incurred due to the failure of the non-vessel shipping operator to perform the obligations of the carrier or the inappropriate performance of those obligations. The security deposit and the interests thereof shall belong to the non-vessel shipping operator. The special account shall be subject to the supervision of the department in charge of transportation under the State Council.
The department in charge of transportation under the State Council shall complete the examination within 15 days of the day of receiving the application of the non-vessel shipping operator for the registration of the bill of lading and the relevant materials of security deposit payment. If the application materials are true and complete, the registration shall be made and the applicant shall be notified. If, however, the application materials are untrue or incomplete, the registration shall not be made and the applicant shall be notified in written form with reasons for the denial explained. Those non-vessel shipping operators that have made the registration of bill of lading shall be recognized by the department in charge of transportation under the State Council.
Article 9 All parties must meet the following conditions in order to operate the international ship agency business:
1. At least 2 of the senior managerial personnel have no less than 3 years experience in the international maritime transportation business.
2. Have fixed business sites and the necessary business facilities.
Article 10 To operate the international ship agency business, a party must file an application with the department in charge of transportation under the State Council and attach the relevant materials meeting the conditions as prescribed in Article 9 of these Regulations. The department in charge of transportation under the State Council shall finish the examination within 15 days from the day of receiving the application. If the application materials are true and complete, the registration shall be made and the applicant shall be notified. If the application materials are untrue or incomplete, the registration shall not be made, and the applicant shall be notified in written form with reasons for the denial explained.
Article 11 All parties must meet the following conditions in order to operate the international ship management business:
1.
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