- PRELIMINARY REGISTRY OF TITLE OF PROPERTY / MORTGAGE
The procedures for the Registry of a Preliminary
Mortgage and Title of Property are direct, and the whole process,
can be completed promptly.
The preliminary registry can be requested at the offices of any
Panamanian Consulate overseas and at the General Directorate of
Merchant Marine in Panama.
The whole process takes approximately one working day. There
are measures that allows the Provisional Registration of Mortgages
and Title of Property after working hours.
- DOUBLE REGISTRY OR CHARTERING AN EMPTY
HULL (INSIDE OR OUTSIDE)
Another advantage of the Panamanian Registry of
Vessels is the so-called "Double Registry". The system
of Double Registry was established in Panama through Law No. 11
of 1973 amended by Law No. 83 also of 1973. In accordance with
these laws, a foreign vessel can be chartered in Panama, for a
period of two (2) years, without loosing its original registry
(inside) and it also allows the opposite, that a Panamanian vessel
can be chartered in another country (outside).
For this purpose, a consent or a no objection certificate from
the country where the vessel is registered will be required.
The system of Double Registry represents a great advantage to
the maritime community, especially for ship owners whom, for one
or another reason, do not have vessels under the open system.
The Double Registry can be considered an answer to the ship owners,
who face the existing high operation costs in other countries.
Double Registry is not reciprocal; however, the Panamanian System
of Registry of Vessels does not make distinction on nationalities
when applying for registration, as long as the country of origin
allows it.
The General Directorate of Merchant Marine is authorized
by Law 36 of July 6, 1995, to grant discounts up to 50% to vessels
representing more that 100,000 gross tonnage (GRT) of registry,
on registration fees for any vessel whose owner is part of a same
economic group, that registers three (3) or more vessels. Likewise,
for vessels with a registered gross tonnage of 50,000 to 100,000
ship owners can receive an additional 20% discount registration
fees.
An owner that registers a vessel with a gross tonnage of more
than 100,000 tonnage, can obtain a 50% discount on the registration
fee. In order to grant this discount, the General Directorate
of Merchant Marine takes into consideration the type of vessel,
the year of construction and the ship owners' background in the
Panamanian Registry.
Besides the discounts mentioned above, any ship owner or group
of ship owners of the same financial group, whose vessels represent
a registration gross of tonnage of more than 100,000, can obtain
a discount up to 50% on annual tax from the General Directorate
of Merchant Marine.
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