Shipping & Maritime

Our firm offers a full range of legal services to ship owners, charterers, ship managers and ship financing institutions.
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Setting up a Cyprus Shipping Company

The Economic benefits

No tax on profits from the operation or management of a Cyprus-registered vessel or on dividends received from a vessel owning company.

No income tax on the wages of officers and crew.

No income tax on the wages of officers and crew.

Low registration costs.

Favourable tonnage tax scheme based on ship net tonnage.

No stamp duty on ship mortgage deeds or other security documents.

An extensive double tax treaties network.

No exchange control and freedom of movement of foreign currency

Full protection for financiers and mortgagees.

Low set up and operating costs for companies.

Advantages of registering a ship under the Cyprus Flag

Cyprus plays a prominent role as a leading shipping and ship management centre with a sound maritime infrastructure, favourable tax regime and competitive ship registration and tonnage tax rates. The Cypriot maritime registry is today one of the largest in the EU and the 10th largest worldwide, as well as the biggest third party ship management centre in the EU. On 29th April 2010 the Cyprus Parliament enacted the long awaited new shipping legislation. The new Merchant Shipping Law, which applies from 1 January 2010, extended significantly the scope of the Tonnage Tax (TT) regime and enhanced the position of Cyprus as a maritime centre.

Ownership requirements of a vessel under Cyprus flag

More than half of the shares (50%) of the ship must be owned by Cypriot citizens or by citizens of Member States of the EU or of the European Economic Area who in the instance of not being permanent residents of the Republic will have to appoint an authorised representative in the Republic of Cyprus, or

The total (100%) of the shares of the ship must be owned by corporations, which operate in accordance with the laws of the Republic and have their registered office in the Republic of Cyprus, or they operate in accordance with the laws of any other EU or EEA Member State and have their registered office, central administration or principal place of business within the European Economic Area or by corporations registered outside the EU or the EEA but controlled by Cypriot citizens or citizens of a Member State. In both the latter cases they must have either appointed an authorised representative in Cyprus or the management of the ship must be entrusted in full to a Cypriot or Community ship management company in Cyprus.

Applications for registration of ships must be made through law firms in Cyprus.

At the time of its registration, the ship must be surveyed by an approved classification society.

APPROVED CLASSIFICATION SOCIETIES:
ABS, LRS, DNV, BV, GL, RINA, NKK, KRS, CCS, RS, PRS.

Our Services Cover

Acquisitions

We have handled the acquisitions of vessels valued over 25.000.000 mil, arranged for their transportation to Port and the preliminary and permanent registration of the vessel under the Cyprus Flag.
Permanent Registration of vessels
Preliminary Registration of vessels
Bills of lading and contracts of carriage
Acquisition and disposal of vessels
General Average
Administration of vessels
Registration of mortgages

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