GAC: Taiwan conducts additional checks on China-, Hong Kong- and Macau-flagged vessels

Taiwan is conducting additional checks on certain vessels with Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau backgrounds from 31 March, following reports of cable breakage and to strengthen the safety of Taiwan’s waters and key infrastructure, according to GAC Hot Port News on Friday (28 March). 

“Substandard vessels” and “specific vessels” (drive-on and drive-off vessels, semi-submersible vessels, platform vessels, heavy transport vessels, crane vessels, oil tankers, product tankers and liquefied petroleum gas tankers, etc.) with the background of countries mentioned above will be required to consult with the relevant authorities when applying for direct navigation permits or business registration.

“This will take a long time. It is recommended that applications be submitted 30 days in advance to avoid affecting the timeliness of vessels’ entry to the port,” GAC said. 

To optimise the performance of MTNet system, a field will be added in the subsystem for operators to fill in the relevant ship owners’/carriers’ information. Operators should prepare the relevant information in advance to enable this to be completed in time, and the system upgrade and various reporting operations can be accelerated.

Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau background refers to foreign-flagged ships (including Hong Kong-flagged ships) whose ship owners (or carriers) are registered in China, Hong Kong and Macau. If a “specific type of vessel” is registered in Hong Kong, it will be included in the consultation list of vessels.

The definition of “substandard ships” mentioned above is currently mainly aimed at ships from the five black flag countries (Cameroon, Tanzania, Mongolia, Togolese Republic and Sierra Leone).

“If the ship owner or carrier company is registered in China, Hong Kong or Macau, it will be sent to the national security unit for preliminary review. The nationality of the ship will not be limited,” it added. 

If the ship owner and the carrier company are not registered in China, Hong Kong or Macau, the normal procedures will be followed by the Maritime and Port Administration for review, and there is no need to submit it to the national security unit for review.

This review method first determines the place of registration of the ship owner or carrier company, and then whether it needs to be submitted to the national security unit for review based on the conditions and type of the ship.

Photo credit: Thomas Tucker on Unsplash
Published: 1 April, 2025