Vessel Traffic Monitoring and Reporting Requirements

L.N. 333 of 2012

AUTHORITY FOR TRANSPORT IN MALTA ACT

(CAP. 499)

Vessel Traffic Monitoring and Reporting Requirements

(Amendment) Regulations, 2012

IN exercise of the powers conferred by article 43(1) and (3) of

the Authority for Transport in Malta Act, the Minister for

Infrastructure, Transport and Communications, in consultation with

the Authority for Transport in Malta, has made the following

regulations:-

(1) The title of these regulations is the Vessel Traffic Citation and

Monitoring and Reporting Requirements (Amendment) Regulations, commencement.

2012 and they shall be read and construed as one with the Vessel S.L. 499.34.

Traffic Monitoring and Reporting Requirements Regulations,

hereinafter referred to as "the principal regulations".

(2) These regulations shall be deemed to have come into force

on the 19 th of May, 2012.

Sub-regulation (1) of regulation 2 of the principal Amends

regulation 2 of

regulations shall be substituted the following

the principal

regulations.

"(1)

The purpose of these regulations is

(i) to establish, in accordance with the

provisions of Directive 2002/59/EC of the European

Parliament and of the Council of the 27 th June, 2002, as

subsequently amended by Directive 2009/17/EC of the

European Parliament and of the Council of the 23 rd April,

2009 and Directive 2011/15/EU of the European

Commission of the 23 rd February, 2011, establishing a

Community vessel traffic monitoring and information

system with a view to enhancing the safety and efficiency

of maritime traffic, improving the response of authorities

to incidents, accidents or potentially dangerous situations

at sea, including search and rescue operations, and

contributing to a better prevention and detection of

pollution by ships; and

(ii) to transpose the provisions of Directive 2010/

65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of

the 20 th October, 2010 on reporting formalities for ships

arriving in and or departing from ports of the Member

States and repealing Directive 2002/6/EC.".

Regulation 4 of the principal regulations shall be amended

as follows

(a)

immediately after the definition "dangerous goods"

there shall be added the following new definitions

" "electronic transmission of data" means the

process of transmitting information that has been encoded

digitally using a revisable structured format which can be

used directly for storage and processing by computers;

"FAL Convention" means the IMO Convention on

Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic, adopted on

9 th April, 1965 as amended;

"FAL forms" means the standardised forms as

provided for in the FAL Convention;"; and

(b) immediately after the definition "related interests"

there shall be added the following new definition

" "reporting formalities" means the information set

out in regulation 18 which must be provided for

administrative and procedural purposes when a ship arrives

in or departs from a port in Malta;".

For regulation 18 of the principal regulations there shall be

substituted the following

(1) A maritime information management

information system,

system shall be established to process the information

transmission and

referred to in these regulations and in the Directives

exchange of data.

referred to in regulation 2, as amended.

(2) This information management system shall

work as a single window. The fulfilment of reporting

formalities in electronic format and their transmission

via the single window shall take place not later than 1 st

June, 2015.

(3) The single window shall be the place where

all information is reported once and made available to

the various national authorities.

(4) Without prejudice to the relevant format set

out in the FAL Convention, the electronic format shall

comply with the provisions of this regulation

Provided that the FAL forms shall be

accepted for the fulfilment of the reporting formalities;

Provided further that the category of

reporting formalities includes the information which

shall be provided in accordance with the FAL

Convention and other relative international legal

instruments and the applicable forms are

(i)

FAL form 1: General Declaration;

(ii) FAL form 2: Cargo Declaration;

(iii) FAL form 3: Ship’s Stores

Declaration;

(iv) FAL form 4: Crew’s Effects

Declaration;

(v) FAL form 5: Crew List;

(vi) FAL form 6: Passenger List;

(vii) FAL form 7: Dangerous Goods; and

(viii) Maritime Declaration of Health;

Provided further that ships falling

with the scope of these regulations and operating

between ports situated in the customs territory of

the European Union, but which do not come

from, call at or are headed towards a port situated

outside the territory or a free zone subject to type

I controls under customs legislation, are exempt

from the obligation of sending the information

referred to in the FAL forms listed under these

regulations, without prejudice to the applicable

legal acts of the European Union and the

possibility of a Member State to request the

information in such FAL forms which is

necessary to protect internal order and security

and to enforce customs, fiscal, immigration,

environmental or sanitary laws;

Provided further that the information

required in accordance with the provisions of an

applicable legal act of the European Union and

local legislation in force from time to time can

only be provided in paper format until 1 st June,

2015. (5) Where reporting formalities are required by

an applicable legal act of the European Union and

local legislation in force from time to time and to the

extent necessary for the good functioning of the single

window, the maritime information management

system shall be compatible, connectable and

interoperable with the SafeSeaNet system adopted by

the Commission and, where applicable and through

collaboration and cooperation from and with the

relevant national authorities, with the computer

systems stipulated in Decision No. 70/2008/EC of the

European Parliament and of the Council of the 15 th

January, 2008 on a paperless environment for customs

and trade.

(6) The Authority shall cooperate with other

competent authorities of other Member States to

ensure the interconnection and interoperability of their

respective systems and to develop and update

SafeSeaNet.

(7) The maritime information management

system shall

(a)

ensure that the data exchange is

electronic and enable messages notified in

accordance with regulation 6(6) to be received

and processed;

(b) allow information to be transmitted

24 hours a day; and

(c)

upon request, through SafeSeaNet,

and if needed for the purpose of maritime safety

or security or the protection of the maritime

environment, is able to send information on the

ship and the dangerous or polluting goods on

board to the national and local competent

authorities of another Member State without

delay.

(8) Furthermore, it shall be ensured that

(a)

the

information

received

in

accordance with the reporting formalities

provided in an applicable legal acts of the

European Union and local legislation in force

from time to time is made available in the

maritime information system and shall make the

relevant parts of such information available to

other Member States through such system

B B 2937

Provided that, unless otherwise provided by

these regulations or any other legislation, this

does not apply to the information received

pursuant to Regulation (EEC) No. 2913/92,

Regulation (EEC) No. 2454/93 laying down

provisions for the implementation of Council

Regulation (EEC) No. 2913.92, Regulation (EC)

No. 562/2006 and Regulation (EC) No. 450/

2008; and

(b) the information received through the

maritime information system is available upon

request to the relevant national authorities.

(9) For the purposes of this regulation and

regulation 19, "legal act of the European Union"

means

(a)

Directive

2002/59/EC

of

the

European Parliament and of the Council of 27 th

June, 2002 establishing a Community vessel

traffic monitoring and information system as

transposed by these regulations and the

Dangerous Cargo Ships, Marine Terminals and

Facilities and Bunkering Regulations;

(b) Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 of the

European Parliament and of the Council of 15 th

March, 2006 establishing a Community Code on

the rules governing the movement of persons

across borders;

(c)

Directive

2000/59/EC

of

the

European Parliament and of the Council of 27 th

November, 2000 on port reception facilities for

ship-generated waste and cargo residues as

transposed by the Port Reception Facilities for

Ship-Generated Wastes and Cargo Residues

Regulations;

(d) Regulation (EC) No. 725/2004 of the

European Parliament and of the Council of 31 st

of March, 2004 on enhancing ship and port

facility security as transposed by the Ports

Security Regulations; and

(e)

Regulation (EEC) No. 2913/92 of

th

12 October, 1992 establishing the Community

Customs Code and Regulation (EC) 450/2008 of

the European Parliament and of the Council of

23 rd April, 2008 laying down the Community

Customs Code (Modernised Customs Code).".

B B 2938

5. For regulation 19 of the principal regulations there shall be

Substitutes

regulation 19 of

substituted the following

the principal

regulations.

In accordance with all the applicable legal

"Information.

acts of the European Union and local legislation in

force from time to time, it shall be ensured that

(a)

all the necessary measures are

adopted to ensure the confidentiality of

commercial and other confidential information

sent pursuant to these regulations;

(b) particular care is taken to protect the

commercial data collected according to the

provisions of these regulations;

(c)

compliance with the requirements of

any legal acts of the European Union and local

legislation in force from time to time with

respect to the protection of personal data is

observed at all times; and

(d) such information is used in

compliance with these regulations.".

€0.54