If you want to apply to re-register your merchant vessel, you can use the UK Ship Register online service.

You will need to provide supporting documents and pay the appropriate fee. The Application to Register and Declaration of Eligibility forms are not required if submitting your application online.

Please note, you will need to print off and sign any documents, as we cannot accept digital signatures.

How to re-register a merchant vessel

If a vessel has previously been UK registered and the current owner or new owner wishes to re-register a vessel, the following documents will need to be submitted as part of the application process for merchant vessels (Part 1):

• Application to Register MSF 4740 (A)
• Declaration of Eligibility MSF 4727
• Bill of Sale or Builders Certificate (only required if ownership has changed since the vessel’s last registration with the UK Ship Register)
• Copy of Certificate of Incorporation (if the owner is a body corporate)
• UK Certificate of Survey for Tonnage & Measurement issued within the last 12 months
• International Tonnage Certificate (ITC69) (for vessels over 24 metres)
• British Tonnage Certificate and Survey (for vessels less than 24 metres)
• A copy of the valid Code Certificate or appropriate Safety Certificate (for vessels less than 24 metres)
• Deletion certificate/transcript from the current register or a written undertaking to provide 
  one within 6 weeks
• Copy of the ship’s Radio Licence with call sign, applications are made with Ofcom
• Copy of the ship’s current Continuous Synopsis Record (CSR) and completed CSR amendment Form 2 (for vessels over 500 gross tonnage)
• Civil Liability Certification (CLC) when you receive the P&I “Blue Cards”, apply for certificates via the UK Ship Register service online
• Safe Manning Document
• Online payment of £153 registration fee via GOV.UK secure payment link (for five year period)

The vessel’s Official Number will remain the same as the previous UK registration.