Panama Maritime Authority revisits General Law of Merchant Marine

The Panama Maritime Authority (AMP), together with the main maritime unions and other state institutions, has concluded the meetings for the revision of Law 57 of August 6, 2008, known as the General Law of Merchant Marine.

In total, 188 articles were reviewed, 70 were modified, 10 were eliminated and more than 12 new articles were proposed, all approved by consensus by the working group. These modifications seek to improve the competitiveness of the Ship Registry and keep it at the forefront in the maritime sector.

Key topics among the revision:

Obtaining the Navigation License through a direct process, without the need to obtain a provisional navigation license.
The elimination of the expiration date of the regulatory navigation patent and the regulatory radio license for international service vessels.
The modification of the notification process within the administrative framework of the General Directorate of the Merchant Marine, specifically allowing special notifications by email instead of the edicts placed in the Department of Resolutions and Consultations.
The Registry of Resident Agents of National Merchant Marine Ships was created to identify measures that will strengthen due diligence and the obligations that must be met in the international arena.
The obligation to previously register the property title of the seller of a ship within the procedure of change of ownership was established.
Legal certainty was reinforced for mortgagees of ships registered in Panama. From now on, the cancellation of a ship will not affect the validity of the mortgages previously registered in the General Directorate of Public Registry of Ship Ownership of the Panama Maritime Authority.
To promote the growth of the Panamanian fleet, a new Incentive Regime was proposed.

The working group was made up of various members of the maritime sector, unions and public entities such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MIRE), the Public Registry of Panama (RPP), the National Aeronaval Service (SENAN), the Aquatic Resources Authority ( ARAP), the Panamanian Association of Maritime Law (APADEMAR), the National Bar Association (CNA), the National Association of Seafarers (CONAGEMAR), the Panamanian Association of Marine Officers (APOM), the Panamanian Shipowners Association (ARPA), Recognized Organizations (IARO), the Panama Maritime Chamber (CMP). For the order and transparency of this project, we had the support of the Inter-American School of Social Dialogue and Tripartism of the University of Panama (EI-DiSTReC).