Cyprus flag removed from US Coast Guard targeted flag list
The Cyprus Shipping Deputy Ministry announced that the Cyprus Flag Administration has been removed from the US Coast Guard’s targeted flag list after maintaining stringent onboard safety standards for all Cyprus-registered ships, with only one vessel retained in an American port during the past three years.
Cyprus was ranked more favourably than other flags, such as Greece, Liberia, Malta and Panama, which had a “detention ratio between the overall average and up to two times the overall average”.
The Cyprus Shipping Deputy Ministry said that the three-year average detention ratio of its vessels for the 2017-2019 period was 0.96% compared to an average USCG ratio of 1.08%.
In 2019, the annual detention ratio of Cyprus ships was reduced to 0.55%, down from 1.79% in 2018, while the USCG’s 2019 ratio was 1.12%.
This development may lead to fewer inspections for Cyprus vessels at US ports but it certainly adds to the flag’s status as a high-quality flag which is consistently part of the “white lists” of the Paris and Tokyo MoUs, the depute ministry said.
It noted that this was the result of a comprehensive National Shipping Strategy aimed at cementing the position of Cyprus as one of the world’s top flag administrations and as a leading shipping cluster.
The Deputy Minister added that an automated port state control system as well as an online ship registration application are also under development, aiming to further reduce bureaucracy and help further towards achieving the one-stop service target.
Extension of deadline for payment of Tonnage Tax and Annual Fee for 2020
As part of the actions and measures decided by the government of Cyprus for supporting the country’s economy in relation to the restrictions imposed for dealing with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic the deadline for the payment of the Tonnage Tax and the Cyprus Ship Registry Maintenance Annual Fee (the Annual Fee) has been extended from 31 March 2020 to 31 May 2020.
