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77-509: The ITF works to improve the lives of transport workers globally, encouraging and organising international solidarity among its network of affiliates. The ITF is allied with the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC). Any independent trade union with members in the transport industry is eligible for membership of the organization. The ITF represents the interests of transport workers' unions in bodies such as

154-454: A 2003 report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report entitled "Ownership and Control of Ships", these corporate structures are often multi-layered, spread across numerous jurisdictions, and make the beneficial owner "almost impenetrable" to law enforcement officials and taxation. The report concludes that "regardless of the reasons why the cloak of anonymity

231-455: A background of high workforce participation by women and a Congress 50 per cent of whose delegates were women ): I am a warrior for woman and we still have work to ensure the inclusion of women in the work place and in our unions. The struggles for women are multiple – too often within their families for independence, then in the workplace for rights and equal opportunity, in their unions for access and representation and then as union leaders. But

308-422: A country other than that of the ship's owners, and the ship flies the civil ensign of that country, called the flag state . The term is often used pejoratively, and although common, the practice is sometimes regarded as contentious. Each merchant ship is required by international law to be registered in a registry created by a country, and a ship is subject to the laws of that country, which are used also if

385-631: A genuine link between a ship's owners and its flag state dates back to 1958, when Article 5(1) of the Geneva Convention on the High Seas also required that "the state must effectively exercise its jurisdiction and control in administrative, technical and social matters over ships flying its flag." The principle was repeated in Article 91 of the 1982 treaty called the United Nations Convention on

462-600: A global environment. In 2010 in a message connected to the World Maritime Day , the Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization gave recognition to the present status of the open registries and noted that the seafarers from some developing countries are providing major source of foreign currency to their home economies: "The development of open registries for ships has given

539-562: A jurisdiction with measurement rules that reduced the certified gross register tonnage of a ship, to reduce subsequent port of call dock dues. Such was a consideration when Carnival Cruise Line changed the flag of the RMS Empress of Canada in 1972 to that of Panama. In 2011, Cunard Line registered all its ships in Bermuda , which, besides other considerations, enabled its ship captains to marry couples at sea. Weddings at sea are described as

616-427: A lucrative market. Maritime industry practitioners and seafarers from other countries contend that this is a natural product of globalisation. Supporters of the practice, however, point to economic and regulatory advantages, and increased freedom in choosing employees from an international labour pool. Publications from as early as 1962 argue that shipowners from developed countries use the practice to be competitive in

693-695: A means of avoiding labor regulation in the country of ownership, and become a vehicle for paying low wages and forcing long hours of work and unsafe working conditions. Since FOC ships have no real nationality, they are beyond the reach of any single national seafarers' trade union." They also say that these ships have low safety standards and no construction requirements, that they "do not enforce safety standards, minimum social standards or trade union rights for seafarers", that they frequently fail to pay their crews, have poor safety records, and engage in practices such as abandoning crewmen in distant ports. While flag of convenience ships have been involved with some of

770-411: A neutral, unintentionally into war. The Liberian open registry, founded in 1948, was the brainchild of Edward Stettinius , who had been Franklin D. Roosevelt 's Secretary of State during World War II. Stettinius created a corporate structure that included The Liberia Corporation , a joint-venture with the government of Liberia. The corporation was structured so that 25% of its revenue would go to

847-416: A nominee director to divulge the identity of beneficial owners. A further hurdle is that some jurisdictions allow a corporation to be named as a director. Flag of convenience ships have long been linked to crime on the high seas. For example, in 1982, Honduras shut down its open registry operations because it had enabled "illegal traffic of all kinds and had given Honduras a bad name". Ships registered by

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924-413: A nominee to be the shareholder, and that nominee cannot legally be compelled to reveal the identity of the beneficial owner. All corporations are required to have at least one director, however many jurisdictions allow this to be a nominee director. A nominee director's name would appear on all corporate paperwork in place of the beneficial owners, and like nominee shareholders, few jurisdictions can compel

1001-518: A result, flags of convenience perpetuate IUU fishing which has extensive environmental, social and economic impacts, particularly in developing countries. The EJF is campaigning to end the granting of flags of convenience to fishing vessels as an effective measure to combat IUU fishing. According to Franz Fischler , European Union Fisheries Commissioner , The practice of flags of convenience, where owners register vessels in countries other than their own in order to avoid binding regulations or controls,

1078-521: A ship, the port state may take actions including detaining the ship . In 2015, member states of the Paris MOU conducted 17,858 inspections with deficiencies, which resulted in 595 detained vessels and 11 banned. Member states of the Tokyo Memorandum of Understanding conducted 17,269 ship inspections in 2015, recording 83,606 deficiencies which resulted in 1,153 detentions. The principle that there be

1155-489: A total membership of 87 million. It works closely with the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC). The ITUC raises capital through charging dues to its member organisations. [REDACTED] Media related to CSI Member at Wikimedia Commons Flags of convenience Flag of convenience ( FOC ) is a business practice whereby a ship's owners register a merchant ship in a ship register of

1232-411: A total of 1,041,986,000  DWT : more than 46% of the world's shipborne carrying capacity. The following table gives the distribution between the 10 largest world registries in terms of tonnage (millions dwt): Source: UNCTAD (estimates based on data supplied by Clarkson Research Services ). The data refer to the beginning of an indicated year. In comparison, the total capacity of ships in

1309-638: Is a serious menace to today's maritime world. In 1978, a number of European countries agreed in The Hague to audit labour conditions on board vessels vis-a-vis the rules of the International Labour Organization . To this end, in 1982 the " Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control " (Paris MOU) was established, setting port state control standards for what is now twenty-six European countries and Canada. Several other regional Memoranda of Understanding have been established based on

1386-496: Is an initiative of the ITUC whose main objective is to bring the trade union perspective into international development policy debates and improve the coordination and effectiveness of trade union development cooperation activities. The ITUC represents 207 million workers through its 331 affiliated organizations within 163 countries and territories. Luc Triangle is the current acting General Secretary. The ITUC traces its origins back to

1463-452: Is its flag state , and the flag state gives the ship the right to fly its civil ensign. A ship operates under the laws of its flag state, and these laws are used if the ship is involved in an admiralty case. A ship's flag state exercises regulatory control over the vessel and is required to inspect it regularly, certify the ship's equipment and crew, and issue safety and pollution prevention documents. The organization which actually registers

1540-498: Is located in London and it has offices in Abidjan , Amman , Brussels , Singapore , Montreal , Hong Kong , Nairobi , New Delhi , Rio de Janeiro , Sydney and Tokyo . The International Transport Workers' Federation is governed by its constitution. The Constitution states that ITF is run by an elected executive board meeting twice a year. The ITF executive is highly concerned about

1617-427: Is made available, if it is provided it will also assist those who may wish to remain hidden because they engage in illegal or criminal activities, including terrorists." The OECD report concludes that the use of bearer shares is "perhaps the single most important (and perhaps the most widely used) mechanism" to protect the anonymity of a ship's beneficial owner. Physically possessing a bearer share accords ownership of

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1694-456: Is necessary to create solidarity networks between trade unions, and to improve the coordination between ITF sections, so that effective responses can be made to large multinational business entities which span several regions and many sectors of workers. The ITF was founded in 1896 at a meeting in London, organised by Havelock Wilson , Ben Tillett , Tom Mann and Charles Lindley . Initially named

1771-573: Is not our concern." Less than two years later, French forces seized the Cambodian-flagged, Greek-owned MV Winner for cocaine smuggling. Shortly after the seizure, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen closed the registry to foreign ships, and Cambodia canceled its contract with CSC shortly thereafter. The North Korean flag of convenience has also garnered significant scrutiny. In 2003, the North Korean freighter Pong Su reflagged to Tuvalu in

1848-557: Is that shipowners who want to hide their ownership may select a flag-of-convenience jurisdiction which enables them to be legally anonymous. Some ships with flags of convenience have been found engaging in crime, offering substandard working conditions, and negatively impacting the environment, primarily through illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing . Prior to the implementation of the International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969 , shipowners may have selected

1925-518: The Australian Council of Trade Unions effective 1 July 2010. Speaking to the Congress after her election, Burrow paid tribute to her predecessor and emphasized the continuing role of organized labour in the world's emergence from the 2007–2008 financial crisis . She also made special mention of the significance of her election as the first female leader of the world's largest trade union (against

2002-551: The Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) responding to panel discussions on the impact of globalisation , including the topics "Cohesion and chaos - the global institutions" and "Global unions - global companies". Technical difficulties limited Lamy's satellite video link participation. Leadership and officers were elected on the final day of the congress. Guy Ryder , the former general secretary of

2079-711: The First International (also known as the International Workingmen's Association) and in 2014 commemorated the 150th anniversary of the founding of the International Working Men's Association at its own world congress held in Berlin. Also in 2014, the ITUC debuted the Global Rights Index , which ranks nations on 97 metrics pertaining to workers' rights , such as freedom from violent conditions and

2156-503: The ITF says: Arms smuggling, the ability to conceal large sums of money, trafficking in goods and people and other illegal activities can also thrive in the unregulated havens which the flag of convenience system provides. Panama has the largest maritime register, followed by Liberia. Landlocked Mongolia also has a major registry, as does Bolivia. Also, some registers are based in other countries. For example, Panamanian overseas consulates manage

2233-1016: The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and the World Confederation of Labour (WCL). The Founding Congress of the ITUC was held in Vienna and was preceded by the dissolution congresses of both the ICFTU and the WCL. The ITUC has three main regional organizations: the Asia-Pacific Regional Organization , the Trade Union Confederation of the Americas , and the African Regional Organisation . The Trade Union Development Cooperation Network (TUDCN)

2310-682: The International Federation of Ship, Dock and River Workers , in 1898, it absorbed the International Commission for Railwaymen , and so renamed itself as the "International Transport Workers' Federation". In 1904, its headquarters moved to Germany, then in 1919 to Amsterdam, where it grew, under the leadership of Edo Fimmen . By 1939, with World War II imminent, its headquarters moved to Bedford in England, then to London, where they remain. The federation's first post-war conference

2387-527: The International Labour Organization (ILO), the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The organization also informs and advises unions about developments in the transport industry in other countries or regions of the world, and organises international solidarity actions when member unions in one country are in conflict with employers or government. The ITF's headquarters

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2464-915: The United Kingdom with the world's largest ship register. Traditional maritime nations, mainly from Europe, responded to this practice with creation of so called " second registers " - open registries, using national flags or flags of semi-sovereign offshore dependencies. That process begun in 1984 with the Isle of Man registry created as a second UK register. Soon after Norway and the Netherlands followed this practice adopting Netherlands Antiles and Norwegian International Ship Register (NIS) respectively. France established in 1989 Kerguelen Islands Register (replaced by International French Register ( Registre International Français - RIF in 2005 ) and Germany (Federal Republic of) created German International Register (GIS) in

2541-554: The United States when shipowners seeking to serve alcohol to passengers during Prohibition registered their ships in Panama. Owners soon began to perceive advantages in terms of avoiding increased regulations and rising labor costs and continued to register their ships in Panama even after Prohibition ended. The use of open registries steadily increased, and in 1968, Liberia grew to surpass

2618-823: The Venezuelan coast after colliding with a container ship. The ITF holds a congress every five years in accordance with the ITF Constitution , Rule IV. The congress has supreme authority within the ITF. The 40th Congress was held in Vancouver, Canada, from 14 to 21 August 2002. The 41st Congress was held in Durban, South Africa in August, 2006. The 42nd Congress was held in Mexico City from 5–12 August 2010. The 43d Congress Archived 2019-10-02 at

2695-674: The Wayback Machine - from 10–16 August 2014 in Sofia, Bulgaria. The 44th Congress was held in Singapore Archived 2019-10-02 at the Wayback Machine from 14–20 October 2018. The ITF set up an Arab world and Iran network to deal with, amongst other matters, what it described as the "cancer" of abandonment of ships . Following the 2013 abandonment of MV Rhosus in Beirut , Lebanon, the unloading and storing for years of its explosive cargo, and

2772-499: The World Bank and regional development banks, have had a "serious negative impact both on the quality of transport services and on the employment and working conditions of transport workers." It also sees the neoliberal economic policies being promoted by regional blocks including the EU , MERCOSUR , ASEAN , NAFTA , and SADC as being generally injurious to transport workers. It believes it

2849-632: The right to strike and unionize. According to the 2020 update of the Index, there has been a significant increase in violations of workers' rights around the world. The founding congress of the ITUC was held from 1 to 3 November 2006 in Vienna, Austria. The first day of the congress saw the formal creation of the ITUC followed by an address by Juan Somavía , the Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Day two included Pascal Lamy ,

2926-476: The "degree of ratification and enforcement of ILO Conventions and Recommendations," and "safety and environmental record". As of August 2024 , the list includes 43 registries. As of 1 January 2024 , Liberia, Panama and the Marshall Islands are the world's three largest registries in terms of deadweight tonnage (DWT). These three nations registered 17,752 ships of 1,000  DWT and above, for

3003-402: The 1950s. A registry which does not have a nationality or residency requirement for ship registration is often described as an open registry . Panama, for example, offers advantages such as easier registration (often online), the ability to employ cheaper foreign labour, and an exemption on income taxes. The modern practice of ships being registered in a foreign country began in the 1920s in

3080-418: The 1982 Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control or Paris MOU. Under port state control , ships in international trade became subject to inspection by the states they visit. In addition to shipboard living and working conditions, these inspections cover items concerning the safety of life at sea and the prevention of pollution by ships. In cases when a port state inspection uncovers problems with

3157-637: The American company SeaLand 's fleet of 63 ships were foreign-flagged, saving the company up to US$ 3.5 million per ship every year. The environmental disaster caused by the 1978 sinking of the MV ; Amoco Cadiz , which flew the Liberian flag, spurred the creation of a new type of maritime enforcement. Resulting from strong political and public outcry over the Amoco Cadiz sinking, fourteen European nations signed

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3234-673: The Cambodia Shipping Corporation (CSC) were found smuggling drugs and cigarettes in Europe, breaking the Iraq oil embargo, and engaging in human trafficking and prostitution in Europe and Asia. In response to these activities, in 2000, Ahmad Yahya of the Cambodian Ministry of Public Works and Transport told industry publication Fairplay "We don't know or care who owns the ships or whether they're doing 'white' or 'black' business ... it

3311-506: The FOC flag states lack the resources or the will to properly monitor and control those vessels. The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) contends that illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU) vessels use flags of convenience to avoid fisheries regulations and controls. Flags of convenience help reduce the operating costs associated with illegal fishing methods, and help illegal operators avoid prosecution and hide beneficial ownership. As

3388-500: The ICFTU, was elected to the same position in the new organisation. Sharan Burrow was elected president. A Governing Council was established, with 70 elected members, and 8 additional seats reserved for youth and women's representatives. A council of Global Unions was also formed on the final day of the congress. It was established jointly with ten global union federations and the Trade Union Advisory Committee to

3465-535: The ITF: International Trade Union Confederation The International Trade Union Confederation ( ITUC ) (French: Confédération syndicale internationale (CSI) ; German: Internationaler Gewerkschaftsbund (IGB) ; Spanish: Confederación Sindical Internacional (CSI) ) is the world's largest trade union federation. The federation was formed on 1 November 2006 out of the merger of

3542-596: The Law of the Sea and often referred to as UNCLOS. In 1986, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development attempted to solidify the genuine link concept in the United Nations Convention on Conditions for Registration of Ships . The Convention for Registration of Ships would require that a flag state be linked to its ships either by having an economic stake in the ownership of its ships or by providing mariners to crew

3619-532: The Liberian government, another 10% went to fund social programs in Liberia, and the remainder returned to Stettinius' corporation. The Liberian registry was created at a time when Panama's registry was becoming less attractive for several reasons including its unpopularity with the U.S. labor movement and European shipping concerns, political unrest in Panama, and increases in its fees and regulations. On 11 March 1949, Greek shipping magnate Stavros Niarchos registered

3696-480: The OECD (TUAC). The second congress of the ITUC was held from 21 to 25 June 2010 in Vancouver, Canada. On 25 June 2010, at the conclusion of the congress, Sharan Burrow (then ITUC President) was elected General Secretary, succeeding Guy Ryder (who had been elected as Deputy Director General of the International Labour Organization ). In anticipation of her election, Burrow had resigned from her position as President of

3773-836: The Paris model, including the " Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control in the Asia-Pacific Region ", typically referred to as the "Tokyo MOU", and organizations for the Black Sea, the Caribbean, the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean, and Latin America. The Tokyo and Paris organizations generate, based on deficiencies and detentions, black-, white-, and grey-lists of flag states. The US Coast Guard , which handles port state control inspections in

3850-560: The Seamen's Act, Panamanian-flagged ships in this early period paid sailors on the Japanese wage scale, which was much lower than that of western merchant powers. In the early phase of World War II the transfer of American-owned ships to the Panama registry was sanctioned by the United States government so that they could be used to deliver materials to Britain without dragging the United States, as

3927-403: The U.S. and U.K. registers as of 1 January 2024 is 13.2 mil. dwt and 11.1 mil. dwt respectively. There are a number of common threads found in criticisms of the flag of convenience system. One is that these flag states have insufficient regulations and that those regulations they do have are poorly enforced. Another is that, in many cases, the flag state cannot identify a shipowner, much less hold

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4004-574: The US, maintains a similar target list for underperforming flag states. As of August 2024 , it could be said that the 6 major FOC registries in terms of tonnage (representing more than half of the world tonnage) are performing pretty well in respect of PSC inspections: tonnage Sources: International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) , Paris MoU , Tokyo MoU , USCG Both Paris and Tokyo MoU-s maintain black lists of low performing flags, but there are FOC and non-FOC registries among them. Panama has

4081-699: The United States to strengthen the United States Merchant Marine and provide safeguards for its mariners. During this period, U.S.-flagged ships became subject to regular inspections undertaken by the American Bureau of Shipping . This was also the time of Robert LaFollette 's Seamen's Act of 1915 , which has been described as the " Magna Carta of American sailors' rights". The Seamen's Act regulated mariners' working hours, their payment, and established baseline requirements for shipboard food. It also reduced penalties for disobedience and abolished

4158-567: The WTO to respect social and labour standards in its agreements. It is particularly concerned about the effect that the WTO's General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) could have on transport workers by breaking down national transport regulations. It considers it important to oppose the inclusion of transport-related services in the GATS. It considers that the major international finance organisations, including

4235-473: The civil war of 1990, Liberia joined with the Republic of the Marshall Islands to develop a new maritime and corporate program. The resulting company, International Registries , was formed as a parent company, and in 1993 was bought out by its management. After taking over the Liberian government, Americo-Liberian warlord Charles Taylor signed a new registry contract with the Liberian International Ship and Corporate Registry , commonly known as LISCR. LISCR

4312-431: The corporation. There is no requirement for reporting the transfer of bearer shares, and not every jurisdiction requires that their serial numbers even be recorded. Two similar techniques to provide anonymity for a ship's beneficial owner are "nominee shareholders" and " nominee directors ". In some jurisdictions that require shareholder identities to be reported, a loophole may exist where the beneficial owner may appoint

4389-503: The documentation and collect registration fees, Liberia's registry is managed by a company in Virginia and Bahamas' from the City of London. A ship's beneficial owner is legally and financially responsible for the ship and its activities. For any of a number of reasons, some justifiable and some suspicious, shipowners who wish to conceal their ownership may use a number of strategies to achieve that goal. In jurisdictions that permit it, actual owners may establish shell corporations to be

4466-426: The effects of globalisation , the increased concentration of ownership of international transport companies, global warming , public service improvement, the privatisation of large formerly state-run transport enterprises and automation and the future of work. It notes that the World Trade Organization (WTO) plays a central role in this process and considers it necessary for unions to exert what pressure they can on

4543-419: The ensuing catastrophic explosion on 4 August 2020, the network coordinator said "The flood of calls to ITF in the Arab region has never stopped. Since we created the network and seafarers [became] aware of us, the numbers of calls are going up and up". In September 2023, Russian authorities designated the Federation as an "undesirable" organisation . In January 2020, the following unions were affiliated to

4620-454: The entire world fleet by deadweight tonnage , maintaining roughly the same proportion for over a decade. The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) is the biggest campaigner against FOC since 1948, and maintains a list of registries it considers to be flags of convenience. In developing the list, the ITF takes into account "ability and willingness of the flag state to enforce international minimum social standards on its vessels,"

4697-487: The first ship under the Liberian flag, World Peace . When Stettinius died in 1949, ownership of the registry passed to the International Bank of Washington , led by General George Olmsted . Within 18 years, Liberia grew to surpass the United Kingdom as the world's largest register. Due to Liberia's 1989 and 1999 civil wars , its registry eventually fell second to Panama's flag of convenience, but maritime funds continued to supply 70% of its total government revenue. After

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4774-518: The flag of the fledgling United States quickly found it offered little protection against attack by Barbary pirates – many responded by seeking to transfer their registry back to Great Britain. The use of false flags was frequently used as a ruse de guerre by the British during the Napoleonic Wars and the United States during the War of 1812 . During the mid-19th century, slave ships flew various flags to avoid being searched by British anti-slavery fleets . The Belen Quezada , in August 1919,

4851-434: The highest-profile oil spills in history (such as the Maltese-flagged MV  Erika , the Bahamian-flagged MV  Prestige , the Marshallese-flagged Deepwater Horizon , and the Liberian-flagged SS  Torrey Canyon , MV  Amoco Cadiz and MV  Sea Empress ), the most common environmental criticism they face regards illegal fishing . These critics of the flag of convenience system argue that many of

4928-402: The investment in and participation of women is not only a moral mandate it is an investment in democracy and a bulwark against fundamentalism and oppression. Organising woman is and must continue to be a priority for the ITUC. The Pan-European Regional Council (PERC), a European trade union organisation within the ITUC was formed 19 March 2007. It consists of 87 national trade union centres and

5005-446: The legal owners of their ships, making it difficult, if not impossible, to track who is the beneficial owner of the ship. The 2004 Report of the UN Secretary General's Consultative Group on Flag State Implementation reported that "It is very easy, and comparatively inexpensive, to establish a complex web of corporate entities to provide very effective cover to the identities of beneficial owners who do not want to be known." According to

5082-475: The middle of a voyage shortly before being seized by Australian authorities for smuggling heroin into that country. That year, thirteen nations began monitoring vessels under the North Korean flag for "illicit cargos like drugs, missiles or nuclear weapon fuel". In the accompanying material of the ILO's Maritime Labour Convention of 2006 , the International Labour Organization estimated that at that time there were approximately 1,200,000 working seafarers across

5159-414: The owner civilly or criminally responsible for a ship's actions. As a result of this lack of flag state control, flags of convenience are criticized on grounds of enabling tax avoidance, providing an environment for conducting criminal activities, supporting terrorism, providing poor working conditions for seafarers, and having an adverse effect on the environment. David Cockroft, former general secretary of

5236-495: The practice of imprisoning sailors for the offense of desertion. Another aspect of the Seamen's Act was enforcement of safety standards, with requirements on lifeboats, the number of qualified able seamen on board, and that officers and seamen be able to speak the same language. These laws put U.S.-flagged vessels at an economic disadvantage against countries lacking such safeguards, and ships started to be re-registered in Panama's open registry from 1919. In addition to sidestepping

5313-428: The same year. Last two registries are still (2024) considered as FOC-s. As of 2024 , more than half of the world's merchant ships in terms of deadweight tonnage are registered in open registries or FOC-s. Open registries have been criticised, mainly by trade union organisations based in developed countries, especially those in the European Union, United States, Japan, Canada, or the United Kingdom. One criticism

5390-470: The ship is involved in a case under admiralty law . A ship's owners may elect to register a ship in a foreign country so as to avoid the regulations of the owners' country, which may, for example, have stricter safety standards. They may also select a jurisdiction to reduce operating costs, avoiding higher taxes in the owners' country and bypassing laws that protect the wages and working conditions of mariners . The term "flag of convenience" has been used since

5467-744: The ship is known as its registry. Registries may be governmental or private agencies. The reasons for choosing an open register are varied and include tax avoidance , the ability to avoid national labor and environmental regulations, and the ability to hire crews from lower-wage countries. National or closed registries typically require a ship be owned and constructed by national interests, and at least partially crewed by its citizens. Conversely, open registries frequently offer on-line registration with few questions asked. The use of flags of convenience lowers registration and maintenance costs, which in turn reduces overall transportation costs. The accumulated advantages can be significant, for example in 1999, 28 of

5544-404: The shipping industry the flexibility to recruit its manpower from alternate sources, with the result that developing and newly industrialized countries now provide the majority of seafarers for the entire global fleet – not just for the ships flying their own country's flag." International law requires that every merchant ship be registered in a country. The country in which a ship is registered

5621-598: The ships. To come into force, the 1986 treaty requires 40 signatories whose combined tonnage exceeds 25% of the world total. As of 2017 , only 14 countries have signed the treaty. Merchant ships have used false flags as a tactic to evade enemy warships since antiquity, and examples can be found from as early as the Roman era through to the Middle Ages . Following the American Revolutionary War , merchantmen flying

5698-443: The world. This document goes on to say that when working aboard ships flagged to states that do not "exercise effective jurisdiction and control" over their ships that "seafarers often have to work under unacceptable conditions, to the detriment of their well-being, health and safety and the safety of the ships on which they work." The International Transport Workers' Federation goes further, stating that flags of convenience "provide

5775-483: Was held in 1946 in Zurich, where a new constitution was adopted. In 1949, it established a section for civil aviation workers, and in 1974 one for workers in tourism. It has campaigned heavily against flags of convenience , and in the late 1990s, the ITF operated a floating museum, the mV Global Mariner , which sailed around the world. The vessel was originally built in England in 1979 as the mV Ruddbank, and sank in 2000 off

5852-472: Was one of the few legal sources of income for Taylor's regime. Liberia's registry is operated from Virginia, United States. To counteract class hopping , in 2009 the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) established a Transfer of Class Agreement (TOCA). As of August 2024 , the open registries of Panama, Liberia, and Marshall Islands accounted for more than 46% of

5929-512: Was the first foreign ship to be re-registered in the Panamanian registry, and was employed in running illegal alcohol between Canada and the United States during Prohibition . The modern practice of registering ships in foreign countries to gain economic advantage originated in the United States in the era of World War I , though the term "flag of convenience" did not come into use until the 1950s. Between 1915 and 1922, several laws were passed in

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