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Directive on Reporting Formalities for ships arriving at or departing fron EU ports

From 19th May 2012, the new EU Directive 2010/65/EU on reporting formalities, applicable to ships arriving at, or departing from, ports in the European Union, superseded Directive 2002/6/EC. The purpose is to simplify and harmonise the administrative procedures in maritime transport by standardising the electronic transmission of information and by rationalising reporting formalities. It targets the national maritime authorities of the Member States who will be obliged to accept all FAL forms for the fulfilment of reporting. They also have to accept electronic reports and their transmission via a single window no later than 1st June 2015. Accordingly, paper formats will no longer be accepted after 1st June 2015.

Ships which are presently exempt from reporting formalities continue to be exempted. The reporting should be done at least 24 hours in advance if the voyage time is more than 24 hours. If less than 24 hours, the ship's master, or the person authorised by the ship operator, provides the reporting formalities at the time the ship leaves the previous port.

The timeframe is as follows :
April 2012: Member States adopt and publish their respective law;
June 2013: Commission reports on the functioning of the directive;
June 2015: Member States to accept electronic reports and single window transmission;
June 2015: Member States cease to accept paper FAL forms. At that stage, all information shall be reported only once, through a single window that must link SafeSeaNet, e-Customs and other electronic systems and shall be available to Member States and various competent authorities.

In fact, the Directive harmonises a number of different EU legal acts that require reporting from ships, for example, for dangerous goods, waste and residues, harmonised ship pre-arrival security information forms and the international FAL forms. A third category ("any relevant national legislation") includes information to be provided in accordance with national legislation. Such information must also be transmitted electronically.