Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Commerce and General Administration of Customs: Promoting the Implementation of Pilot Cruise Routes at Hainan Cruise Port

Water Transportation Letter [2023] No. 36

Hainan Provincial Department of Transportation, Department of Commerce, Haikou Customs, Hainan Maritime Safety Administration, China Classification Society:

In order to implement the "Guiding Opinions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Supporting Hainan's Comprehensive Deepening of Reform and Opening Up" and promote the implementation of the Hainan Cruise Port Sea Tour Route Pilot, the following matters are hereby notified:

I. Further clarify relevant policies

Chinese-funded flag of convenience cruise transport operators use their owned or bare-leased Chinese-funded flag of convenience cruise ships to engage in the Hainan Cruise Port Sea Tour Route Pilot, and the age of the ship shall not exceed 30 years.

Chinese-funded flag of convenience cruise ships should handle the import customs declaration procedures for cruise ships in accordance with the actual trade method.

After the imported cruise ships no longer engage in Hainan Cruise Port Sea Tours, they must handle the relevant export procedures in accordance with the law.

II. Cruise ship procedures

Chinese-funded flag of convenience cruise transport operators apply to the Hainan Provincial Department of Transportation to carry out the Hainan Cruise Port Sea Tour Route Pilot Business and obtain the approval document issued by the Hainan Provincial Department of Transportation.

Chinese-funded flag of convenience cruise operators shall apply to China Classification Society for the import inspection of old ships with the approval documents issued by the Hainan Provincial Department of Transportation.

Chinese-funded flag of convenience cruise operators shall apply to the Ministry of Commerce for import licenses through their legal entities established in China with the above-mentioned approval documents, old ship inspection reports and other relevant materials.

After obtaining the import license issued by the Ministry of Commerce, apply to Haikou Customs for the import declaration procedures for pilot cruise cargo.

III. Relevant requirements

Hainan Provincial Department of Transportation, Hainan Provincial Department of Commerce, Haikou Customs, Hainan Maritime Safety Administration and other departments should strengthen coordination and linkage, increase support, and work together to create a good development environment. Hainan Provincial Department of Transportation, Hainan Provincial Department of Commerce, Hainan Maritime Safety Administration should strengthen supervision of pilot cruise operators and cruise operations in accordance with their duties to ensure that pilot cruises do not engage in other business activities other than Hainan cruise port sea tours.

Cruise shipping companies must implement the main responsibility for epidemic prevention and control, control the number of tickets sold for guest rooms that do not have natural ventilation conditions or independent ventilation conditions, do a good job in ship ventilation and disinfection, guide passengers to wear masks scientifically in public places, gather less, strengthen personal protection, do a good job in self-health monitoring, and implement various epidemic prevention measures to prevent large-scale epidemics. Cruise shipping companies should strengthen ship safety management and emergency drills, conduct safety self-inspections before the cruise ships set sail, especially cruise ships that have been suspended for a long time should conduct comprehensive risk and hidden danger inspections to ensure the seaworthiness of the ships and the competence of the crew, and effectively ensure the safety of the ships' navigation. The Hainan Provincial Department of Transportation should implement the relevant requirements for the implementation of "Class B and Class B Management" for new coronavirus infections, adhere to the bottom line thinking, and strengthen safety supervision. Before the maiden voyage of the cruise ship, the Hainan Maritime Safety Administration organized a joint safety inspection, and major defects found must be corrected before the voyage, and the safety supervision of cruise ships must be strengthened.

Ministry of Transport Ministry of Commerce General Administration of Customs

February 6, 2023