Provisional registration
Provisional registration across every register we track for yachts.
What is meant by provisional registration?
A short-term entry on the register that lets a vessel operate lawfully while the full documentation is completed.
Why does provisional registration matter when choosing a register?
It often decides how quickly a vessel can move or a sale can close, which matters whenever a delivery or a transaction is time bound.
Every register for yachts, side by side
Where a register has not published an answer, none is shown, and where the only figure available is an estimate, it is labeled as one.
| Register | Answer |
|---|---|
| British Virgin IslandsVirgin Islands Shipping Registry | Provisional certificates are available: a three-month certificate issued abroad, or a US$250.00 bridging certificate from the Registrar.Merchant Shipping Act, 2001 (No. 13 of 2001) - Virgin Islands, published by the Virgin Islands Shipping and Maritime Authority on bvimaritime.vgbvimaritime.vg · s. 27(3)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Cayman IslandsCayman Islands Shipping Registry | Interim registration runs 21 days and term registration up to 90 days, neither of them extendable.Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands, Interim Registrationwww.cishipping.comRetrieved 2026-08-11Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| GibraltarGibraltar Yacht Registry | Provisional registration lasts ninety days, extendable to 180 days in total.Gibraltar Merchant Shipping (Pleasure Yachts) Regulations, 1997 (LN. 1997/153), consolidated text at the current version 18/04/2024, gibraltarlaws.gov.gi (Government of Gibraltar)www.gibraltarlaws.gov.gi · reg. 22(1)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Isle of ManIsle of Man Ship Registry | No provisional registration is published: the 1991 Act allows regulations to create one, but no Manx regulations do, and no period or fee is set.Merchant Shipping Registration Act 1991 (AT 15 of 1991), Isle of Man, as published by the Isle of Man Ship Registrywww.iomshipregistry.com · s. 24Retrieved 2026-08-29Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| JerseyJersey Ship Registry | Provisional registration lasts up to 3 months for a ship outside Jersey, costs £155 and gives full rights of passage.Shipping (Registration) (Jersey) Regulations 2004, official consolidated version, point in time 10 Jun 2025 to Current, jerseylaw.je (Jersey Legal Information Board)www.jerseylaw.je · reg. 8(4)Retrieved 2026-08-12Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| MadeiraMadeira International Shipping Register (MAR) | Provisional registration is an exception for a yacht: it runs 90 days on a core set of four documents, extendable once by up to 30 days on request or 60 days by the technical commission.Decreto-Lei n.º 192/2003, de 22 de agosto, and the annexed regulation applicable to recreational craft registered or to be registered in the Madeira International Shipping Register, Diário da República, I Série-A, n.º 193, 22 August 2003, pp. 5420 to 5424files.diariodarepublica.pt · Anexo, art. 4.º(2)Retrieved 2026-09-01Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| MaltaMalta Ship Register | Provisional registration runs six months and may be renewed for up to six months more.Merchant Shipping Act (Cap. 234, Laws of Malta), consolidated text at point in time 04/04/2025, legislation.mt (Office of the State Advocate)legislation.mt · art. 12Retrieved 2026-08-29Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Marshall IslandsMarshall Islands Maritime Registry | A Provisional Certificate of Registry runs 12 months; a newbuilding may instead hold a Construction Certificate.MI-100, Vessel Registration and Instrument Recording, May/2024, Republic of the Marshall Islands Maritime Administratorwww.register-iri.com · §10.1Retrieved 2026-08-12Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| PanamaPanama Ship Registry | The provisional navigation patent and radio licence run six months, extendable by a further six.Ley 57 de 6 de agosto de 2008, General de Marina Mercante (Gaceta Oficial No. 26100 de 7 de agosto de 2008), official bilingual Spanish/English edition published by the Autoridad Marítima de Panamáwww.amp.gob.pa · Art. 23Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| St Vincent and the GrenadinesSt Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration | Provisional certificates run six months, extendable by a further six, and are issued abroad.Shipping Act 2004 (No. 11 of 2004), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as published by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · s. 28(1)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| United KingdomUK Ship Register | Provisional registration lasts three months, costs £175, and requires the ship to be outside the British Islands.The Merchant Shipping (Registration of Ships) Regulations 1993 (S.I. 1993/3138), latest available revised text - legislation.gov.uk (The National Archives)www.legislation.gov.uk · reg. 67Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
Where to go next
This item is one of many that bear on the choice. Set it beside the rest before you choose a register, and tell us if a register you need is not covered yet.