Approval for one-stop shop in the shipping industry

The introduction of a one-stop shop framework for ship-owning businesses and their shareholders to deal with all problems now handled by the registrar of companies, in addition to everything relating to the maritime law, was overwhelmingly adopted by Parliament on Thursday.

According to the House transport committee's report, the "Law on the Limited Liability Shipping Company (LLSC) Law of 2022" will establish a new class of corporate entity called a "Limited Liability Shipping Company," which will be established as a limited liability company with its only purpose being the ownership and operation of Cypriot ships.

In addition, it establishes the institution of the Registrar of LLSCs as the responsible authority for these concerns, and it will control things connected to LLSCs from their establishment until their liquidation.

The ultimate goal is to establish a one-stop-shop structure for ship-owning corporations and their shareholders inside the deputy ministry of shipping so that this state ministry may handle all issues that presently come within the purview of the Registrar of Companies in addition to maritime law.

In light of the Maritime Cyprus 2022 conference, which will take place in Limassol from October 9 to 11, the committee's chairman, Depa MP Marinos Moushiouttas, emphasized the significance of this bill for Cyprus.

Akel's Costas Costa, however, asserted that these restrictions ought to have been enacted years ago and mentioned that nations like Greece and Malta had already accomplished this.

For the first time in Cyprus's history, according to Disy Mp Fotini Tsiridou, "we are making the possibility of registering a shipping company in a legal form of limited liability with the sole purpose of owning and operating Cypriot ships a reality."

At a news conference on Thursday, Vassilis Demetriades, the deputy minister for shipping, said that Maritime Cyprus will welcome 900 delegates from 35 countries.

The European Commissioner for Transport will also attend the event for the first time, according to Demetriades, who said that this would be the 17th Maritime Cyprus conference and the first one following the epidemic.

The conference will cover the 3 Cs, or Crisis, Challenges, and Competitiveness, and how international shipping will adapt to them.

The opening event of Maritime Cyprus will be a reception where the Cypriot shipping prize will be given out in the attendance of President Nicos Anastasiades.

The conference will cover topics like the readiness of the shipping regulatory framework to handle crises, challenges, and competitiveness, as well as the role of ship owners in a sustainable, safe, and resilient shipping industry, zero emissions and motivations for green investments, digital transformation, and the role of young people and women in the industry, between Monday, October 10, and Wednesday, October 12.

A maritime services exhibition with 35 exhibitors from Cyprus and abroad will take place during the conference, and on October 13 there will be a Cyprus Forum on shipping technologies with the theme "Embracing Innovation."

Demetriades mentioned a chance to highlight the benefits of Cypriot shipping, such as its favorable and stable tax structure, the high caliber services it provides, its expertise, and its dominant position in the global shipping market, as well as to promote the Sea Change 2030 strategy, which was adopted in 2021.

According to Thomas Kazakos, general manager of the Cyprus Maritime Chamber, the event's large number of attendees is evidence of how successful it has been throughout the years and that Cyprus has a reliable, multifaceted shipping infrastructure in place.

By fLEXI tEAM