Vessels: registrations, charters and incidents · France / Switzerland
Ship mortgage: deed, registration and maritime liens
A ship-mortgage file connects the executed security, the grantor’s powers and the vessel’s register. French provisions govern written mortgages and registration priority, alongside maritime privileges. Swiss rules add their own registration conditions and recognised maritime liens. Compare existing entries, releases and competing claims. This record does not establish priority merely from a lender’s contract date or translate an ordinary business-pledge rule into maritime law.
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- Jurisdiction
- Vessel and register
- Deed and authority
- Entry under review
- Competing claims
- Official texts cited
- Sources checked on
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What writing and authority establish a valid mortgage act?
France: L5114-6-2 requires a written conventional mortgage from the owner or specially authorised agent. Switzerland: retain the proposed deed, title and authority evidence under the applicable registration rules; do not assume French form requirements exhaust Swiss conditions.
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Can the identified vessel or vessel under construction carry the proposed mortgage?
France: identify the vessel or vessel under construction and use the mortgage provisions recodified from 1 May 2026. Switzerland: identify the registered Swiss vessel and applicable ship-register framework; the worksheet does not establish that a proposed asset qualifies for the security.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
What writing and authority establish a valid mortgage act?
France: L5114-6-2 requires a written conventional mortgage from the owner or specially authorised agent. Switzerland: retain the proposed deed, title and authority evidence under the applicable registration rules; do not assume French form requirements exhaust Swiss conditions.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
Ship-security and competing-claims comparison
Synthetic example: fictional records. Ship-security and competing-claims comparison.
Synthetic example: fictional records · Ship-security and competing-claims comparison
- Jurisdiction
- France
- Vessel and register
- Vessel A, extract R1
- Deed and authority
- Mortgage H1, authority M1
- Entry under review
- Date and time to establish
- Competing claims
- Schedule C1, liens to classify
This record does not establish priority merely from a lender’s contract date or translate an ordinary business-pledge rule into maritime law.
Which registry and publicity formalities apply to this vessel?
France: connect the deed with the relevant inscription request and completed publicity evidence. Switzerland: read LNM 37 with the complementary ship-register rules and required OSNM attestation; a financing contract alone does not prove registration in either country.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
Which official provision helps explain this situation?
A ship-mortgage file connects the executed security, the grantor’s powers and the vessel’s register. French provisions govern written mortgages and registration priority, alongside maritime privileges. Swiss rules add their own registration conditions and recognised maritime liens. Compare existing entries, releases and competing claims. This record does not establish priority merely from a lender’s contract date or translate an ordinary business-pledge rule into maritime law.
What entry details establish the timing of registration?
France: retain the inscription’s exact date, hour and minute for its ranking analysis. Switzerland: retain the actual entry and register particulars under Swiss rules, without importing the French minute-based provision as a complete Swiss priority test.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
Which maritime privileges may rank ahead of the registered mortgage?
France: statutory maritime privileges can precede registered mortgages under L5114-13. Switzerland: LNM 38 recognises the relevant privileged maritime claims ahead of registered mortgages; an empty earlier-mortgage entry does not establish the absence of every prior-ranking claim.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
Preparation reference: Ship-security and competing-claims comparison
| Preparation question | Point to verify |
|---|---|
| Can the identified vessel or vessel under construction carry the proposed mortgage? | France: identify the vessel or vessel under construction and use the mortgage provisions recodified from 1 May 2026. Switzerland: identify the registered Swiss vessel and applicable ship-register framework; the worksheet does not establish that a proposed asset qualifies for the security. |
| What writing and authority establish a valid mortgage act? | France: L5114-6-2 requires a written conventional mortgage from the owner or specially authorised agent. Switzerland: retain the proposed deed, title and authority evidence under the applicable registration rules; do not assume French form requirements exhaust Swiss conditions. |
| Which registry and publicity formalities apply to this vessel? | France: connect the deed with the relevant inscription request and completed publicity evidence. Switzerland: read LNM 37 with the complementary ship-register rules and required OSNM attestation; a financing contract alone does not prove registration in either country. |
| What entry details establish the timing of registration? | France: retain the inscription’s exact date, hour and minute for its ranking analysis. Switzerland: retain the actual entry and register particulars under Swiss rules, without importing the French minute-based provision as a complete Swiss priority test. |
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
How are earlier entries, releases and foreign security documents checked?
France: compare earlier extracts, release instruments and confirmed cancellations against the secured debt. Switzerland: also identify any foreign security record and its treatment; a repayment statement or foreign release does not automatically establish the domestic register’s final position.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
What happens to the security record when ownership or registration changes?
France: document ownership, flag or registration changes and obtain analysis of their effect on the security. Switzerland: do the same with the relevant register decisions; neither a sale alone nor an old extract resolves every consequence of the change.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
Which unresolved priority questions must remain distinct from a generic business pledge?
France: separate maritime mortgage inscription and privileges from an ordinary business pledge. Switzerland: retain the same distinction and unresolved registered-right issues. The preparation record supports an enquiry; it neither creates security nor certifies enforceable priority.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
What other questions arise in this file?
What writing and authority establish a valid mortgage act?
France: L5114-6-2 requires a written conventional mortgage from the owner or specially authorised agent. Switzerland: retain the proposed deed, title and authority evidence under the applicable registration rules; do not assume French form requirements exhaust Swiss conditions.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
What entry details establish the timing of registration?
France: retain the inscription’s exact date, hour and minute for its ranking analysis. Switzerland: retain the actual entry and register particulars under Swiss rules, without importing the French minute-based provision as a complete Swiss priority test.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
How are earlier entries, releases and foreign security documents checked?
France: compare earlier extracts, release instruments and confirmed cancellations against the secured debt. Switzerland: also identify any foreign security record and its treatment; a repayment statement or foreign release does not automatically establish the domestic register’s final position.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
Which unresolved priority questions must remain distinct from a generic business pledge?
France: separate maritime mortgage inscription and privileges from an ordinary business pledge. Switzerland: retain the same distinction and unresolved registered-right issues. The preparation record supports an enquiry; it neither creates security nor certifies enforceable priority.
Code des transports, livre IerNavigation maritime : texte fédéral suisse
Which official references should you consult?
- Code des transports, livre Ierwww.legifrance.gouv.fr
- Navigation maritime : texte fédéral suissewww.fedlex.admin.ch
Texts cited last checked: 3 November 2026