The Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 was superseded by the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025, an Act of the Indian Parliament. The 2025 Act strengthens safety and protections for the environment, enhances seafarer welfare provisions, modernizes India's maritime legal framework, harmonizes domestic law with International Maritime Organization (IMO) conventions, and streamlines regulatory processes to make conducting business in the shipping industry easier.
The Merchant Shipping Act of 1958 was out of date and incompatible with IMO regulations and modern international shipping practices. Modern safety standards (like SOLAS), pollution controls (like MARPOL), ballast water management, and enhanced procedures for marine casualty examination and seafarer protections are all incorporated into the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025, which simplifies and unifies merchant shipping law into 16 sections and 325 clauses.
In today's blog, however, we are going to discuss these two Acts in detail and the difference between these two.
Key Areas to Focus of the New Merchant Shipping Act
Ease of Doing Business
- By shifting the emphasis from strict regulation to facilitation, the Act creates an enabling policy climate that increases investor confidence. To streamline administrative procedures, there are provisions for computerized registration, remote registration for ships flying the Indian flag, and interim registration for ships headed for recycling. Additionally, the act makes it easier to make current maritime jurisdictions more "universal and enabling" by lowering the burden of compliance, creating standards that are more favourable to investors, and directly aligning with international commitments.
- All vessels must be registered under the Act, with the exception of those that are only used to navigate the Indian shores and are not mechanically powered or weigh less than 15 tons. The realm of registration has also been extended by adding mobile offshore drilling equipment, submersibles, and non-displacement watercraft to the category of vessels.
Safety, Environmental Protection, and Security
The Act strengthens standards for security, emergency readiness, pollution management, and efficient response to marine catastrophes by incorporating rules from international treaties (MARPOL, Salvage Convention, Nairobi Wreck Removal Convention, and Bunker Oil Convention). In order to improve marine security and safeguard India's coastline, statutory authorities permit the detention of stateless vessels in Indian seas.
Maritime Employment and Competitiveness
Statutory acknowledgment of welfare standards and training will enhance employment opportunities and professional standards for Indian sailors, propelling expansion in this industry. India is already one of the world's top producers of skilled seafarers. India's standing as a supplier of top-notch maritime expertise will be strengthened by better hiring practices and skill alignment with international norms.
Expanded Vessel Ownership Criteria
Ownership regulations have been greatly loosened. Indian residents, businesses, Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), Overseas residents of India (OCIs), and registered cooperative societies are able to acquire all or a portion of Indian-flagged vessels. In addition to providing freedom for vessels registered by OCIs, the government will set thresholds for partial ownership, including joint ventures. In order to promote leasing and increase accessibility to ship ownership, the Act will also permit the registration of bareboat charter-cum-demise vessels.
Streamlined Legal Framework/ Seafarer Welfare –
- The 1958 Act's extensive 561 sections are reduced to 325 succinct phrases divided into 16 sections under the new statute.
- Compliant with the standards of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), which guarantees improved living and working conditions, health care, pensions, and licensed recruitment agencies; this lessens the burden of compliance and provides clearer regulation.
- With regard to shipping authorities, the Act maintains the government's authority to designate the Director-General of Shipping, who will subsequently be known as the Director-General of Marine Administration. In order to provide ongoing direction and supervision in the marine industry, the Act also upholds the creation of advisory boards, such as the National Shipping Board and the National Welfare Board for Seafarers. Additionally, it concentrates on the management of maritime training facilities, maintains the certification requirements for specific officers, and gives the Director-General of Marine Administration the authority to approve training facilities, control maritime education, and establish course standards. Maintaining high standards of competence and professionalism in the industry depends on this.
Comparative Overview
Table 1 – Old Act vs. New: Key Provision Changes
|
Feature/Provision |
Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 |
Merchant Shipping Act, 2025 |
|
Number of Sections/Clauses |
561 Sections |
325 Clauses (16 Parts) |
|
Vessel Ownership |
Only Indian citizens & companies |
Indians, NRIs, OCIs, Co-ops, JVs |
|
Registration Scope |
Ships >15 GT, limited categories |
All vessels incl. offshore units, submersibles, non-displacement crafts |
|
International Conventions |
Limited provisions |
Full alignment with MARPOL, MLC 2006, Nairobi, Salvage, Bunker Oil |
|
Bareboat Charter Registration |
Not explicitly recognised |
Recognised & facilitated |
|
Electronic Registration |
Not available |
Enabled (remote & e-registration) |
|
Seafarer Welfare |
Fragmented norms |
Fully MLC 2006-compliant |
Key Insights
Despite this, India's fleet capacity has increased 35 times since gaining independence. By enabling the aforementioned goals, the new Act would guarantee that the legislative provisions align with the sector's scale and aspirations for Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amritkaal Vision 2047.
Establishing India as a Global Maritime Center
India might increase its share of global maritime trade by updating legislation and lowering administrative obstacles. Increasing shipping tonnage under the Indian flag is the Act's long-standing goal of lowering foreign exchange outflows for shipping and building a robust local fleet.
Increasing Security, Safety, and Resilience
Indian maritime authorities' investigative, emergency response, and protecting the environment capacities are improved by the expanded scope for marine casualty inquiry and implementation of IMO norms.
Giving the federal government the authority to hold stateless vessels improves security along India's lengthy coastline, which is important for both strategic and economic reasons.
Increasing Skills and Employment
Statutory acknowledgment of welfare standards and training will enhance employment opportunities and professional standards for Indian sailors, propelling expansion in this industry, as India is currently one of the world's biggest suppliers of skilled seafarers.
India's standing as a supplier of top-notch maritime expertise will be strengthened by better hiring practices and skill alignment with international norms.
Meeting International Obligations
India's complete participation and credibility in the international maritime regulatory environment are made possible by the Act, which guarantees the total adoption of duties under major IMO treaties.
Encouraging Innovation and Sustainable Development
The industry is empowered with forward-looking provisions by integrated environmental protection standards, ship recycling, and technological innovation.
DG Shipping's wider role
According to the law, the government must designate someone to serve as the Director-General of Maritime Administration in order to carry out the responsibilities assigned to him by this Act. This position gives DGMA the ability to handle marine administration in a comprehensive manner.
Conclusion
The long-standing requirements of India's maritime environment are boldly and comprehensively addressed by the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025. It is not merely a legal reform; rather, it is a strategic reorientation from antiquated frameworks to international best practices, from disjointed provisions to coherent law, and from oppressive regulation to facilitation and enablement.
The new law will enable the ports, shipping, and waterways industries to play a major role in national development, protect the environment, and open up previously unheard-of economic potential for the country's international trade.