Commission Approves Simplification Of Aid Scheme For French Shipowners

by Ulrika Lomas, for LawAndTax-News.com, Brussels

10 June 2008

The European Commission last Wednesday accepted an amendment to a French aid scheme for maritime transport relating to the social security contributions payable by shipowners for the seamen they employ.

The aid scheme was originally approved by the Commission in February 2001.

The amendment approved last week affects the way in which the aid is granted.

Under the original scheme, shipowners with vessels flying the French flag had to pay social security contributions for the seamen employed by them and then apply for reimbursement.

Shipowners will now be directly exempt from those social security payments, as allowed by existing Community rules on aid for maritime transport.

However, an element of doubt was introduced by two recent judgments of the Court of Justice, under which Member States are allowed to reserve the post of ship’s master in the merchant navy for their own nationals only if the powers conferred by public law on ship’s masters, as the State’s representative on board, constitute a significant part of their activities.

France had hitherto reserved such posts for French nationals.

That doubt was finally removed on 7th April 2008, when France adopted a law opening up the posts of ship’s master and chief mate in the merchant navy to all nationals of European Union or European Economic Area countries.

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