The Government has proposed to amend seven subsidiary regulations under the Merchant Shipping (Safety) Ordinance to bring them in line with international conventions.
The amendments are to harmonise the survey and certification of cargo ships.
'The harmonisation will not only reduce the overall time a ship is out of service for the conduct of a survey, but also reduce the ship owner's administrative cost,' a Government spokesman said.
This would make the administration and classification societies more effective in controlling ships' safety, he said.
Under the proposed amendments, certificates will be valid for a maximum of five years for cargo ship safety construction, cargo ship safety equipment, cargo ship safety radio and international load line.
At present, the certificates are valid for one to five years.