Maritime Liens in Vietnam: Ranking of Claims and Ship Sales

Updated: 14 October 2026 · IVLF Advisors

A vessel is often the only asset a creditor can reach, and it is also the asset that everyone else wants to reach first. Maritime liens Vietnam practitioners deal with can silently outrank a bank mortgage, a supplier invoice or a freshly obtained court judgment, and they can follow the ship into the hands of a new owner. For a lender, a bunker supplier or a charterer holding an arbitration award, the question is rarely whether the shipowner owes money. The question is where your claim stands in the queue when the vessel is sold.

This article explains the ranking logic in commercial terms: which claims tend to sit at the top, what a court-ordered sale does to existing encumbrances, how a buyer obtains clean title, and what a creditor should do before the ship moves. We separate international and English-law practice from Vietnamese law, and we flag every point that must be confirmed against the current text of the Maritime Code or with the competent authority.

Table of Contents

• Why maritime liens Vietnam creditors cannot ignore
• Liens, maritime claims and mortgages: three different tools
• Priority of claims: how ranking works in principle
• Judicial sale of ships and the clean-title question
• Ship auction and enforcement of judgments vessel strategy
• Risk map for creditors of shipowner
• FAQ
• Conclusion and next step

Why maritime liens Vietnam creditors cannot ignore

Land can be registered, fenced and valued. A ship moves between jurisdictions, changes flag, and accumulates liabilities in every port she calls at. That mobility is the reason maritime law gives certain creditors a special right against the vessel itself, rather than only against the owner as a person.

The commercial consequence is simple. A secured lender who relies only on a registered mortgage may discover that crew wages, salvage or collision damage claims rank ahead of it. An unsecured trade creditor may discover that nothing is left after the senior claims are paid. An investor buying a ship at auction may discover, too late, that the price paid did not clear every burden.

Key takeaway: on maritime liens Vietnam lenders and creditors face, the ranking of claims is priced risk. It should be diligenced before credit is granted, not argued after default.

Maritime liens Vietnam: what the Code does and does not tell you

For maritime liens Vietnam courts look first to the Vietnam Maritime Code 2015 (Law No. 95/2015/QH13, effective 1 July 2017, with a consolidated text published as 101/VBHN-VPQH on 26 August 2025) is the primary source. It deals with maritime claims, security over ships, arrest and enforcement in dedicated chapters. We deliberately do not quote article numbers or the exact ranking list here, because they must be read from the current consolidated text.

A draft Vietnam Maritime and Waterway Code is also under review by the Ministry of Construction and the National Assembly. As of 14 October 2026 it is a draft only, it is not law, and its content may change. Creditors should monitor it, but must not structure transactions on its assumed wording.

Liens, maritime claims and mortgages: three different tools

Maritime liens Vietnam lawyers discuss are only one of several rights over a ship, and many disputes start because parties use one word for three different legal tools. Separating them is the first step of any creditor strategy.

• Maritime claim: a category of debt or damage that can justify arresting a ship as security for the claim.
• Maritime lien: a privileged right that attaches to the ship itself, generally for a closed list of claim types, and in international practice survives a change of ownership.
• Mortgage: a consensual security granted by the owner and registered, ranking according to the registration and the applicable priority rules.

Under English-law and international convention practice, the closed list of privileged claims is usually short: crew and master wages, loss of life and personal injury connected with ship operation, salvage, port and pilotage charges, and damage caused by the ship’s operation. Ordinary supply claims, repair bills and unpaid hire generally do not enjoy that status unless local law says otherwise.

How the Vietnamese Maritime Code labels, lists and ranks these rights, including the exact Vietnamese term and the relationship to the notion of cầm giữ hàng hải, must be checked against the current text. Do not assume that an English-law lien list transfers automatically to a Vietnamese court.

Comparison: the tools side by side

Tool	Source of right	Follows the ship after sale?	Typical holder	Risk to junior creditor
Maritime claim (arrest basis)	Law; arrest order	No; it supports arrest only	Supplier, charterer, cargo claimant	Medium
Maritime lien	Law, closed list	Yes in international practice; confirm locally	Crew, salvor, port, collision claimant	High
Registered mortgage	Contract plus registration	Depends on the sale regime	Bank, lender	High
Unsecured judgment	Court or arbitral award	No	General creditor	Fatal if assets are thin

Priority of claims: how ranking works in principle

Priority of claims in ship enforcement is usually decided by three questions. What is the character of each claim? When was it registered or created? And what does the applicable law say about ranking between privileged claims, mortgages and ordinary debts?

In the international model, privileged maritime claims rank first, registered mortgages rank next, and other claims, including judgments, follow. Within the privileged group, the order is set by a list, and later-arising claims often rank ahead of earlier ones, because the services that created them preserved the ship for everyone else. This is English-law and convention practice, not a statement of Vietnamese law.

Questions a creditor should ask before relying on rank

• Which law governs the ranking: the law of the forum, the flag or the contract?
• Is there a closed list, and does my claim fall within it on the facts?
• What is the position of port, pilotage and crew claims accrued in the last voyages?
• Are there time limits after which a privileged claim lapses? Check these.
• Does the mortgage registration match the ship’s current registered particulars?

The last point deserves attention in Vietnam. Decree 171/2016/NĐ-CP on registration, deregistration, purchase, sale and building of seagoing vessels was amended by Decree 247/2025/NĐ-CP, effective 30 October 2025, including the clarification of unlimited-term registration. A lender whose security was perfected under older registration data should confirm that the registry record still reflects its interest after any change registration.

Hypothetical scenario

Assume a Vietnamese-flagged bulk carrier is owned by a single-ship company. A bank holds a registered mortgage. A bunker supplier is unpaid for two stems. The crew has three months of wages outstanding. A cargo claimant holds an arbitral award. All figures and parties are invented for illustration.

If the ship is sold under court order, the likely analysis is as follows. Crew wages are in the privileged class in most systems and would be paid first. The bank’s mortgage ranks next, subject to the local list. The bunker supplier and the award holder rank behind, and may recover little. The supplier’s best path would have been a prompt arrest or a negotiated payment plan secured by a guarantee, rather than waiting for a sale that others control.

Judicial sale of ships and the clean-title question

Maritime liens Vietnam buyers inherit or shed depend on the sale process. A buyer pays for one thing above all: a ship free of claims. The legal theory behind a judicial sale of ships is that the court sells the vessel in rem and the proceeds replace the ship as the fund against which claims are asserted. When the process is properly conducted, existing liens and mortgages are transferred from the vessel to the fund, and the buyer takes the ship free of them.

That clean-title effect is a principle recognised in international practice and in many national systems, and buyers price it in. Whether a Vietnamese sale delivers the same effect, which notices must be given to creditors, and how the sale is recognised abroad are practical questions that must be confirmed against the current Maritime Code, civil enforcement rules and the registry.

What a buyer should require

• A certified copy of the sale order and evidence that it is final or enforceable.
• Proof that notice was given to registered mortgagees and known claimants.
• A registry extract showing the ship’s status before and after deregistration or transfer.
• A deletion or discharge confirmation for each mortgage.
• A certificate of class and statutory compliance, because defects can follow the ship.

Foreign recognition is a separate risk. A buyer who intends to trade the ship internationally should ask whether courts in the ports where she will call will treat the Vietnamese sale as passing clean title. Many do for sales that follow due process and notice, but the position differs by jurisdiction.

Practical point: price the legal risk of a ship auction in the bid. A discount for uncertain title is cheaper than a post-closing arrest in a foreign port.

Ship auction and enforcement of judgments vessel strategy

For a creditor, the sale is the end of the process. The decisions that determine recovery happen months earlier. Enforcement of judgments vessel cases usually reward the creditor who acts first with complete evidence, not the creditor with the largest claim.

Step 1: build the evidence file

Collect the contract, invoices, delivery receipts, correspondence, statements of account and any acknowledgement of debt. For a maritime claim connected to the ship, preserve the documents that tie the debt to the vessel: bunker delivery notes, port logs, repair orders and agent statements. Evidence that the debt arose from the ship’s operation is what converts an ordinary claim into an arrestable one.

Step 2: track the ship and the owner

Monitor position, flag, class, registry record and ownership changes. Single-ship companies often sell or re-flag when enforcement approaches. Ask whether any sale or transfer has been registered, and whether the registry shows any new mortgage or encumbrance.

Step 3: choose between arrest, judgment and negotiation

Arrest creates leverage and security. A judgment creates enforcement rights. Neither is a ranking by itself. If the ship is mortgaged to a bank, a junior creditor may use arrest to obtain a negotiated payment, because the bank also wants a sale to proceed in an orderly way. If the debt is under a charterparty with an arbitration clause, consider whether arbitration, a court application for security, or both are required. The New York Convention 1958 framework is relevant for the cross-border recognition of awards, but Vietnam’s current position and procedure must be verified. Useful background is available at the New York Convention information portal.

Step 4: prepare for the distribution stage

File the claim formally and on time in any distribution process. Prepare for challenges on amount, rank and interest. Keep the translation and notarisation status of foreign documents under review, because defects are cheap to cure early and expensive to cure at the hearing.

Move before the ship sails, before the owner changes, and before senior claims grow. Related reading on the interaction between arrest and security is available in our guide on ship mortgage and maritime asset finance in Vietnam.

Risk map for creditors of shipowner

Creditors of shipowner entities often underestimate how quickly the picture changes. The same vessel can carry a mortgage, a crew claim, a collision claim and a bunker debt within a single quarter. The table below summarises the main exposure points and practical mitigation. Ratings are indicative and depend on facts and governing law.

Issue	Legal position	Commercial impact	Risk	Mitigation
Unknown senior privileged claims	Rank ahead of mortgage in international model; Vietnamese list to be checked	Recovery shrinks after sale	High	Owner warranties, periodic crew and port certificates, covenant to disclose claims
Registry mismatch	Mortgage must appear on current record	Dispute over rank and validity	High	Registry search at signing and before each drawdown
Sale to affiliate before enforcement	Transfer may be challengeable	Asset disappears	Fatal	Negative pledge, change-of-control event of default, prompt arrest
Foreign non-recognition of sale	Depends on the port state	Buyer cannot trade	Medium	Notice to all known claimants, legal opinion on recognition
Insurance proceeds not assigned	Policy proceeds follow assignment terms	Loss of the second source of recovery	Medium	Loss payee clause, notice of assignment, hull insurer confirmation
Late claim filing	Procedural time limits apply	Claim excluded	High	Diarise deadlines as check items; instruct counsel early

Lender-side covenants that work

• A covenant that the owner will not permit any lien or encumbrance other than permitted liens in the ordinary course, and will discharge them within a short period.
• A cash-sweep or retention account sized to cover crew wages and port dues for the next voyage.
• Reporting duties: monthly statements of unpaid crew, supplier and port claims.
• Insurance assignment and notice of assignment to the hull and P&I insurers.
• Enforcement rights exercisable on a payment default.

Charterer and cargo-side points

Cargo owners and charterers can also be affected. If a ship is arrested or sold, voyage performance stops. Check whether the contract allows termination and refund, and whether cargo can be discharged or transferred without waiting for the sale. Keep the bills of lading, mate’s receipts and delivery evidence secure, because they are the foundation of any cargo claim against the ship or its insurers.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a maritime lien outrank a registered mortgage?

In international and English-law practice, privileged maritime claims generally rank ahead of mortgages. The Vietnamese ranking must be confirmed against the current Maritime Code text before you rely on it.

Does a buyer at a judicial sale get clean title?

That is the intended effect in many systems, when notice and procedure are followed. A buyer should confirm the Vietnamese rules and foreign recognition before bidding.

Is arrest the same as priority?

No. Arrest provides leverage and security, but ranking is decided separately at distribution. An arresting creditor may still rank behind privileged claims and mortgages.

Does the draft Maritime and Waterway Code change the position now?

No. It is a draft as of 14 October 2026 and is not law. Its content may change, so monitor it but rely on the current Maritime Code.

What should an unsecured creditor do first?

Assemble the evidence, check the registry and encumbrances, and decide quickly between arrest, negotiation and proceedings, before the ship moves or is sold.

Conclusion and next step

Ranking, not the size of the claim, usually decides who is paid when a ship is sold. Maritime liens Vietnam creditors should treat as a due-diligence item, not a courtroom surprise, can reorder a recovery plan overnight. Lenders should combine registry checks, covenants and insurance assignment. Unsecured creditors should act early and document the link between the debt and the ship. Buyers should demand proof of notice and discharge, and price the residual risk.

Practical next action: within the next week, prepare a one-page encumbrance map for each vessel you finance, supply or intend to buy. List every known mortgage, lien-type claim, crew or port arrear and pending proceeding, and mark each as verified or to be verified. For regulator information and current texts, consult the Vietnam Maritime and Waterway Administration and the official gazette, and read our related note on vessel finance legal safeguards.

This article provides general information as of 14 October 2026 and is not legal advice for a specific matter. Laws, draft laws and practice change; please obtain advice on your own facts before acting.