Tonnage Convention 1969

The International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969 established the first universally applicable system for measuring ship tonnage, replacing the divergent national systems that preceded it. It was adopted on 23 June 1969 and entered into force on 18 July 1982, and it applies to ships engaged on international voyages.

The full article will cover the gross and net tonnage formulae, the definitions of enclosed and excluded spaces, the International Tonnage Certificate (1969), and the long transitional regime under which existing ships could retain their previously assigned tonnages. It will also cover the relationship between the Convention figures and the separate tonnage systems operated by the Panama and Suez canal authorities for the assessment of tolls.