Section 7. MARITIME LIENS

Article 36.- Maritime liens
1. Maritime lien is the right of a person who lodges a maritime claim specified in Article 37 of this Law to priority in claiming compensation from the owner, charterer or operator of a seagoing vessel which has given rise to the maritime claim.
Maritime claim is an act whereby a party requests the other party to perform the obligation arising in relation to maritime shipping.
2. Maritime claims that give rise to maritime liens specified in Article 37 of this Code take priority over maritime claims secured by the mortgage of seagoing vessels and other security transactions.
3. Maritime liens shall be exercised through competent courts in the form of decisions to arrest seagoing vessels which are related to maritime claims that have given rise to maritime liens.
4. Persons who lodge maritime claims shall have maritime liens over seagoing vessels to secure the maritime claims specified in Article 37 of this Code, even though the seagoing vessels concerned have been mortgaged or their owners have conducted other security transactions to secure other obligations under contracts.
5. Maritime liens on seagoing vessels shall not be affected by a change of owners, charterers or operators, whether or not the purchasers of the seagoing vessels know that the vessels have been related to maritime claims that give rise to maritime liens.

Article 37.-Maritime claims giving rise to maritime liens
1. Maritime claims for wages, repatriation costs, social insurance contributions, and other amounts due to shipmasters, officers and other members of shipcrews.
2. Maritime claims for indemnity for loss of life, personal injuries, other health damage directly related to seagoing vessel’s operation;
3. Maritime claims for tonnage dues, maritime safety assurance dues, pilotage, wharfage, and other seaport dues and charges;
4. Maritime claims for salvage remuneration;
5. Maritime claims based on tort arising out of property loss and damage directly caused by the operation of seagoing vessels.

Article 38.- Priority order of settlement of maritime claims giving rise to maritime liens
1. Maritime claims giving rise to maritime liens shall be prioritized for settlement in the order of claims listed in Article 37 of this Code; where a maritime claim for remuneration for the salvage of a seagoing vessel arises after maritime claims giving rise to other maritime liens, such claim shall take priority over other maritime claims.
2. Maritime claims that give rise to maritime liens in the same clause of Article 37 of this Code shall rank pari passu as between themselves; where the sum of money is insufficient to cover the value of each maritime claim, it shall be divided in proportion to the value of each maritime claim.
3. Maritime claims arising from one event shall be deemed to have arisen at the same time.
4. Maritime claims that give rise to maritime liens on a seagoing vessel on the last voyage shall take priority over those on previous voyages.
5. Maritime claims arising from one labor contract relating to many voyages shall be settled at the same time with those relating to the last voyage.
6. In case of maritime claims for salvage remuneration specified in Clause 4, Article 37 of this Code, the maritime claim arising later shall be settled before other maritime claims.

Article 39.- Statute of limitations of maritime liens
The statute of limitations of a maritime lien is one year, counting from the date of arising of the maritime lien.
The statute of limitations of a maritime lien defined in Clause 1 of this Article is counted as follows:
From the date of termination of the salvage operation, in case of settlement of salvage remuneration;
From the date of arising of loss, in case of settlement of loss and damage caused by the operation of the seagoing vessel;
From the date payment is due, in case of settlement of other maritime claims.
A maritime lien shall terminate as from the time the owner, charterer or operator of the vessel has fully paid debts arising from the related maritime claims; the maritime lien remains effective if the payment money is still kept by the master or the person who is authorized to pay on behalf of the owner, charterer or operator of the vessel the debts related to the maritime claim concerned.In cases where a court cannot exercise the right to arrest the seagoing vessel within the Vietnamese internal waters or territorial sea in order to protect the interests of the maritime claimant who permanently resides or has his/her head office in Vietnam, the statute of limitations specified in Clause 1 of this Article shall terminate thirty days after the vessel arrives at the first Vietnamese port but shall not exceed two years, counting from the date of arising of the maritime lien.