Light dues
Encyclopedia
Light dues are the charges levied on ships for the maintenance of lighthouse
s and other aids to navigation.
and paid in to the General Lighthouse Fund (GLF), which is under the stewardship of the UK's Department for Transport
and is used to finance the lighthouse services provided by the three General Lighthouse Authorities
that cover all of the British Isles:
The main principles of the light dues system are:
Increasing automation of aids to navigation in the British Isles has seen the rate of Light Dues fall in real terms over recent years. The first increase in Light Dues for twenty years occurred in 2009; the current administration announced in 2010 that there would be no further increases for at least the next three years.
The current administration has also reached agreement with the Irish government that will see aids to navigation off the coast of the Republic of Ireland wholly funded from domestic sources there by 2015-16.
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
s and other aids to navigation.
British Isles
Light dues are levied on commercial vessels calling at ports in the British IslesBritish Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
and paid in to the General Lighthouse Fund (GLF), which is under the stewardship of the UK's Department for Transport
Department for Transport
In the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
and is used to finance the lighthouse services provided by the three General Lighthouse Authorities
General Lighthouse Authority
A General Lighthouse Authority is a dedicated Government Agency of a Country or Nation tasked with and responsible for the provision and maintenance of lighthouses, lightvessels, navigational aids and any other equipment or facilities which ensure the safety of mariners and sailors navigating the...
that cover all of the British Isles:
- Trinity HouseTrinity HouseThe Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond is the official General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales and other British territorial waters...
for England, Wales, Gibraltar and the Channel Islands - Northern Lighthouse BoardNorthern Lighthouse BoardThe Northern Lighthouse Board is the General Lighthouse Authority for Scotland and the Isle of Man. It is a non-departmental public body responsible for marine navigation aids around coastal areas.-History:...
for Scotland and the Isle of Man - Commissioners of Irish LightsCommissioners of Irish LightsThe Commissioners of Irish Lights is the body that serves as the lighthouse authority for Ireland plus its adjacent seas and islands...
for the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland
The main principles of the light dues system are:
- The UK's Department for TransportDepartment for TransportIn the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
sets the level of light dues, which is reviewed annually, taking advice from the General Lighthouse Authorities and representatives of the shipping industry. - In most cases, the rate charged is based on the net registered tonnage of the vessel; the current charge is 41 pence per net registered ton.
- There is a cap on the charge which limits the cost incurred by vessels regularly docking in the UK (such as cross-ChannelEnglish ChannelThe English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
passenger ferries); currently the maximum charge is £16,400 per voyage, and each vessel is charged for a maximum of nine voyages per annum. - Tugs and fishing vessels make an annual payment based on the registered length of the vessel.
Increasing automation of aids to navigation in the British Isles has seen the rate of Light Dues fall in real terms over recent years. The first increase in Light Dues for twenty years occurred in 2009; the current administration announced in 2010 that there would be no further increases for at least the next three years.
The current administration has also reached agreement with the Irish government that will see aids to navigation off the coast of the Republic of Ireland wholly funded from domestic sources there by 2015-16.