Tanzania confirms new operator for shipping register

Open for business

TANZANIA: The Government of the United Republic of Tanzania has formally informed the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) that operational management of the Tanzania Zanzibar International Register of Shipping (TZIRS) has been entrusted to a newly designated entity, drawing a clean line under a turbulent period for the East African flag.

According to the High Commission, the new entity, Tanzania Zanzibar International Register of Shipping Ltd, operates under the authority and mandate of the Government of Zanzibar within the framework of the Maritime Transport Act, 2006, and in line with applicable national legislation and international obligations.

The communication emphasises that there is no legal, operational or institutional continuity between the new operator and the previously designated organisation.

The reset comes after a difficult few months for the Zanzibar register. In August 2025, the Zanzibar Maritime Authority (ZMA) cancelled the agency of Global Maritime Consultants Group (GMCG), a maritime services firm with offices in Cyprus and the United Arab Emirates that had been authorised to process registrations and issue ship and seafarer certificates on behalf of the register.

The cancellation followed a US Department of the Treasury action in July 2025, when the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) included GMCG Ltd and GMCG Shipping LLC in a sweeping sanctions package targeting an Iranian shipping network.

OFAC alleged the group had incorporated and paid fees for front companies used by the network to move Iranian and Russian oil through the global tanker fleet, including a Marshall Islands shell company.

In August 2025 the ZMA declared all certificates and documents issued or signed under GMCG’s facilitation null and void from that date and advised affected owners and masters to seek alternative flags or classes immediately.

Suspension and review

Shortly thereafter, the administration issued a Circular suspending all new ship registrations because of the unsatisfactory status of the Tanzania flag as reported by the United States Coast Guard, the Paris MoU and the Tokyo MoU. The administration said the suspension would allow it to undertake a critical review of existing vessels and lift the flag from its high-risk and blacklisted standing.

That position was reinforced by another notification in September 2025, which confirmed the suspension was temporary and tied it to a wider internal process intended to improve technical and administrative support for shipowners and operators.

Reopening for business

By late November the administration was ready to resume business. A November circular announced that new registrations of Tanzania Zanzibar vessels engaged in international voyages would resume on 1 December 2025.

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