105Fish carriers must be registered

1. No person shall use any vessel for the transportation of fish, aquatic life, or seaweed taken for sale within New Zealand fisheries waters unless—

2. the vessel is registered in the Fishing Vessel Register as either a fish carrier or a fishing vessel, and—
   1. that person is named in that register as an operator or notified user of that vessel; and
   2. that person complies with all conditions of registration (if any) and the conditions of any consent given by the chief executive under subsection (4); or
3. the fish, aquatic life, or seaweed was lawfully landed in New Zealand and then lawfully purchased or acquired by a licensed fish receiver prior to transportation; or
4. the fish, aquatic life, or seaweed was produced as part of a lawful fish farming operation; or
5. the fish, aquatic life, or seaweed was lawfully taken and landed in New Zealand, and the person is transporting that fish, aquatic life, or seaweed as the agent of the commercial fisher who took the fish, aquatic life, or seaweed.

6. Every application to register a fish carrier (other than a vessel that is registered as a fishing vessel under this Act) shall—

7. be made by the operator of that fish carrier; and
8. be made to the chief executive in the approved form and be accompanied by the prescribed fee (if any); and
9. in the case of an operator who is an overseas person, specify the name and address of a person (other than an overseas person) to be the authorised agent of that person for the purpose of this Act; and
10. be supported by such evidence as may be specified in the form.

11. If the chief executive, having received an application made in accordance with this section, is satisfied that the vessel is eligible to be registered, he or she shall, as soon as practicable,—

12. register the fish carrier for a specified period not exceeding 5 years; and
13. issue to the operator a certificate of registration in respect of that vessel.

14. No vessel shall be registered under this section unless the chief executive has consented, either generally or particularly, to registration of the vessel or vessels operated by that person; and any consent under this subsection may be granted subject to such conditions as the chief executive thinks fit to impose.

15. In considering whether to consent to the registration of a vessel under subsection (4), the chief executive shall have regard to—

16. the previous offending history (if any), in relation to fishing or transportation (whether within the national fisheries jurisdiction of New Zealand or another country, or on the high seas), of the vessel's owner, operator, foreign charterparty, notified user, master, or crew; and
17. the nature of the charter or other agreement with the operator (if any); and
18. such other matters as the chief executive considers relevant.

19. Every person commits an offence and is liable to the penalty set out in section 252(5) who contravenes subsection (1).

20. In proceedings for an offence relating to a contravention of subsection (1),—

21. the prosecutor need not assert in the charging document that the exceptions set out in paragraphs (b) to (d) do not apply; and
22. the burden of proving that any of the exceptions set out in paragraphs (b) to (d) applies lies on the defendant.