This Act is enacted for purposes of protecting rights and interests, maintaining physical and mental health, reinforcing cultivation and training of seafarers, harmonizing the employer-employee relationship, and enhancing the development of the shipping industry. It also aims at reinforcing the training and management of yachtmasters and power-driven small ship masters, in order to promote the development of yacht activities.

Terms used in this Act shall have the meanings defined below:
1.“Ship” means a ship, which navigates on the surfaces of waters or in waters.
2.“Yacht” means a ship intended exclusively for entertainment, not for transporting passengers or goods, nor fishing, and the ship is mainly driven or ancillary driven by mechanical means.
3.“Power-driven small ship” means a power-driven ship installed with mechanical devices for navigation, with tonnage under twenty (20) gross tonnages.
4.“Employer” means the registered owner of a ship or any person or party who has the right to employ seafarers.
5.“Seafarer” means the master and seamen of a ship.
6.“Master” means the person who is employed by the employer to take charge of all matters of a ship.
7.“Seaman” means the person who is employed by the employer to provide services on a ship under direction of the master of the ship.
8. Officer: refers to deck officer, engineer officer, telecommunications personnel holding certificates of competency issued by competent authorities, and other seafarers who were endorsed by competent authorities.
9. Rating: refers to the seafarers except the officers, and other seafarers who were endorsed by competent authorities.
10. Cadet: refers to personnel on board practicing the duties of an officer.
11. Trainee: refers to personnel on board practicing the duties of a rating.
12.“Wage” means the remuneration paid for services earned by seafarers during normal working time.
13.“Allowance” means, in addition to the wage, the payments of navigation allowances, fixed overtime charges, and other various types of regular payments.
14. Wages and allowances: including wages and allowances, in which the wages shall be more than 50% of the total amount of the wages plus allowances.
15. Special bonuses: including the remuneration paid for special works, non-fixed overtime charges, annual bonuses and the bonus given from the profit in business operation earned by the employer.
16.“Average Wage” means the amount computed by dividing the total wage amount of the latest three months by three. If a seafarer’s working time is less than three months, the average wage shall be the amount computed by dividing the total wage amount of the working period by actual total working days, then multiplying it by thirty.
17.“Average Wage and Allowance” means the amount computed by dividing the total wage plus allowances of the latest three months by three. If a seafarer’s working time is less than three months, the average wage and allowance shall be the amount computed by dividing the total wage plus allowances of the working period by actual total working days, then multiplying it by thirty.
18.“Yacht master” means the person who skippers a yacht.
19.“Power-driven small ship master” means the person who skippers a power-driven small ship.
20.“Assistant” means a person assisting the yacht master or power-driven small ship master in handling relevant matters.

This Act shall not apply to seafarers serving on the following ships provided that those involving navigation safety and dealing of maritime casualties:
1. Military vessels and boats.
2. Vessels and boats of the Coast Guard Authority
3. Fishing ships.
This Act shall not apply to the seafarers serving on ship exclusively for the governmental services, except for the matters of each clause in the preceding Paragraph in respect of their qualifications, practice, cultivation and training, and dealing of navigation safety and maritime casualties.

The competent authority specified in this Act means the Ministry of Transportation & Communications (the MOTC) and all matters governed by the Act shall be regulated by the shipping administration authority.