TRANSITING NORTH TO SOUTH – Port Said to Suez Port

Captains of yachts intending to transit the Canal will be informed at the yacht club either by a club official or an official of the Canal Authority, on the correct procedure to follow.

Although time-consuming, taking about 2-3 days, the formalities can be carried out by the captain alone and the service of an agent is not essential. It does, however, make life a lot easier as the agent will handle all of the below.

The captain first has to visit the Small Craft Department in the main building of the Canal Authority in Port Said. He will be instructed as to the various formalities to be carried out and also the payments to be made. These payments include the transiting fee, insurance policy, ports and lights fee (see fees further down the page).

Pre-Transit Procedures:
The following offices must be visited in  Port Said (southbound):

• Suez Canal Small Craft Department: to present ship’s documents and request transit.
• Port Immigration: to complete arrival forms even by those who do not require a visa.
• Insurance company: to issue insurance certificate*.
• Return to the small craft office to present the insurance certificate.
• The day before the transit the Customs and Quarantine offices must be visited to clear the yacht out of the country. The officers may visit the yacht too.
• Port immigration office: to present departure form.
• Red Sea port authority: to issue the port clearance.
• Return with the port clearance to the small craft office who will give it to the pilot before the transit.
• Inspection office: for final inspection before the transit in order to issue a transit permit. 
• All yachts have to be searched by the Egyptian army before transit. The usual timing for army boarding is at 1900 the day before transit.
• On the day of the transit, the small craft office will call the skipper to collect the pilot and take him to the yacht club to commence the transit.
  Pilot boarding time not before 10 am (see notes further down about the transit).

Notes:

• From 1 May, 2022, there is no Suez Canal measurement for yachts up to 300 tons, on the basis that the yacht’s tonnage is recorded in the yacht’s registration certificate. This means that determining the fees for canal transits will no longer depend on the estimated tonnage made by the SCA, but instead on the actual registered tonnage of the yacht. This saves both time and money.
• No Suez canal certificate is issued for small craft, but your Suez canal gross tonnage is registered under the yacht name in the canal authority system, making paperwork for a second transit much simpler.
• * Yacht owners do not have to have prior arranged insurance for the Suez Canal. Your agent will organise transit insurance.

Exiting at Suez Port:

Normally, southbound yachts stop at the Suez Yacht Club before continuing into the Red Sea.

After the transit, once you have dropped off the pilot, you can leave Port Suez any time you wish. Standard fees are charged for stopping here (see below), so it makes no difference how long you stay.

While going south to your next Egyptian port you can stop at any anchorage on route. You cannot go ashore anywhere on route, you cannot stop at any Island except for Gifton Island at Hurghada. If there are military personnel near an anchorage, they will most likely come and check paperwork. Be polite and courteous and all should be okay. They may in extreme circumstances ask you to leave.

In theory, you are supposed to get to your next port of call in Egypt as quickly as possible but passages of up to ten days to Hurghada have not been censured.

TRANSITING SOUTH TO NORTH – Suez Port to Port Said

It is essential that you contact your agent before you arrive at Suez. The agent has to complete clearance formalities with the authorities prior to your arrival. 

Pre-Transit Procedures:

• Submit a copy of the yacht’s registration certificate and crew list to the local agent in advance of your arrival.
• The agent will then obtain all the approvals necessary to allow entrance to the anchorage.
• On arrival at the Suez anchorage, call Suez Port Control and request permission to enter the anchorage, which is at the Suez Yacht Club.
• Port Control will then get in touch with the Agent and arrange for them to meet the yacht at the Suez Yacht Club. The Suez Yacht Club is located on the left-hand side of the Canal, just beyond the Canal Authority buildings.
• All yachts have to be searched by the Egyptian army before transit. The usual timing for army boarding is at 1900 the day before transit.
• On the day of the transit, the small craft office will call the skipper to collect the pilot and take him to the yacht club to commence the transit.
  Pilot boarding time not before 10 am (see notes further down about the transit).

Notes:

• No Suez canal certificate is issued for small craft, but your Suez canal gross tonnage is registered under the yacht name in the canal authority system, making paperwork for a second transit much simpler.
• * Yacht owners do not have to have prior arranged insurance for the Suez Canal. Your agent will organise transit insurance.

Exiting at Port Said:

If you are not stopping anywhere else after the transit, the outward clearance can be obtained while doing the transit formalities. Yachts may then proceed to sea as soon as they have dropped the pilot. However, you will not be allowed to leave the port in Ismailia. The alternative, if you have a visa, and wish to go ashore at Ismailia, is to check out of the country at Port Said.

THE TRANSIT – BOTH WAYS

On the day of the transit, the pilot will arrive in the morning (not before 10 am) to guide the yacht as far as Ismailia in the NW corner of Lake Timsah, where the yacht must spend the night as yachts are not allowed to transit at night. The crew are not allowed to go ashore. Early the following morning, either the same pilot or another one will continue the transit to Suez or Port Said. 

CANAL REGULATIONS

• Yachts must be capable of a consistent speed of 5 knots, which will be checked during the technical inspection. The speed limit in the canal is 9 knots. Yachts normally transit just after the morning convoy.
• It is not permitted to sail in either in the canal or the Bitter Lakes.
• If a yacht breaks down, you can only be towed by a Canal Authority boat (at a high fee!). However, it’s wise to contact your agent first who may be able to sort out a cheaper solution.
• The Canal transit takes two days with a stop-over at Ismailia.

Note: There have been reports of several yachts being run aground, and one severely damaged, due to the incompetence of the Egyptian pilot. It is therefore strongly recommended that at no time should the pilot be allowed to steer the boat, that the latest charts of the Canal are constantly referred to and that if it appears that the pilot is giving wrong instructions, such as advising the person at the helm to leave the main channel to cut a corner, the captain should use his or her common sense before accepting such advice.

BERTHING

The Suez Canal Authority are currently developing all yacht-related services and infrastructure in the three Canal Cities (starting with Ismailia Marina April 2022). Lots of services are planned including maintenance, yacht cleaning, toilets & showers, business center, club house, barber shop, ATM, kids play area, medical service, garbage service, coffee shop & restaurant, Laundry, water & electricity etc. They are also working towards having a digital documentation service for the transiting/berthing yachts. Once Ismailia has been upgraded (approx. April 2023), Suez and Port Said will be developed.

To book a berth in any of the 3 marinas, or make an equiry, contact the Suez Canal Authority at yachtsmarina@suezcanal.gov.eg.

FEES

Suez Canal Transit and Pilotage Fees:

These will be indicated by the Suez Canal officials who board the yacht on arrival.

The fee is approx. US$7 per ton.

Total fee may vary from US$300-700.

From 1 May, 2022, there is no Suez Canal measurement for yachts up to 300 tons, on the basis that the yacht’s tonnage is recorded in the yacht’s registration certificate. This means that determining the fees for canal transits will no longer depend on the estimated tonnage made by the SCA, but instead on the actual registered tonnage of the yacht. This saves both time and money.

For yachts over 300 tons, it is advisable to visit the Suez Canal Measurement office and check the calculation to ensure your agent is not over-charging. Once you are measured you go on record, so do not get measured again for subsequent transits.

The canal fee used to be a return fee (long term limited offer): so as long as you returned within 6 months your return transit was free. However, in October 2022 the Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority agreed to cancel the free transit dues on the return trip for sailing yachts.

Suez Canal Agent Fees:

Note: On 1 March, 2021, a decision was made by the Red Sea Ports Authority to increase the Sailing permit (Port Clearance) fees for yachts transiting the Suez Canal northbound from $60 to $930. In May 2021 this fee was reduced for northbound yachts to $540 and in August 2021 further reduced to $447. In 2022 the fee stands at $338 for northbound transits and at $260 for southbound transits. There is currently talk that this will be increased soon (once again).

Sample agent fees 2022 from Prince of the Red Sea for a Northbound Transit:

1. Suez Canal Transit Dues: Determined after measuring the volume of the yacht by SCA, but generally approx US$ 7 per ton.
2. Port Clearance: US$ 338, includes:
   a. Sailing permit: US$ 128
   b. National security fees: US$ 105 (2000 LE) per yacht.
   c. Immigration Dept. fees: US$ 105 (2000 LE) per yacht.
3. Port Dues: US$ 60, includes:
   – Red Sea Port Authority Garbage fees: US$ 20
   – Port Police fees: US$ 16
   – Insurance Certificate: US$ 7
   – Health Clearance: US$ 10
   – Car services: US$ 7
4. Health Clearance: US$20
5. Agency Fees: US$ 80

Sample agent fees 2022 from Prince of the Red Sea for a Southbound Transit:

1. Port Clearance: US$ 260
2. Canal transit dues: Approx. US$ 7 per ton of Suez Canal Tonnage
3. Port Dues: US$ 100
4. Port Disbursement: US$ 120
5. Health: US$20
6. Agency Fees: US$ 120

Suez Canal Agents:

Take great care when appointing an agent for transiting the Suez Canal. Speak with other cruisers for recommendations and read reports on Noonsite. Some shipping agents may offer low prices at the outset, however, once they have your papers they may quote an increase in fees due to “changing of the canal dues” or some “tariff” they had overlooked. The yacht’s owner is obliged to pay.

NOTES

• No Entry visa required before arrival or during transit.
• Canal Transit in 2 days (80 miles) – with overnight in the middle of the canal (Ismailia Yacht Club).
• Using 2 Canal Pilots during transit.
• All agents’ and Suez Canal fees must be paid in US dollars, therefore some cash should be carried. It is advisable that, where possible, the services expected and the fees to be paid should be fully agreed beforehand.
• If you arrive in Egypt and Suez is your first port of entry, the below fees are all you will have to pay for clearance and transit. Substantially cheaper than clearing in elsewhere with the new rates introduced in October 2022. See Fees for details and confirm with your agent prior to arrival.For the time being, new clearance fees are not being applied to Suez Canal ports.
• Agency Prince of the Red Sea, do offer Noonsite subscribers a 21% discount on their agency fees using code “PORS 1234”.
• For Egypt clearance details and fees see Formalities.

WARNING NOTES

• Do not rely on the pilot knowing anything about piloting a yacht. Keep in 8-10m of water close to the buoys if the flow is against you and 15-18m if the flow is with you. You can gain well in excess of 1 knot doing so.
• No yacht can transit the canal if a warship is passing through.
• If you have problems in the Canal, such as engine trouble, it is best to contact your agent first who may be able to find a solution. The tow spot agents in Port Said for small craft are Prince and Felix. If the Canal Authority are contacted they will send a Canal tug and the charges are extremely high.
• Be prepared for the “baksheesh” culture of the canal and carry plenty of small change US$

PERMITTED SHELTER ANCHORAGES IN RED SEA EGYPT

For details of anchorages where yachts are pemitted to stop for shelter on the approaches to the south of Suez see the Noonsite Restrictions section.

USEFUL LINKS:

Suez Canal Authority (SCA)

Port Said Website

Suez Port Website

Comparative Agents Fees