The International Registry of Mobile Assets is an international agency dedicated to the recordation of ownership and lien records for aircraft. Unlike most types of vehicle registration agencies, the International Registry allows for separate, distinct recordations for the aircraft and separate recordings for the power plant.
The purpose of this registry is to establish the priority of interest on each part registered. This is accomplished by electronically recording the manufacturer’s serial number of the part(s) in question which then defines the hierarchy of financial interest of that part. The Cape Town Convention and the Aircraft Protocol put into place on November 16, 2001 at Cape Town, are the by-laws under which the International Registry operates.
This role is immensely important when one considers that these assets are mobile, having no fixed location. The International Registry acts as the laws and principles of aircraft financial asset management, superceding each state and/or country, providing one set of procedures or guidelines regardless of the aircrafts’ origin. This serves to protect the creditors’ financial interests regardless of where the object is. Priority is established on a first to file basis.
One must be an Approved Administrator User in order to register a part with the International Registry. There is an application to be filled out and potentially other documents required to complete the approval process. Each application and supplied documents are reviewed by a Registry Official. When approval is granted, that user is able to register their assets. Just like a credit card, once you are an Approved Administrator User, other additional users may be approved.
