Meaning & use
flag of convenience
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
The national flag of a country chosen by a shipowner for registration, usually because its rules are easy or cheap, not because the owner is from that country.
Grammar: Countable: a flag of convenience, two flags of convenience.
Patterns
- under a flag of convenience
- register a ship under a flag of convenience
- sail under a flag of convenience
The tanker was registered under a flag of convenience, so it followed the safety rules of a country far from its route.
Many fishing boats use a flag of convenience to avoid stricter controls at home.
The report said ships sailing under flags of convenience were involved in more accidents.
nouncountable or uncountable
A country whose flag is used in this way, or the practice of registering ships this way.
Grammar: Can be countable when referring to a country ('a flag of convenience') or uncountable when referring to the practice ('flag of convenience is common').
Patterns
- use a flag of convenience
- the flag of convenience system
- a flag of convenience country
Panama is often described as a flag of convenience because so many foreign-owned ships are registered there.
Critics say the flag of convenience system makes it hard to enforce labor laws at sea.
The company moved its fleet to a flag of convenience after the new taxes were introduced.
Word forms
| plural | flags of convenience |
|---|
Common combinations
- under a flag of convenience
- The cargo ship was sailing under a flag of convenience.
- register under a flag of convenience
- They registered the vessel under a flag of convenience to reduce costs.
- flag of convenience country
- Some flag of convenience countries have very light inspection rules.
- flag of convenience system
- Reformers want to change the flag of convenience system.
Synonyms and how they differ
- open registry
- A more technical term for the same shipping practice; it is common in legal and industry writing.
- offshore registration
- This can refer to registering a ship abroad, but it is broader and can also apply to companies.
Word family
- flag noun
- The cloth symbol of a country; in this phrase it stands for the country of registration.
- convenience noun
- Ease or suitability; here it means the rules are convenient for the owner.
Commonly confused: flag of convenience or flag state?
flag of convenience vs flag state
The flag state is the country whose flag a ship flies; a flag of convenience is the practice of choosing that country mainly for easy rules.
Practice
The ship was registered in Panama, a country the owner had never visited, mainly to avoid stricter rules. This is an example of:
Choose one answer.
A flag of convenience is chosen for easy or cheap registration rules, not because of a real connection to the country. 'A flag state' is simply the country itself, and 'flagship' means the best or most important ship or product.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “flag of convenience”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.