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1. It shall be prohibited, as of 24 July 2023, to provide access to ports and locks in the territory of the Union, by any vessel performing ship-to-ship transfers, at any point of the voyage to a Member State’s ports or locks, if the competent authority has reasonable cause to suspect that the vessel is in breach of the prohibitions set out in Article 3m(1) and (2) and Article 3n(1) and (4).

2. A competent authority shall not grant access if a vessel does not notify the competent authority at least 48 hours in advance about a ship-to-ship transfer occurring within the Exclusive Economic Zone of a Member State or within 12 nautical miles from the baseline of that Member State’s coast.

3. Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply in the case of a vessel in need of assistance seeking a place of refuge, of an emergency port call for reasons of maritime safety, or for saving life at sea.

4. By way of derogation from paragraphs 1 and 2, the competent authorities may authorise a vessel to access a port or lock in the territory of the Union, under such conditions as they deem appropriate, after having determined that such access is necessary for humanitarian purposes.

5. Upon refusal of a port access call in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2, the competent authorities concerned shall immediately inform the other competent authorities of the Member States. The Member State concerned shall inform the other Member States and the Commission without delay.

6. For the purposes of paragraphs 1 and 2, the competent authorities shall use, in addition to any national system and information, the integrated maritime information available in the Union Maritime Information and Exchange System (SafeSeaNet) established in accordance with Directive 2002/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council ().