The George Town Head Office of the Shipping Registry, a Division of the Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands (MACI), will be closed Friday, 15 August 2008, to facilitate a staff retreat.

Staff of the various business units will be checking their emails intermittently throughout the day, the Shipping Registry said.

The original Cayman Islands Shipping Registry (CISR) maritime administration structure, which is the main forerunner to MACI, was first set up in 1903 when George Town was established as a British Port of Registry.

The CISR obtained British Registry Category 1 Status on July 25, 1991. The Category 1 Group of British Registries includes the UK, Bermuda, Cayman, Gibraltar and the Isle of Man. All of these can register vessels of any size and type provided that they meet international standards.

The CISR is now a division of MACI.

The Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands is a statutory corporation formed as a separate legal entity under the Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands Law (2005) which came into effect on July 1, 2005.