1.Union inland navigation certificates shall be issued by the competent authorities of the Member States in accordance with this Directive. Member States shall, upon issuance of a Union inland navigation certificate, verify that the craft in question has not already been issued a valid certificate referred to in Article 7.
2.The Union inland navigation certificate shall be drawn up in accordance with the model provided for in Annex II.
3.Each Member State shall draw up a list indicating the competent authorities for issuing the Union inland navigation certificates and shall notify the Commission thereof, including any changes to the list. The Commission shall maintain an up-to-date list of competent authorities on an appropriate website.
4.The Union inland navigation certificate shall be issued to craft following a technical inspection, carried out before the craft is put into service and intended to check whether the craft complies with the technical requirements referred to in Annexes II and V.
5.Compliance of a craft with the additional requirements referred to in Article 23(1) and (2) shall, where appropriate, be checked during the technical inspections provided for in paragraph 4 of this Article and in Article 29, or during a technical inspection carried out at the request of the owner of the craft or its representative.
6.The procedures for making a request for an inspection and for establishing the place and time of that inspection shall fall within the powers of the competent authorities issuing the Union inland navigation certificate. The competent authority shall determine which documents are to be submitted. The procedure shall take place in such a way as to ensure that the inspection may be conducted within a reasonable period following the lodging of the request.
7.The competent authorities of Member States shall, at the request of the owner of the craft or its representative, issue a Union inland navigation certificate to a craft that is not subject to this Directive, if that craft fulfils the requirements set out in this Directive.