WRU Player Registration and Transfer Regulations
Details of Player Registraion and Transfer Regulations for Season 2007-2008
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WRU Player Registration and Transfer Regulations
1. Player Registration:
a) No player may represent a Club in any Fixture unless he is one of the registered playing members of that Club (‘Registered Player’), is on loan to that Club, is on dual registration with that Club or has been granted a permit to play for that Club. For the purpose of these Regulations “Fixture” shall mean any match forming part of a Competition, or a friendly match, sanctioned by the WRU.
b) A Registered Player is one who has signed the Union Registration Form appropriate to his status and who has been duly registered with the Union in the Union’s Register in accordance with Regulation 3.
c) Subject to current criteria issued by Work Permits (UK) a Club may register 2 overseas players at any one time who will be eligible to play in the National League and/ or Konica Minolta Cup Competition – see competition rules. However, a work permit application for a Professional Rugby Player has to be supported by the Union in which the player proposes to play. The WRU will not support a work permit application for Professional Rugby Players other than those who wish to register with a Regional Team or a Premier Division Club. The numbers of overseas players which may be registered by a Regional Member is governed by the Participation Agreements between the WRU and the Regional Members.
Any Premier Division Clubs registering more than 2 non Welsh qualified players will forfeit £15,000 from their WRU Distribution monies for every additional non Welsh qualified registered player in the Squad.
Only a player who is currently registered with a Union shall be able to participate in competitions organised, recognised or sanctioned by that Union (IRB Regulation 4.5.3)
2. Types of Player Registration: There are two types of player registration, each of which has a separate Union Registration Form:
i) Regional Contract Player: Any player who is engaged on a player contract with a Regional Team and / or Regional Academy
ii) Player: Any player aged *18 years or over.
NB. * On attaining the age of 18 years, a completed Player Registration form (Appendix 1) must be lodged with the Operations Administrator at the Welsh Rugby Union even if the player was previously registered as a Youth player with the Club, otherwise the player will be ineligible to play for the Club’s Senior Team in any competition sanctioned by the WRU.
The Union recognises that Clubs may wish to place players on a playing Contract. However, any disputes between a player and his Club or between Clubs will not be arbitrated upon by the Union. Accordingly, the Player Registration form (Appendix 1) is the single type of registration to be used by Clubs for which there is a Union Registration Form.
3. Player Registration Forms:
a) In order to register a Player the following documents must be sent to the Union:
i) The prescribed Registration Form duly signed on behalf of the Club (see appendix 1)
ii) An International Clearance application form if the player is transferring from another Union
b) The Union shall, if satisfied that the Registration Form (and any Transfer Form required under Regulation 5) has been completed strictly in accordance with these Regulations, record the Player as being duly registered with the Club in the Union’s Register.
c) No Player may participate in a Fixture unless his Club has first registered the Player with the Union. The standing down period between the receipt of a registration form in the Union Offices and the player’s eligibility to play is as follows:
i) Two (2) days where a player has not been registered with another Club or, where the player is transferring from another Club, the registration / transfer form has been countersigned on behalf of his previous Club. For avoidance of doubt, the deadline to allow a player to play in a Saturday fixture is 12 noon on the Thursday prior to the fixture; for a Wednesday fixture the deadline is 12 noon on the Monday prior to a fixture.
ii) Seven (7) days where the player is transferring from another Club, the registration / transfer form has not been countersigned on behalf of his previous Club and that Club has been given the opportunity to countersign the form.
d) A Club submitting a Registration Form for a Player who is already registered with another Club shall be duly notified of the Player’s prior registration by the Union.
4. Transfer Deadline: A Player will be ineligible to play for a Club in any National League or Konica Minolta Cup Fixture if he becomes registered after *31st January in any season, unless such player is:
a) A player who is registered with the Youth team of that Club and is subsequently registered as a Senior player with that Club.
b) A Player who is subject to a permanent residential relocation from another area where extensive travel (in excess of 100 miles round trip) precludes the player continuing to play for his former Club. (applies to Divisions 1 – 6 only). Before such a player may play in WRU Competitions the player’s registration must be sanctioned by the Union’s Regulatory Committee.
c) A Player not previously registered with any other rugby Club. Before such a player may play in WRU Competitions the player’s registration must be sanctioned by the Union’s Regulatory Committee.
*NB. Player Registration forms must be lodged with the Operations Section of the Welsh Rugby Union Ltd by midnight on the 31st January or by first post on the first business day after the 31st January if it is a weekend day. Otherwise, the Registration will be invalid and the player will not be eligible to play in National League and / or Konica Minolta Cup matches for the Club for the remainder of the season.
5. Termination of Registration, Deregistration and Transfer of a Player: Any Transfer of a Player must be effected by completing the appropriate Registration / Transfer Form (see appendix 1) which must be signed by the Player and an authorised signatory of both Clubs. If the transferring Club fails or refuses to sign the Transfer Form, the Transfer will nevertheless be effective 7 days after receipt of the registration form by the Union, provided that the Club to which the Player is transferring has notified the Union in writing of the Transfer as well as the Transferring Club by verifiable method e.g. fax/email/registered or recorded delivery.
If a player, subject to a dual registration agreement, transfers his primary registration to a Regional Team or a Club other than in the Premier Division or First Division Club then the player’s dual registration will cease immediately. If a player, subject to a dual registration agreement, transfers his primary registration to a Club in the Premier Division or First Division then that dual registration agreement with the Secondary Club may be retained providing the Club to which the player is transferring is in agreement and notifies the Union accordingly.
All dual registration agreements cease at the end of a Season.
If a player is deregistered by a Club then the player’s registration will revert to the Union. The Union will be able to grant permission for that player to play on permit for any Club in any Division.
PLAYER LOAN SCHEME (see appendix 2 section A)
6. A Club with which a player is registered may loan that player to another Club on the agreement of the Clubs concerned and the player: The Loan Scheme will operate as follows:
i) When the loan has been registered in writing with the Union, (Appendix 2) the player will be eligible to play in the National League and the Konica Minolta Cup (see VIII below) Competition for the Club which has taken him on loan, provided that registration is completed 2 days before the match in which he is first required by that Club.
ii) A player may be loaned for a minimum period of one month and a maximum period of up to the end of the current playing season. In exceptional circumstances, the Chairman and Deputy Chairman, after consultation with other Members of the Regulatory Committee, may reduce the minimum period of loan to less than one month, or reduce the loan period, when the loaning Club is short of players.
iii) Whilst on loan, the player may not play for any other Club, even his “parent” Club.
iv) A player may be loaned to only one Club a season but the initial period of loan may be extended until the end of the current playing season.
v) A Club may take no more than 2 players on loan at any one time.
vi) The period of a player’s loan may not commence later than 1st March in any Season.
vii) No overseas player may be loaned.
viii) A player who has played for a Club in the previous round of the Konica Minolta Cup Competition within the current season, will not be eligible to play on loan in the next round for another Club.
7. Player Permits: (See appendix 2 section B):
a) The Regulations relating to player permits in National League matches are set out in the Rules of the National League 2007/2008.
b) Permits may be granted to allow players to play in the Konica Minolta Cup Competition and the regulations relating to permit players in Konica Minolta Cup matches are set out in the Rules of the Konica Minolta Cup Competition 2007/ 2008.
c) A Permit is required to allow a player to play for a Club, other than the Club with which the player is registered, in any fixture.
d) The procedure for granting Player Permits will be:
i) A permit is a letter of permission written by an Official of the Club with which the player is registered (see Appendix 2). All permit requests will be acknowledged in writing by the Union.
ii) A permit must be sought for each match in which a player plays and such permit may be granted for a match at any time in the season. Any permit issued must be made in writing (via fax, posted letter or email), by both the Club with which the player is registered, and the Club with which he is to play on permit and lodged with the Union before the match takes place. In exceptional circumstances, where a permit is agreed during WRU office closure hours (e.g. a Saturday), the permit may be lodged by telephoning 02920 822407 or 02920 822404 and leaving a voicemail message. The written confirmation must be sent to the Union as soon as possible after lodging the voicemail message (see Appendix 2).
iii) The Union will confirm to the requesting Club that a Permit has been granted.
8. Dual Registration (see appendix 2 section c): A dual registration system will operate whereby:
i) A player may be registered by two Clubs (see appendix 2 section C) and be eligible to play for both in National League matches and *Konica Minolta Cup matches (* see Restriction contained in Regulation 3.j of the Competition Rules).
ii) Regional Teams may place 2 Development players on dual registration with a Premier Division Club. Clubs in the Premier Division may register up to 32 players all of whom will be available for dual registration with Clubs in Lower Divisions, except no more than 2 players on dual registration may be placed with one Club in a Lower Division by one Club in the Premier Division. First Division Clubs may place no more than 2 players on dual registration with one Club in Divisions 3 to 6 and only where that Club held the players’ registration immediately prior to joining that First Division Club.
iii) All properly registered players with Clubs in the Premier Division will be available for dual registration with a Club in Lower Divisions and all registered players in Clubs in the First Division will be available for dual registration with a Club in Divisions 3 to 6 (for players with First Division Clubs those players must have been registered with the Club in Division 3 to 6 immediately prior to joining the First Division Club). The dual registration agreement must reach the WRU offices at least 2 days prior to the first match in which the player is to play (see 3 c).
iv) Only Regional Teams and Clubs in the Premier Division and First Division shall be able to hold a player’s primary registration.
v) The Regional Team or Club which holds the player’s primary registration will have first call upon his playing services.
vi) A secondary registration will be held by a Club in a lower Division for players on dual registration from a Premier Division Club or a Club in Divisions 3 to 6 for players on dual registration from a First Division Club.
vii) If a player, subject to a dual registration agreement, transfers his primary registration to a Club other than in the Premier Division or First Division, then the player’s dual registration will cease immediately. If a player, subject to a dual registration agreement, transfers his primary registration to a Club in the Premier Division or First Division, then that dual registration agreement with the Secondary Club may be retained providing the Club to which the player is transferring, is in agreement and notifies the Union accordingly.
viii) A Club in the Premier Division or Division 1 (see restriction for Division 1 Clubs in 8 (ii) above) may place no more than 2 players on dual registration with any one Club in a Lower Division during a season.
ix) No more than 2 dual registered players may play for a Club in a Lower Division in any one match.
x) To enable a player to be eligible to play on dual registration with his Secondary Club the dual registration advice must be received in the Union offices two (2) days prior to the match in which the player is first required. The deadline to place players on dual registration is the 31st January. A player can only be dual registered to one Club in any one season.
xi) All dual registration agreements cease at the end of a Season.
NB. See also Dual Registration restrictions in relation to the Konica Minolta Cup competition (clause 3 j).
9. Clubs ceasing to be members of the Union: In the event that a Regional Member or Club cease to be a member of the Union all Players of such Regional Member or Club shall, from the date of cessation, be deemed to be registered with the Union and the Union shall have the same rights in respect of the transfer of registrations of all such Players as such Club had until the date of such cessation.
10. Penalty for Breach of Regulations: Failure by any Player, Club or Club Official to comply with any of these regulations will render the Player and/or the Club(s) and/or Club Officials concerned liable to such sanctions or remedies as the Union shall in its discretion deem appropriate including, without limitations, reprimand, fine, suspension or expulsion from the Union.
11. Powers of the Union:
a) The Union reserves the right to override, amend, supplement and/or discontinue each and any of these Regulations from time to time.
b) In addition to the other powers set out in these Regulations, the Union shall at its discretion be entitled, of its own motion and/or on the application of any Club or Player, to override any procedural defect in relation to these Regulations if, in the circumstances, it considers it just to do so.
12. Disputes: Any dispute difference or matter arising in connection with these Regulations shall be referred to the Union’s Regulatory Committee for adjudication unless these Regulations provide otherwise.
13. Miscellaneous: Players in the Armed Forces, Universities, Institutes of Higher Education, or Colleges (not Schools) can assist their Service Unit, University, Institute or College XV or Representative Teams involving the same without the necessity of a Transfer or Permit or permission, provided those Clubs are not involved in the National League, but such Players shall be regarded as registered with the Club for which they were registered immediately prior to joining the Armed Forces or entering a University, Institute or College. To play for any other Club would require a Permit or Transfer pursuant to these Regulations.
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