Buying a boat in the US

[Sea Change]

Hypothetically, what are the likely pitfalls to be expected of buying a yacht that's located and flagged in the US?
I presume I'd have to pay VAT upon importing it to the UK. I also assume that there would be some reason to change registry/flag- would that be necessary straight away, or could it wait until we got the boat home?

And if we didn't intend to bring it home, what would that involve?

(If it's of interest, we're currently weighing up the costs of repairing our current boat and extracting it from a profiteering boatyard in the Caribbean, vs buying one of the many keenly priced bargains that seem to be common in the US)

 

[wonkywinch]

The weak £ vs $. Shore power electrics will need 240v replacing the 110v gear and anything powered by it.

 

[Sea Change]

The weak £ vs $. Shore power electrics will need 240v replacing the 110v gear and anything powered by it.

Good points. Even with the current exchange rate there are some interesting deals to be had. Mostly older boats similar to my own one.
The electrics shouldn't be a big problem, I'd be bringing the lithium and inverter from my old boat.

 

[dunedin]

Great idea if never plan to bring back to UK or import into EU. But if wanted to do that then all sorts of grief with USA boat - unless already RCD / CE certified.

 

[Sea Change]

Great idea if never plan to bring back to UK or import into EU. But if wanted to do that then all sorts of grief with USA boat - unless already RCD / CE certified.

Is there an age cutoff for RCD? I'm not looking at anything newer than mid 1980s.

 

[Tranona]

Is there an age cutoff for RCD? I'm not looking at anything newer than mid 1980s.

No. You have not been able to import old US boats (or realistically any US boats) into the EU or UK since 1998. The old cut off date for EU (which does not seem to apply to the new UK regime) only applies to EEA built boats. Before 1998 there was a small but steady stream of US boats coming here, usually the "bluewater" type and many actually built in Taiwan, but the RCD killed it. Since then only a few US boats such as Island Packets, Tartans and Catalinas have been built to RCD, but even those sold in the US will need significant work to meet the current RCD.

You may well find once you see those cheap old boats in the US the idea becomes less appealing. Does make some sense if you can find a good one and keep it on that side of the pond.

 

[Baggywrinkle]

You could flag it in Delaware and keep it in the EU under Temporary Admission (you must remain a UK resident), but selling it on to an EU or UK resident later will be practically impossible for the reasons @Tranona stated.

 

[Sea Change]

No. You have not been able to import old US boats (or realistically any US boats) into the EU or UK since 1998. The old cut off date for EU (which does not seem to apply to the new UK regime) only applies to EEA built boats. Before 1998 there was a small but steady stream of US boats coming here, usually the "bluewater" type and many actually built in Taiwan, but the RCD killed it. Since then only a few US boats such as Island Packets, Tartans and Catalinas have been built to RCD, but even those sold in the US will need significant work to meet the current RCD.

You may well find once you see those cheap old boats in the US the idea becomes less appealing. Does make some sense if you can find a good one and keep it on that side of the pond.

Ok thanks for the clarification.
'Appealling' is all relative given my own boat is in a pretty sorry state.

 

[Sea Change]

You could flag it in Delaware and keep it in the EU under Temporary Admission (you must remain a UK resident), but selling it on to an EU or UK resident later will be practically impossible for the reasons @Tranona stated.

What about keeping it in the UK though?

 

[Sea Change]

Does it make any difference if the boat was originally built in the UK? In the late 80s, if that's relevant.

 

[st599]

What about keeping it in the UK though?

A UK resident can't use temporary admission in the UK, VAT and the assessment against RCR is due immediately. Which anything over 7 years old would probably fail on emissions alone.

 

[Sea Change]

A UK resident can't use temporary admission in the UK, VAT and the assessment against RCR is due immediately. Which anything over 7 years old would probably fail on emissions alone.

So we sail back in to Ireland, and then being in the CTA we don't have to report any further movements

 

[Tranona]

So we sail back in to Ireland, and then being in the CTA we don't have to report any further movements

But it is not in the "common" customs area. So only free movement for people, not for boats.

 

[Tranona]

Does it make any difference if the boat was originally built in the UK? In the late 80s, if that's relevant.

It used to but it is unclear now whether the pre 1997 exemptions still apply.

 

[Baggywrinkle]

What about keeping it in the UK though?

What @st599 said. If you are UK resident then you are forced into an import if you bring the boat to the U.K. ... You can't use T.A. so VAT, import duty, and certification will be required. The CTA has nothing to do with UK VAT, Import/Export etc. hence all the strife over the invisible border in the Irish Sea and NI not really being part of the UK customs area but more alligned with Ireland and the EU.

The likelihood of being caught getting a T.A. into Ireland and then using the CTA to bring the boat to the U.K. is a risk you will have to work out for yourself. As @Tranona said, it may be a CTA but it is not part of the same customs area.

EDIT: The boat will have changed hands outside the U.K. so will be treated as a new import AFAIK.

 

[Baggywrinkle]

If you want it all in black and white then contact HM Customs and give them the exact details as a "what if" scenario. Then you will have a qualified answer rather than the collective knowledge of the forum - which may be out of date or wrongly interpreted. I'm pretty certain it is not, but always best to get the answer direct from the relevant authority if you want to be sure.

 

[dunedin]

So we sail back in to Ireland, and then being in the CTA we don't have to report any further movements

You are back into the “would it be legal” ( to avoid UK VAT and certification) vs the “would you be caught”.
As Tranona says, Common Travel Area does not help within the boat, so the answer to question 1 is No.
Like shoplifting, fly tipping etc, the answer to question 2 is many get away with it, but depends on conscience and risk appetite.

 

[Beneteau381]

The weak £ vs $. Shore power electrics will need 240v replacing the 110v gear and anything powered by it.

A big transformer doesn’t cost that much

 

[Beneteau381]

Great idea if never plan to bring back to UK or import into EU. But if wanted to do that then all sorts of grief with USA boat - unless already RCD / CE certified.

When was the last time anyone had their CE certified checked?

 

[RivalRedwing]

When was the last time anyone had their CE certified checked?

will you ever be able to sell it in the UK or Europe without the CE paperwork might be a question too