Do French regulations apply for foreign boats permanently in French harbour?

[ludo]

I located my boat on the french southcoast to enjoy Med sailing. I don't live on board but use it for holiday's.
Do I have to get (pay) the French boat passport?
http://www.douane.budget.gouv.fr/page.asp?id=3349

Does my boat need to confirm to the French safety regulations (Division 240)?
http://www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/Le-materiel-de-securite-et-les.html

According to the Reeds Western Med Almanac high fines (starting from 3500 euro) can be expected for non conformance.

Help please..

Ludo

 

[Cloven]

As long as you are a UK resident, spend less than 183 days a year in France & your boat is UK registered - min of SSR, then No & No.

We are based in Southern Brittany and have never ever been asked for any form of documentation at all other than the marina having sight of out insurance docs when we arrived 5 years ago.

There are however certain docs you must carry - originals not copies - such as proof of VAT paid, Registration certificate, Insurance certificate, Passports (obviously) etc. Check with RYA for full details.

 

[Tranona]

Yes, probably - you need to speak to the marina.

No. If the boat is registered in UK then it only has to comply with UK requirements (that is none).

Ensure that you have all the right documents (particularly registration) available at all times.

 

[westernman]

I located my boat on the french southcoast to enjoy Med sailing. I don't live on board but use it for holiday's.
Do I have to get (pay) the French boat passport?
http://www.douane.budget.gouv.fr/page.asp?id=3349

Does my boat need to confirm to the French safety regulations (Division 240)?
http://www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/Le-materiel-de-securite-et-les.html

According to the Reeds Western Med Almanac high fines (starting from 3500 euro) can be expected for non conformance.

Help please..

Ludo

I confirm. For a non French resident, no and no.

You will need the original SSR or Part I and will have to present a copy of your insurance certificate to the Capitainerie at your port each year (normally when you send off the form for renewing the annual contract along with your cheque).

 

[ludo]

I'm (and my boat is) Dutch, but that shouldn't make a difference. Dutch yachting association (ANWB) and Foreign Affairs couldn't help and pointed me to the French authorities. Not much responce from them yet other then saying:

Section 237 of the Customs Code stipulates that any foreign ship sets sail on board must have a passport issued by the customs.

For me that probably is the ICP (International Certificate for Pleasurecraft)?

The french harbour (Port Napoleon) said I need to comply to the french safety rules as I'm sailing from a french harbour...

 

[westernman]

I'm (and my boat is) Dutch, but that shouldn't make a difference. Dutch yachting association (ANWB) and Foreign Affairs couldn't help and pointed me to the French authorities. Not much responce from them yet other then saying:

Section 237 of the Customs Code stipulates that any foreign ship sets sail on board must have a passport issued by the customs.

For me that probably is the ICP (International Certificate for Pleasurecraft)?

The french harbour (Port Napoleon) said I need to comply to the french safety rules as I'm sailing from a french harbour...

The passeport is for foreign registered boats (i.e. non French) kept in France by French residents. There is a tax to pay which is identical to what a French registered boat would have to pay. But as I said, this passeport only applies to French residents.

 

[25931]

I'm (and my boat is) Dutch, but that shouldn't make a difference. Dutch yachting association (ANWB) and Foreign Affairs couldn't help and pointed me to the French authorities. Not much responce from them yet other then saying:

Section 237 of the Customs Code stipulates that any foreign ship sets sail on board must have a passport issued by the customs.

For me that probably is the ICP (International Certificate for Pleasurecraft)?

The french harbour (Port Napoleon) said I need to comply to the french safety rules as I'm sailing from a french harbour...

This has been aired here several times. They are legally entitled to enforce French regs. - perhaps the best thing would be to ask the enforcement agency for their opinion ?

 

[Koeketiene]

I located my boat on the french southcoast to enjoy Med sailing. I don't live on board but use it for holiday's.
Do I have to get (pay) the French boat passport?
http://www.douane.budget.gouv.fr/page.asp?id=3349

Does my boat need to confirm to the French safety regulations (Division 240)?
http://www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/Le-materiel-de-securite-et-les.html

According to the Reeds Western Med Almanac high fines (starting from 3500 euro) can be expected for non conformance.

Help please..

Ludo

In 2014 we will be moving the boat to France permanently, and we'll follow her in 2016.

Been told by the marina where we intend to keep her that we don't need to do anything as long as our main residence is outside France.
Once we become permanent residents we will need a passport for the boat and comply with French safety regulations.

That being said, berth fees are substantially cheaper if you are permanent resident (45% off - marina's owned and run by the local municipality).
Much easier to get a berth do (non-resident: waiting list - resident: when would like to move in)

 

[Tranona]

This has been aired here several times. They are legally entitled to enforce French regs. - perhaps the best thing would be to ask the enforcement agency for their opinion ?

It may have been "aired here several times" but that does not mean that what you say is correct.

There is no requirement for a UK registered vessel to comply with French equipment requirements. The French authorities may indeed have a legal right to enforce them - if they pass a law that requires it. At present there is no law in France that says British registered vessels have to comply with French requirements. The only requirement is that you have evidence of British registration, then "they" will leave you alone.

 

[Cloven]

In 2014 we will be moving the boat to France permanently, and we'll follow her in 2016.

Been told by the marina where we intend to keep her that we don't need to do anything as long as our main residence is outside France.
Once we become permanent residents we will need a passport for the boat and comply with French safety regulations.

Yes this is exactly as applied at our marina.

 

[westernman]

That being said, berth fees are substantially cheaper if you are permanent resident (45% off - marina's owned and run by the local municipality).
Much easier to get a berth do (non-resident: waiting list - resident: when would like to move in)

Can you tell me which marina that is???
I have not found that anywhere in Languedoc Roussillon.

 

[Bosun Higgs]

FWIW I was once told by a UK sailor who kept his boat in FRance permanently that after a certain length of time his boat had legally to be moved over to the French registry when of course all the rules apply.

 

[westernman]

FWIW I was once told by a UK sailor who kept his boat in FRance permanently that after a certain length of time his boat had legally to be moved over to the French registry when of course all the rules apply.

No requirement for this exists. Even for a Frenchman permanently resident in France keeping his French built boat permanently in the same French marina.

 

[jimbaerselman]

Tax on "Means of Transport" in the EU

This is exactly the same set of regulations that caught out a number of long term Spanish Live-aboards. Boats are "means of transport" (mot), and the EU regulations about how they may be registered and used in other EU countries are clear.

First, personal residence is determined by how many days per year the owner/user spends in the country. More than 182 per 365 is the trigger point when you become resident. The definition of the 365 period varies - sometimes tax year, sometimes calender year, sometimes any 365! (I don't know which the French use)

If you become resident in a different country, your cars and boats may keep their current registration, or may be re-registered. Your Choice. But if they're used in the new country, they must pay the same rates of "taxes/impositions/fees/whatever you want to call them" that local residents pay. That's usually done by registering your mot with local authorities. In France, they do this by issuing the passport.

It doesn't matter how much time the boat spends in the country - if it's used there by a resident, it pays local resident's rates.

This is all covered and kept up to date at http://www.jimbsail.info/drupal/going-foreign/time-abroad . And incidentally, I'll be talking in the Knowledge Box at the London Boat show on this subject, and available through the Cruising Association stand (A 139) for detailed discussion about individual country regulations from Sunday 8th to Thursday 12th. Your inputs and experiences are welcome!

 

[Hoolie]

We keep our boat in France and I have a French address as well as UK. I had to provide a copy of the front page of my UK tax return to the Douanes to prove that I am non-resident.

The marina will pass your details to the Douanes and they will, no doubt, be in touch in due course ... ... ...

 

[bendyone]

Keep my boat in Calias for 6 years now, no problem at all, need a SSR and insurance for the marina. Boarded once coming into Calais - just SSR and passports needed.

 

[Ric]

There is some misinformation here. I can absolutely confirm to you, that if your boat is more than 183 days in French waters, then you have to pay the "Droite de Navigation". Both your own personal tax status, and the flag of your boat, are irrelevant.

However, the Douanes do not check very often, hence lots of people get away without paying, and so many people (including some here) falsely believe that they are exempt.

 

[Sanderling_]

There is some misinformation here. I can absolutely confirm to you,

How can you really trust anything that is written here!! There however are some peoples opinions I would believe over others.

 

[Koeketiene]

I can absolutely confirm to you, that if your boat is more than 183 days in French waters, then you have to pay the "Droite de Navigation". Both your own personal tax status, and the flag of your boat, are irrelevant.

As far as I can make out here, the droit annuel de francisation et de navigation (DAFN) only applies to French registered vessels (regardless whether the owner lives in France or not).

 

[Hoolie]

There is some misinformation here. I can absolutely confirm to you, that if your boat is more than 183 days in French waters, then you have to pay the "Droite de Navigation". Both your own personal tax status, and the flag of your boat, are irrelevant.

However, the Douanes do not check very often, hence lots of people get away without paying, and so many people (including some here) falsely believe that they are exempt.

There is! As I posted above, I had to provide UK tax status to the Douanes, and it was at an arranged meeting with them at their regional offices - not on their patrol boat. They confirmed that as a UK resident with a UK registered boat, no dues were applicable, even though I have a secondary address in France.

I've seen them a couple of times since without problems, apart from the regular inspection of documents to keep their quotas up.