eTEPAI Checking-Corfu

[Cariadco]

FYI Last week, the Port Police were on some of the Pontoons in Gouvia Marina, checking eTEPAI compliance.
First time they've done this (as far as I know).

 

[AndrewB]

Thanks for the heads-up. My understanding is that if the yacht is not in use, then even if afloat in a marina, TEPAI does not apply. I assume they were only checking non-charter yachts with people on board?

 

[Cariadco]

Thanks for the heads-up. My understanding is that if the yacht is not in use, then even if afloat in a marina, TEPAI does not apply. I assume they were only checking non-charter yachts with people on board?

Yes.

 

[wwalsh]

TEPAI does not apply automatically for yachts ashore. For yachts afloat and above 7m they must be declared "out of use'' to the port authority following official procedure.

 

[saxonpirate]

When I read threads like this I'm glad that I did my Greek cruising back in the day as it were. First in mid 80s and the last hoorah in 2011. Things were so much more relaxed and the restrictions were minimal.. and of course.. before the wretched Euro life was pretty cheap.. Ah the days of Drachma and free flowing Ouzo..

 

[alexsailor]

When I read threads like this I'm glad that I did my Greek cruising back in the day as it were. First in mid 80s and the last hoorah in 2011. Things were so much more relaxed and the restrictions were minimal.. and of course.. before the wretched Euro life was pretty cheap.. Ah the days of Drachma and free flowing Ouzo..

Compared to militant Croatia, Greece is a paradise.
Been sailing 13 summers here and it worth every mile, sailing down to Adriatic to Greece.
I agree that years you mentioned were more relaxed. The only problem I find in Greece is too many charter boats. But here again Croatia wins

 

[saxonpirate]

Compared to militant Croatia, Greece is a paradise.
Been sailing 13 summers here and it worth every mile, sailing down to Adriatic to Greece.
I agree that years you mentioned were more relaxed. The only problem I find in Greece is too many charter boats. But here again Croatia wins

I can't comment on Croatia as I've never visited, but I do keep my finger on the pulse as I always promised myself (before I drop off the mortal coil ) I'd give the islands one more go. I certainly agree with you on the charter boats by the way.
I'm resident in France and am only too aware of the mounting regulation being pushed through the EU to micromanage our lives, and generally make travel more expensive and difficult. Still, the old cruising flame is still alive in me.. so I'll just let life unfold.. see where it takes me..

 

[Chris_Robb]

Thanks for the heads-up. My understanding is that if the yacht is not in use, then even if afloat in a marina, TEPAI does not apply. I assume they were only checking non-charter yachts with people on board?

The only time out of use applies is when you are hauled out.

Technically, if staying in a marina you must declare out if use. Some Ports can't be bothered to manage this, but that's the law

 

[AndrewB]

The only time out of use applies is when you are hauled out.

Technically, if staying in a marina you must declare out if use. Some Ports can't be bothered to manage this, but that's the law

Theory and practice!

The only checking I've seen is of boats actively in service. For that reason checking has been much more common in anchorages than in marinas. Checking is done by asking the skipper to show his/her receipt for payment.

It might, in principle, be possible to check whether a shut-up yacht afloat in a marina has paid Tepai or has been formally declared out of use; but I doubt they can actually do it. When Tepai is paid in a post-office or bank, there is little indication that the yacht's particulars, sufficient to uniquely identify the yacht by sight, are being forwarded to a central data-base. My assumption is that it is simpler to assume that such yachts are out of use.

 

[Chris_Robb]

Theory and practice!

The only checking I've seen is of boats actively in service. For that reason checking has been much more common in anchorages than in marinas. Checking is done by asking the skipper to show his/her receipt for payment.

It might, in principle, be possible to check whether a shut-up yacht afloat in a marina has paid Tepai or has been formally declared out of use; but I doubt they can actually do it. When Tepai is paid in a post-office or bank, there is little indication that the yacht's particulars, sufficient to uniquely identify the yacht by sight, are being forwarded to a central data-base. My assumption is that it is simpler to assume that such yachts are out of use.

Andrew - I agree if they are wondering about pontoons that they wont have a clue.... when the PP make the entry for you they use their own account, if you then do it on your account you wont see your application. The database must be in a huge mess.

So they rely on owners handing in papers at Port Police when they leave - if in the water. This is required in most ports. PP looking at receipts - not very sensible an it only reflects a payment - not received into the system - many are returned as people use the wrong paymnet system - SEPA only should be used. The proof of payment is the official application printed off with Paid in the right place! - if the paymnet was rejected it shows NEO. But then the post police are not very bright and some do rely on a bank receipt - which is no proof the payment was made!

If you do not do this - you may be picked up at another port and made to back pay if there is no proof you were either declared out of use or hauled out. The CA has come across attempts to back pay since the start of lock down where they owner could not supply proof of either. One very large fine when back to the start of lock down when they owners were in newzealand during lock down - the yacht was hauled - they have agree to refund the amount - but with NO method of paying Non Greek tax numbers the AADE is writing a system to allow this - its taking time. Others in Marinas have had to pay - usually the last winter....

 

[AndrewB]

So they rely on owners handing in papers at Port Police when they leave - if in the water. This is required in most ports. PP looking at receipts - not very sensible an it only reflects a payment - not received into the system - many are returned as people use the wrong paymnet system - SEPA only should be used. The proof of payment is the official application printed off with Paid in the right place! - if the paymnet was rejected it shows NEO.

Sorry - perhaps I should have made clear that by receipt I meant not simply the credit-card chit. Each time I have paid I have been issued with a longish strip of printout that shows the payment received relates to Tepai. (The official application is left unstamped and untouched, apart from a small strip at the bottom of the first page torn off).

Incidentally although my Tepai payment has been inspected by customs, it has never been by PP.

 

[Chris_Robb]

Sorry - perhaps I should have made clear that by receipt I meant not simply the credit-card chit. Each time I have paid I have been issued with a longish strip of printout that shows the payment received relates to Tepai. (The official application is left unstamped and untouched, apart from a small strip at the bottom of the first page torn off).

Incidentally although my Tepai payment has been inspected by customs, it has never been by PP.

Andrew - I presume you pay at a Greek Banks or Ports office then. Proof that the E-Tepai application has been updated by payment is ONLY on the subsequesnt print out oif your application where P{payment status changes from NEO to PAID. That is the official receipt documentation in the design of the system. However the database has been so mistreated by users (multiple accounts\0, and Port Police or Customs using their account for an application that the original ability of the Customs to check is now impossible!

 

[sailaboutvic]

When I read threads like this I'm glad that I did my Greek cruising back in the day as it were. First in mid 80s and the last hoorah in 2011. Things were so much more relaxed and the restrictions were minimal.. and of course.. before the wretched Euro life was pretty cheap.. Ah the days of Drachma and free flowing Ouzo..

We moved away some years back now actually the year the tax case in .
we been cruising in and out of Greece for a good 35 years and I couldn’t agree more life was much better then .
up to jan 2022 we cruised North Africa, Italy, Malta and the south of France, non of this stuff and hassle of what happening in Greece and it’s no more expensive then Greece if your not using marinas .
2022 we sold return to the UK brought another boat but smaller and we been cruising the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark where the cost as been very reasonable if you want to use a marina berth .
example Netherlands € 13 / 16and Denmark € 18 / 20 included power and water .
I think we done our Med cruising it’s just getting so hot in the summer months , although last summer in Northern Europe was hot too ,
this year it’s been a very mix weather period but then again that’s been the same most places.

 

[AndrewB]

We moved away some years back now actually the year the tax case in .
we been cruising in and out of Greece for a good 35 years and I couldn’t agree more life was much better then .
up to jan 2022 we cruised North Africa, Italy, Malta and the south of France, non of this stuff and hassle of what happening in Greece and it’s no more expensive then Greece if your not using marinas .

I agree. The uncertainty about all the various tiers of bureaucracy is removing all the pleasure of sailing in Greece.

I find we are now slinking around destinations, avoiding places where PP and customs might be active. The reason: I simply don't understand how the Transit Log legislation might apply to me, and frankly, I don't think most of the the port officialdom understands either. But, being Greece, that wouldn't stop them taking matters into their own hands if they saw a way of making money, or even just to satisfy a grudge.

The problem for me is that although my yacht has been kept in Greece since 2008, it is 36 years old and I have no unambiguous proof that VAT was paid when it was originally sold in the UK. Nothing unusual in that, it almost certainly was, but nobody much bothered with the details back in the mid 1980's so the paperwork wasn't retained. Up to Brexit, the worst we faced was being asked to retrospectively pay VAT, but in practice, no-one was ever concerned with the status of an obviously elderly yacht.

Now, it interferes with our right to keep the boat in The EU, and probably means a large fine for transgressing part of the rules for Transit Logs.

 

[KeelsonGraham]

Time was when the Greeks were just about the most relaxed people on the planet. It was more about enjoying life rather than rigid pursuit of rules.

 

[newtothis]

Time was when the Greeks were just about the most relaxed people on the planet. It was more about enjoying life rather than rigid pursuit of rules.

First time I went there in the 90s I was greeted at the airport by a border guard with a machine gun strapped across his half open shirt and a cigarette in the corner of his mouth standing directly under the No Smoking sign. That seemed to sum up Greece in those halcyon days.

 

[Hooligan]

Greece is lovely. Easy to find uncrowded places, Caribbean water, the food is lovely and the Greeks actually like the Brits. It isn’t their fault that a bunch of muppets in the U.K. voted for Brexit and they are entitled, at least in my view, to do or make whatever rules they like in their own country. Compared to the U.K., where every aspect of human life is being legislated for and monitored, I find it a remarkably easy going and gentle place. So to put up with a few things that may be a little strange is for me a small price to pay.

 

[Chris_Robb]

I agree. The uncertainty about all the various tiers of bureaucracy is removing all the pleasure of sailing in Greece.

I find we are now slinking around destinations, avoiding places where PP and customs might be active. The reason: I simply don't understand how the Transit Log legislation might apply to me, and frankly, I don't think most of the the port officialdom understands either. But, being Greece, that wouldn't stop them taking matters into their own hands if they saw a way of making money, or even just to satisfy a grudge.

The problem for me is that although my yacht has been kept in Greece since 2008, it is 36 years old and I have no unambiguous proof that VAT was paid when it was originally sold in the UK. Nothing unusual in that, it almost certainly was, but nobody much bothered with the details back in the mid 1980's so the paperwork wasn't retained. Up to Brexit, the worst we faced was being asked to retrospectively pay VAT, but in practice, no-one was ever concerned with the status of an obviously elderly yacht.

Now, it interferes with our right to keep the boat in The EU, and probably means a large fine for transgressing part of the rules for Transit Logs.

Andrew, you are very close to the 1985 vat exemption in the EU. If you have proof of its age then I would try to get a certificate from HMRC Salford, the same people who would have issued you a T2L movement order before BREXIT. So as much proof as possible that it was build before 1985. SSR records might help especially if part 1.