I'd like to cruise around Norway

[Paul 22R]

I'd like to cruise around Norway, Iceland and other Baltic states for a year or more, but have been told that the longest i can stay in those waters is 90 days. Is there any way i can get permission to cruise for extended periods of at least a year.

 

[AngusMcDoon]

You can get a 6 month visitor permit for tourism purposes for Sweden. This may be in addition to the Schengen 90 days. The requirements are likely to be fairly onerous in terms of proving that you can support yourself. The Faeroe Islands and Greenland are not in Schengen so any time there won't count to your Schengen 90 days. Apart from that, I think the answer is no unless you take up residency in an EU country, and then you get VAT problems on your boat unless you move there permanently. As a non-EU resident your boat will need to leave the EU for at least a day every 18 months to avoid VAT becoming payable on it, and from next year, it needing assessing for, and compliance with, the current RCD requirements (not the ones in force when your boat was built).

 

[Kukri]

Since Scandinavia is not terribly far away, and gets dark and icy in winter, why not keep the boat in Britain in the winter months?

 

[AngusMcDoon]

Since Scandinavia is not terribly far away, and gets dark and icy in winter, why not keep the boat in Britain in the winter months?

I recall that Norway will allow you to put the boat's 18 months temporary admission on hold while the boat is laid up in their country. For the crew, with a tourist permit for Sweden for 3 months, 3 months in the Schengen countries, and a visit to the Faeroes to top it off, will take up all of the sailing season in that part of the world.

 

[ylop]

Presumably in happier times you could have taken the boat to St Petersburg or Kalingrad to break your Shengen time up?

If you are looking at Iceland and Norway then Shetland and the Faroes are logical places in between which break your shengen time.

 

[Neeves]

Any way I understand you can't cruise around Norway, nor Sweden nor both combined - they are not islands.



Jonathan

 

[LittleSister]

All the above answers assume time and space is linear.

Sadly, so do the relevant authorities!

 

[AngusMcDoon]

All the above answers assume time and space is linear.

Well I suppose you could fit a TON 618 sized keel on your boat and then time will stop giving you forever to cruise around, but even then it might evaporate in 10^100 years according to my departed mate Stephen. Given that your keel will now be 11 solar systems wide there may be difficulties getting into some of the smaller harbours. There may be other practical difficulties too, like spaghettifying all of Oslo as you approach Svalbard. And it will be a one way trip, which will annoy Norwegian immigration.

 

[Paul 22R]

You can get a 6 month visitor permit for tourism purposes for Sweden. This may be in addition to the Schengen 90 days. The requirements are likely to be fairly onerous in terms of proving that you can support yourself. The Faeroe Islands and Greenland are not in Schengen so any time there won't count to your Schengen 90 days. Apart from that, I think the answer is no unless you take up residency in an EU country, and then you get VAT problems on your boat unless you move there permanently. As a non-EU resident your boat will need to leave the EU for at least a day every 18 months to avoid VAT becoming payable on it, and from next year, it needing assessing for, and compliance with, the current RCD requirements (not the ones in force when your boat was built).

Many thanks for the info Angus, what you say is what others have told us, but they weren't sure if there was a form available that would allow us to cruise around the Baltic for a year or more before heading off to Alaska.

 

[Paul 22R]

Since Scandinavia is not terribly far away, and gets dark and icy in winter, why not keep the boat in Britain in the winter months?

 

[Paul 22R]

Thanks Kukri, I'm based in Scotland, and simply don't want to return to the UK for a good few years. Now we're retired, we want to cruise the Baltic area for a while, then head west and do Alasks canada ect untill the old bones indicate that it may be time to head back towards James Watt dock and potter around the western isles for a few days at a time.

 

[Adios]

and from next year, it needing assessing for, and compliance with, the current RCD requirements (not the ones in force when your boat was built).

ewww the EU are obsessed with over regulation.

 

[Fr J Hackett]

ewww the EU are obsessed with over regulation.

The EU are like many countries, they control their borders.

 

[ylop]

Many thanks for the info Angus, what you say is what others have told us, but they weren't sure if there was a form available that would allow us to cruise around the Baltic for a year or more before heading off to Alaska.

the Baltic in Winter is going to be pretty chilly. The time limits for the boat and you are different, so you could eg take the boat over in Late summer. Do your 90 days fly home, then fly out early spring do another 90 days, then Bring boat back to U.K. on way to Iceland (your 90 days outside Shengen would include both crossings) then go to Canada from there probably after leaving it there for 2nd winter? (or back to U.K, and south via Azores for a more traditional passage) - which would also restart the clock for bringing the boat back to the U.K. before you get stung for importing back to the U.K. afterwards).

 

[st599]

ewww the EU are obsessed with over regulation.

So are the UK, if you import in to the UK after December 31st, you have to comply with the UKCA (which, although a photocopy of the RCD, RCD compliance is not enough)

 

[st599]

Many thanks for the info Angus, what you say is what others have told us, but they weren't sure if there was a form available that would allow us to cruise around the Baltic for a year or more before heading off to Alaska.

There is a 6 month Swedish Tourist Visa, but it has the usual tourist visa requirements for cleared funds of £8k (which isn't actually that high, compared to say France), health insurance, exit plans etc. Visit Sweden for more than 90 days

 

[ylop]

There is a 6 month Swedish Tourist Visa, but it has the usual tourist visa requirements for cleared funds of £8k (which isn't actually that high, compared to say France), health insurance, exit plans etc. Visit Sweden for more than 90 days

Do you know how that works - can you say, spend 90 days in Norway under the Shengen rules, then go immediately to sweden and spend 6 months (or 6 months minus 90 days?). Could you then go to another Shengen country (e.g. Finland) for another 90 days? ie. spend 12 months in total in Scandinavia? How long before you could go back to Sweden and apply for another visa?

 

[st599]

Do you know how that works - can you say, spend 90 days in Norway under the Shengen rules, then go immediately to sweden and spend 6 months (or 6 months minus 90 days?). Could you then go to another Shengen country (e.g. Finland) for another 90 days? ie. spend 12 months in total in Scandinavia? How long before you could go back to Sweden and apply for another visa?

You normally have to apply for the visa in the country you're resident in - and visit the embassy.

But as far as I can see - the 6 months in Sweden under the visa don't count towards Schengen days. It does prohibit working whilst in Sweden though, so you can't be there and continue to remotely work for a UK company.

 

[AngusMcDoon]

Do you know how that works - can you say, spend 90 days in Norway under the Shengen rules, then go immediately to sweden and spend 6 months (or 6 months minus 90 days?). Could you then go to another Shengen country (e.g. Finland) for another 90 days? ie. spend 12 months in total in Scandinavia? How long before you could go back to Sweden and apply for another visa?

Information is more difficult to find for the 6 month Swedish tourist visa than the equivalent French one. For the French one the tourist visa is in addition to the standard Schengen 90 day one but you are only allowed one tourist visa per year, so you can do this...

Jan...March Schengen not France
April...September France tourist visa
October...December Schengen not France
Jan...June France tourist visa
July...September Schengen not France

It's important not to stay in France more than 6 months in any year to avoid becoming tax resident meaning VAT would be due on your boat. 6 months seems quite common amongst countries for the limit before becoming resident so Sweden might be the same.

After the schedule above you'd have to clear off for 3 months out of the EU before starting the cycle again, but that's nearly 2 years. Your boat would also have to leave the EU for a day to avoid VAT after 18 months in the EU.

The only definitive answer you'll get regarding the Swedish rules will be from the Swedish embassy, but hopefully they are the same as France's. If so you could do this...

Jan...March Norway/Finland
April...September Sweden
October...December Norway/Finland
Jan...June Sweden
July...September Norway/Finland