Im sorry, another brexit question

[CraigandHan]

Hi guys,

I've been scouring this forum for a while biting my lip but im really sorry i cant seem to read any direct answers to my questions.

i guess what im really after is answers from people who have done it or are doing it post brexit.

me and my partner have got our liveaboard all set and ready to leave but brexit is our main figuring out and stopping point (and our savings as we have a target we are close to reaching for the trip but realistically brexit is such a minefield i dont want to be one of those people that say we are doing it and ten years down the road it doesnt happen) .

we are from the channel islands and plan to cross the channel to le harve (potentially heading to the Uk first to do some cruising there, build our cruising knowledge? Tackle some locks in our own language and build confidence… without the 90 days problem)

from here or prior to we are looking at a long term french visa to enjoy the french canals and come out at the bottom of the med (the canals have been our main aim as the start of the trip).

we want to end up in the Caribbean U/S and do like many have done and circumnavigate, gaining experience as we go not wanting to put a pin in where we end up.

the thing is all this 90 day stuff is meaning we are struggling on a route to take on how to get there, comfortably not panicking trying to visa hop.

we dont mind having to leave the boat maybe once and return to it but i just never seem to hear or read from people who have done it, what route they took and how long and where they stayed. We have heard about temporary residency but again… havent read anything solid from people who are..

im in the beginings of planning and i must admit its putting such a downer on our amazing plans we had and i dont even know where to start. Id love to know what people did where they left from, the route they took, or are taking, hints and tips along the way as this will hopefully be the start if my bible.

please feel free to PM me but i guess im after “from the horses mouth” as opposed to suggestions on what to do as i cant plan on a guess.

thanks for your help but at this moment we see our dream fading and its kind of a big blow. But theres peopls out there doing it on youtube so it must be able to be done right?

cheers

C

 

[stephen_h]

Get a six months visa for France. Our friends have done it, and are now in France slowly crusing to Gib.
A few hoops to jump through but it can be done. Sounded like it was pretty busy when had to visit the embassy.
I am sure there are other threads on here about the process. Don't give up

 

[Grehan]

I'm bound to flag up that there's a wealth of practical French canals and rivers cruising guidance available for free, starting from Hands On Expertise // Waterways in Detail and Practical Guidance

 

[Solent Cruiser]

We got a French visa (6 months). It's the only way for those of us greatly damaged by Brexit to work the 90/180 issue and see France. We are sailing live-aboards, currently in Brittany, and are going to sail the Biscay coast inshore, and then use the full remainder of 90/180 to get to a non-Schengen place. The visa is somewhat of a tedious pain to do in that it is an OTT bureaucratic process with costs, much of which seems unnecessary since all youare going to do is be nice, spend money in their home economy, and support yourself. A simple declaration of 'honesty or fine/deport/shoot me' would do, but hey it is what it is...and I guess it is totally fair we stupid Brits must be punished in some way for our Government's failure to look after our well-being. BTW, the Embassy vetters are strict on SPAG, so make sure you can use capitals for personal pronouns and proper nouns, all along with appropriate punctuation in the right places in your paperwork You'll need two days out of your life (with travel and subsistence costs) that you will never get back in order to attend the agency that handles the admin for the French Embassy in London, or Manchester. One is to take and check your application (which they do well and systematically) and the other is to collect your processed passports etc (if successful). There was still no courier service when we did it this March 2022. Take 4 passport photos with you, not the single and copy they say: don't cut out any of them. Fail to do this and it will cost you another three hours of queueing to add to your original three, and at least another eight quid. You will also be fingerprinted, so if you have issues about this don't go. One you arrive in France you, yes you, will have to work to find where to go to get your passport entry stamp - Marinas have no active role here, and the 'authorities' don't seem too bothered: one thing's for sure, the immigration police will not be co-located near where you are berthed! At the end of the day, France is a great country with a brighter future than the UK, so the effort to visit it for a longish period is well worth the effort IMHO.

 

[LittleSister]

We got a French visa (6 months). It's the only way for those of us greatly damaged by Brexit to work the 90/180 issue and see France. We are sailing live-aboards, currently in Brittany, and are going to sail the Biscay coast inshore, and then use the full remainder of 90/180 to get to a non-Schengen place. The visa is somewhat of a tedious pain to do in that it is an OTT bureaucratic process with costs, much of which seems unnecessary since all youare going to do is be nice, spend money in their home economy, and support yourself. A simple declaration of 'honesty or fine/deport/shoot me' would do, but hey it is what it is...and I guess it is totally fair we stupid Brits must be punished in some way for our Government's failure to look after our well-being. BTW, the Embassy vetters are strict on SPAG, so make sure you can use capitals for personal pronouns and proper nouns, all along with appropriate punctuation in the right places in your paperwork You'll need two days out of your life (with travel and subsistence costs) that you will never get back in order to attend the agency that handles the admin for the French Embassy in London, or Manchester. One is to take and check your application (which they do well and systematically) and the other is to collect your processed passports etc (if successful). There was still no courier service when we did it this March 2022. Take 4 passport photos with you, not the single and copy they say: don't cut out any of them. Fail to do this and it will cost you another three hours of queueing to add to your original three, and at least another eight quid. You will also be fingerprinted, so if you have issues about this don't go. One you arrive in France you, yes you, will have to work to find where to go to get your passport entry stamp - Marinas have no active role here, and the 'authorities' don't seem too bothered: one thing's for sure, the immigration police will not be co-located near where you are berthed! At the end of the day, France is a great country with a brighter future than the UK, so the effort to visit it for a longish period is well worth the effort IMHO.

Thanks for the detailed account.

As i understand it a condition of the visa is that you have to prove you have available a certain amount of money per day for the duration of the 6 months, and that the required amount is higher if you do not have accommodation already arranged. Do they accept the boat as one's accommodation?

 

[CraigandHan]

Hi guys, thank you so much for the feedback,

We will be going down the french visa route.

so thank you for the in depth solent member.

im not actually too too worried about organising the french six month visa as i have a couple of friends who will likely help me in this area and our main cruising area is france so i am able to pop over and sort this out if need be.

the main worry is the route after france and where we should hop and go to, 90 days gets eaten up very quickly and its this part im hoping someone can shed some light on, where they went and how they got out. Which place did they head to first what routes are people now taking. How long did you take. Did you have to stop and leave and come back to your boat?
I will take some more time reading the replied but i just wanted to say thank you so much as a first off.

regards

c and h

 

[CraigandHan]

I'm bound to flag up that there's a wealth of practical French canals and rivers cruising guidance available for free, starting from Hands On Expertise // Waterways in Detail and Practical Guidance

Thanks mate, i already have researched quite heavily in this with alamanacs guides, emailed the watereays directly and planned our route.
But thanks for the link as well.

 

[Tinto]

 

[CraigandHan]

Tinto, what regulation is this from and can you comment as to why its prevelant?

 

[richardh10]

Thought I'd throw my tuppence worth in........
Don't get too hung up on the 90 day stuff. Get down to the med if thats what you want to do then either leave the boat for a bit or go somewhere like Morocco but if you are really thinking of a circumnavigation get to the canaries asap then buy a dozen pairs of flip flops, chuck all your wellies, socks, fleeces etc over the side and head for Cape Verde and the Caribbean. Admittedly I left before brexit so it was easier, but once you get to the Caribbean you'll wonder why you waited so long. Then when you think life can't get any better, go through the Panama canal (awesome experience) and into the south Pacific and it does get even better. Life's short so do it while you can.

 

[Kelpie]

My suggestion would be to exit France and spend three months getting to Portugal, then haul out at Bruce's in Faro and fly home for a bit. Then launch and head for the Canaries.
Tanger is also an option. Gibraltar is not yet in Schengen so that's another useful place to stop the clock.

 

[Tinto]

Tinto, what regulation is this from and can you comment as to why its prevelant?

It is a section from international maritime law which entitles Mariners to safe passage

 

[Tranona]

It is a section from international maritime law which entitles Mariners to safe passage

Of limited value to the OPs question as the restriction he is trying to deal with is related to him personally and not his boat. His movements are controlled by the dates stamped in his passport, or later in the year on the Schengen computer. This does not record where he is physically, nor his boat, just how long he is in the territory against his allowance.

 

[Graham376]

It is a section from international maritime law which entitles Mariners to safe passage

That section of UNCLOS has no bearing on the 90/180 personal or 18 month boat limit. If you call in at say France, onward passage through Spanish waters to maybe Portugal wouldn't be "innocent passage" and the clock would still be ticking. As it says, coastal states can impose their own laws so Schengen/EU rules still apply.

 

[CraigandHan]

Thanks for the martime law tinto, i think others have answered that its not really any help.

thanks to all the suggestions, if anyone has any contacts who have done this (who will actually get back to me) that would be great.

ill have a look at routes and report back.

kelpie, any idea how much im looking at for hauling out and storage at Bruces? Have you got anymore information.

ill come back with some info as to where im
looking at getting out and seeing realistically how far it is to thr canaries and how long it would take

i read gib doesnt have any visitor places to stay for longish term does anyone know of anything? I would love to go there.

the canaries are in the schengan are they not? And cape verde?

 

[CraigandHan]

Thought I'd throw my tuppence worth in........
Don't get too hung up on the 90 day stuff. Get down to the med if thats what you want to do then either leave the boat for a bit or go somewhere like Morocco but if you are really thinking of a circumnavigation get to the canaries asap then buy a dozen pairs of flip flops, chuck all your wellies, socks, fleeces etc over the side and head for Cape Verde and the Caribbean. Admittedly I left before brexit so it was easier, but once you get to the Caribbean you'll wonder why you waited so long. Then when you think life can't get any better, go through the Panama canal (awesome experience) and into the south Pacific and it does get even better. Life's short so do it while you can.

thanks richard, its this sort of stuff we need right now !!

 

[Tinto]

That section of UNCLOS has no bearing on the 90/180 personal or 18 month boat limit. If you call in at say France, onward passage through Spanish waters to maybe Portugal wouldn't be "innocent passage" and the clock would still be ticking. As it says, coastal states can impose their own laws so Schengen/EU rules still apply.

I know people who have done this, been boarded and not had a problem.

obviously you can’t be covering 10 miles a day and neither can you go ashore.You must make meaningful progress. The same question has come up with Greece and the cruising tax.
But each to their own

 

[mattonthesea]

Povoa De Vazim was cheap in 2010. And a cheap, but long, tram ride to Porto airport. I think I paid €100 for a month (10m). But times change

 

[newtothis]

the canaries are in the schengan are they not? And cape verde?

That's a bit of a yes and no question.
Yes, Canaries; no Cape Verde
(and you only get 30 days in Cape Verde, rather than 90 in the Canaries)

 

[CraigandHan]

Thanks mate