Moving a boat from Italy to Greece

[pipemma]

OK, I should know the answer to this but let me ask a really stupid question...

Assuming the survey on the boat we are buying is positive, we should be moving her from Italy to Greece sometime in May.
- Boat is EU VAT paid, always been in the EU, currently on Italian flag (will be changing probably to Polish but that will take a good couple of months, I expect, so probably not relevant here)
- People: one dual British/Swiss (Swiss passport gives free movement), one British with Schengen residence permit - passport never stamped at IT/GR ferry ports as internal to Schengen

What, if anything, do we need to check out of Italy and into Greece? Boat? People?

Thanks in advance

 

[Metabarca]

Since you are going from one Schengen country to another, and you have valid residency/passport, there is no need to check out of Italy, nor, presumably, to check into Greece.
If the Italian-flagged boat is a 'natante', that is, with no registration, when you change flag, just... change the flag. If it is registered, you'll need to have it removed from that register.

 

[andrewAB]

I think will still need to pay ETAPI cruising tax online.

 

[pipemma]

Thanks both. The boat is being deregistered, but I believe we can move her while that process is happening. Yes, will def need the eTepai; we're based in Greece, so we know about that.

On a related but opposite note, what would the situation be with the same crew, but a now-UK-flagged, non-VAT-paid boat from Greece to Italy?

 

[Tranona]

Is this a different boat? The one in your first post does not lose its EU VAT paid status if you register it in the UK. A non EU VAT paid boat is one where either VAT has never been paid and is in the EU under TA, or has come from the UK since 1/1/2021 (and therefore UK VAT paid) which will also be in the EU under TA.

Important to understand that movement of boats is under different rules from movement of people (which is governed by Schengen rules). EU VAT paid status and therefore free circulation belongs to the boat as a means of transport and is independent of the owner or crew, their residence and citizenship and flag of registration.