New tax for foreign yachts based in Greece from 1st January 2014????

[Chatelaine60]

Has anyone else picked up this news from the ocean cruising club and the cruising association about a new tax coming in from 1st January?? According to the article it is going thro Greek parliament in the next couple of weeks. If it goes through there is going to be a lot of unhappy boatyards and marinas over there. Not to mention the Turkish groups who have taken over levkas, Corfu and a host of other Greek marinas. I will go back to my friend for the link she sent me.

The link is http://www.cruising.org.uk/node/22634

 

[JonJon]

If this is true my boat at 12.1 metres will incurr a charge of 1200 euros. Cant be can it? If so I'm out. Had 3 good years so this will be the finish.

 

[Downsman]

Don't worry about it, they'll probably do a discount for cash no receipt anyway, if you ask nicely..

 

[JonJon]

Yes its hard to believe they could pass something in parliament in the last week of November that would be effective the 1st Jan. Things dont happen like that in Greece they have had enough problems dealing with the DEKPA fiasco. Still we wait and see I guess.

 

[Tony Cross]

The Cruising Association is working hard to get to the truth of this proposal. At the moment it would appear that much is being lost in the translation from a brief Greek report, the gist of which is on the CA website (on a public page). My personal take on this is that the tax for over 12m vessels is likely to be €100/m in excess of 12m. So a 12.7m vessel (like mine) would pay €500.

 

[keithgdg]

Thankfully mines only 11m. By the way what is DEKPA??

 

[Carmel2]

Thankfully mines only 11m. By the way what is DEKPA??

http://www.noonsite.com/Countries/Greece?rc=Formalities

 

[keithgdg]

http://www.noonsite.com/Countries/Greece?rc=Formalities

Thanks for the link carmel2. Good site and needless to say added to home screen.

 

[Steve C Cronin]

Thankfully mines only 11m. By the way what is DEKPA??

Oh! You will still pay. It starts at 7metres.

 

[keithgdg]

Oh! You will still pay. It starts at 7metres.

Blast!!!

 

[Artic Warrior]

Hi Fusu,
So where are you at the moment

Thankfully mines only 11m. By the way what is DEKPA??

 

[keithgdg]

Sadly at work in Hampshire. Expected departure date 01/06/2014. The boat ie the other woman in my life, is in Portsmouth. If I say where are you you're bound to say somewhere hot and sunny aren't you.

 

[pmyatt]

Has anyone else picked up this news from the ocean cruising club and the cruising association about a new tax coming in from 1st January?? According to the article it is going thro Greek parliament in the next couple of weeks. If it goes through there is going to be a lot of unhappy boatyards and marinas over there. Not to mention the Turkish groups who have taken over levkas, Corfu and a host of other Greek marinas. I will go back to my friend for the link she sent me.

The link is http://www.cruising.org.uk/node/22634

Looks like the Northern Adriatic is going to become busy . . . . . .

 

[Nostrodamus]

Interesting proposals which throw up a lot more questions than answers.
Certainly if it does come into effect we would not be going there and I suspect neither would a lot of others. I would also imagine there would be a pretty spectacular exit from the country. In the long and short term they would loose more money from yachts leaving than they would gain from the tax. All that will be left are the charter fleets who can spread the tax over the year via additional charter costs. I also presume the exclusion for motor boats under a certain length means that the locals in day boats and fishing boats would not be effected.
It does not say anything about those already there who have paid marina fees for the winter who could find themselves with another additional bill. Also what happens if you just decided to transit their waters.. do you have to pay for the year?
The med will soon become a no go zone for the average yachtie because of prices....
So which way is the Caribbean?

 

[Mad Pad]

I really don't see what all the fuss is about.
Do you mean to tell me a person owning,mooring and maintaining a 15 metre yacht won't be able to afford euros 1,500 a year to stay in Greece where you can sail for most of the time and pay no mooring/anchoring fees?
Seems good value to me..see it as a cruising permit.
A lot less than the tax they were proposing a few years ago.

 

[Nostrodamus]

I really don't see what all the fuss is about.
Do you mean to tell me a person owning,mooring and maintaining a 15 metre yacht won't be able to afford euros 1,500 a year to stay in Greece where you can sail for most of the time and pay no mooring/anchoring fees?
Seems good value to me..see it as a cruising permit.
A lot less than the tax they were proposing a few years ago.

If we went this year from Italy we would only get half a years cruising for the money. If we wintered there next year we would have to buy another one. For us that is about 3,000 euros for a possible years sailing just in taxes. No, some of us can't afford it.

 

[Tony Cross]

This is a proposed tax and the information we have about it at the moment, whilst valuable and welcome, is far from complete, neither is it yet cast in stone. I think we need to realise that this proposed tax may never be implemented and even if it is, it may well be in a different form to that proposed at the moment. It is pointless ranting and raging against something we don't fully understand and which is not yet in effect.

Lets wait and see what law is finally passed and how they intend to implement it before we start tearing our hair out - those of us who still have any at least.

 

[sailaboutvic]

I really don't see what all the fuss is about.
Do you mean to tell me a person owning,mooring and maintaining a 15 metre yacht won't be able to afford euros 1,500 a year to stay in Greece where you can sail for most of the time and pay no mooring/anchoring fees?
Seems good value to me..see it as a cruising permit.
A lot less than the tax they were proposing a few years ago.

To answer your question , YES a lot of sailors out there can't afford the extra 1500 a year , we are just 12 mts and if we would have to 400 extra a year to cover what is a tax from another country when the greeks don't pay their own taxes , we already pay are taxes in the UK and it would couse us a problem , like a lot of us cruising we on a budget .
If it came to past we would vote with our keel , just as we did last years.

Already most of the yachts that we have spoken to who where planning to go to Greece next year have said their are planning to go else where if this tax came in

 

[Nostrodamus]

This is a proposed tax and the information we have about it at the moment, whilst valuable and welcome, is far from complete, neither is it yet cast in stone. I think we need to realise that this proposed tax may never be implemented and even if it is, it may well be in a different form to that proposed at the moment. It is pointless ranting and raging against something we don't fully understand and which is not yet in effect.

Lets wait and see what law is finally passed and how they intend to implement it before we start tearing our hair out - those of us who still have any at least.

The trouble is we have to make our feelings known somewhere before the tax is implemented. There is no point arguing against it once the law has been passed.

 

[AndrewB]

The trouble is we have to make our feelings known somewhere before the tax is implemented. There is no point arguing against it once the law has been passed.

I don't think there would be a lot of point - it's patently obvious that foreign yacht owners won't like a new tax. The question is, whether yachts would move away in droves and make it self-defeating.

I recall a few years back the uproar when the Bahamas introduced a $300 entry fee plus $500 a year tax to continue staying there. The American yachties all said they would stay away - and so they did, for about six months. Now the fee is accepted without comment, and there are more visitors than ever.

Greece is, by European standards, a cheap place to keep a yacht, and would remain so. A tax at this level would not make many leave, nor greatly discourage others from moving in.