Original VAT Invoice

[Norman_E]

I am about to receive the original VAT invoice for my boat. It was originally bought in Germany and the German owner had retained the original in case his tax authorities needed to see it. For the last year I have had a laminated copy of it on board, have visited Greece, but have not been asked to show it. My question is, has anyone been asked to produce the original at any EU port? Am I safe in keeping the original at home, and only taking a copy out to the yacht?

 

[PeterGibbs]

It's a good question. No, during the several inspections I have had at the hands of the French and British customs, their interest has been in the crew and whether the boat had declarable currency/alcohol and tabacco etc or forbidden substances - as you would expect. The boat's registration has been very important, and being in order, was sufficient to close that line of enquiry.

I suspect that if the boat appeared new or the registration was not in order, the enquiry would go further. Then the original VAT invoice is needed, although in your case it would not name you as the VAT payer of course.

I am now persuaded that the VAT docs are so important that it is a mistake to carry originals aboard. I am taking the line that colour copies show prima facie that all is in order, and I can always produce the originals in any subsequent enquiries.

Although theoretically one can be fined, imprisoned, guillotined and the boat impounded and crushed on the spot for the merest infraction of EU rules, all the officers I have dealt with posed no such threat. I hope I am not about to be disabused of this belief.

Final offering: perhaps like you, I have always made it a point of policy to have all the papers etc ready to hand so as to waste none of the investigators' time, and to help them on board when they arrive. No jokes or covered-up nervousness - just business; we are in their jurisdiction and they have a job to do, one incidentally that I fully support. Abroad, it helps to find a few words of their language.

Hope this helps.

PWG

 

[vyv_cox]

I agree with all you say. Good point about having the documents to hand in a single folder. The case was quoted last month where an owner was fined for not having his registration document, which he could not find at the time. He subsequently found the document and took it to the customs to claim back his fine. Do you think he got it?????

We have been asked to show the boat's registration document and our passports when asked by Customs in France and Belgium. Never anything else, although our boat is clearly not new. The new drive on immigrants into Holland may well have changed things there, although in our seven years living there we were never asked once to show any papers.

 

[Norman_E]

Thank you both. I will take up Peter Gibbs' suggestion and have a colour laser copy made. It will look much better than the very obvious B & W copy I have.

 

[Swagman]

On a past yacht all I ever had was copy of copies and it was accepted OK in both France and Portugal (the only two places where we were asked to produce it).
JOHN

 

[absit_omen]

You are lucky. My VAT documents consist of a file of VAT invoices totalling 440k . Yes, I am worried carting these around but no choice as the IR will not issue a single document. I wish I had your problem!

VAT issues seem to be the supository to the increasingly anal EU bureaucracy.

 

[Swagman]

[ QUOTE ]
You are lucky. My VAT documents consist of a file of VAT invoices totalling 440k . Yes, I am worried carting these around but no choice as the IR will not issue a single document. I wish I had your problem!

VAT issues seem to be the supository to the increasingly anal EU bureaucracy.

[/ QUOTE ]

Do we assume you've self built and all those invoices are the sum of the parts on or in your yacht built relatively recently. If so I'd be thinking of shredding all those relative to kit that looks old enough to be second hand - for after all - you may have bought them second hand and no one could prove otherwise. If you had you'd have no VAT invoice to show.

I do agree, it would be lovely if someone in authority would review this subject and allow for the issue of one single VAT paid document once a boat is completed.
JOHN

 

[Seven Spades]

Is there a problem with laminating the original?

 

[Guest]

Yes, I was visited this summer by German Zoll demanding proof of VAT paid status. I don't know if a copy would have satisfied them as I showed them the original.

 

[Oliveoyl]

How about an 'authenticated ' copy of the original? In Belgium, this would be via the local authority, or by notary. Do UK solicitors do the same thing?

 

[Guest]

UK solicitors can produce certified copies, or a notary can make a notarised copy. Strictly speaking it then needs to have the Apostille stamp fixed (by the Foreign Office) which makes the notary's stamp effective internationally under the Hague Convention.

 

[absit_omen]

Thank you John. That thought has crossed my mind more than once before. I am sure my accountant could make mincemeat of it all. However, it has not been an issue (so far) so I am prepared to let it lie. Your views, however, are very much appreciated.

 

[Seven Spades]

Wouldn't a copy with a letter from the original selling agent be sufficent.

 

[kengill]

I needed my original when inspected by the Dutch this summer. They inspected all official documents even to counting pages on passports and checking for cut pages! They only relented when they got to my pre-prepared schengen crewlists in triplicate!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[ostra4]

I was asked for ssr ,insurance and icc in Greece this year .I have copies of bill of sale and vat docs on board but to be honest they were done on a top quality printer and I cant tell the them apart although i marked the originals and keep them in safe at home .If further enquiries are made I can produce originals but I dont see this happening due to quality of copies .I keep original insurance ICC etc as easily replacable.

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Worryingly with my last boat, which had a marine mortgage secured against it, the mortgage providers insisted on keeping the original Bill of Sale as security.... they provided me a certified copy, but I did sometimes wonder about the risks associated with this.....