Re Rigister

[james56]

I want to bring my Greek registered boat back to the UK. It is registered in my name. Does anyone know how I go about De registering it and Re registering in the UK as I can find nothing out about it from the UK. And as for finding anything out in Greece....well....

 

[V1701]

You could try Pinnacle Yacht Sales for advice, depending on the history of the boat you might have to pay VAT if you bring back to UK...

 

[Tranona]

Should be no VAT issues if the boat was bought in Greece. Any issues will be the responsibility of Greek authorities, not UK. If you are UK resident you can register it on the SSR. See the MCA site to check if you qualify. You do not need to remove it from the Greek register before registering here. Indeed there is no compulsion to register it in the UK. You can move around freely with Greek registry. However, if you want to remove it from the Greek register you have to apply to the registrar in Piraeus. Normally people use a lawyer as it makes it "easier" and you end up with a certificate of de-registation (and transfer of ownership if it is changing owners). Suggest you contact the Greek Registrar for information.

 

[Melody]

Is it a private or professional yacht? Where is it based?

Like every aspect of life in Greece there will be lots of bureacracy to deal with. You will need several pieces of paper with various declarations and lots of stamps to de-register it. If VAT has not been paid you will need even more bits of paper.

Speak to a lawyer. It's probably not something you'll want to tackle yourself.

When you get to the UK you can probably register it there with a letter and a stamp I'd guess. Ah, the simple life...

 

[Catweasel]

I'm new to the game but...isnt the only reason to re-register for insurance purposes? If that's the case I'd contact your current insurance company and see what they say about permanent relocation.

You could also check the SSR to see what they require.

 

[duncan99210]

If you never intend to bring the boat back into Greek waters, then all you need to do is to register it on the UK Part 3 Register (Small Ships Register) and you can do that on-line for (IIRC) £25, provided you have a valid UK address for the registration papers to be sent to. Sail out of Greek waters, replace Greek registration number with SSR number, Greek flag with Red Ensign and sail on into the sunset. However, there are, I suspect, all sorts of Greek rules and regulations that you'll have broken by doing so and if you were to take the boat back into Greek waters in a few years time, you might run into some expensive problems.....

 

[Tranona]

I'm new to the game but...isnt the only reason to re-register for insurance purposes? If that's the case I'd contact your current insurance company and see what they say about permanent relocation.

You could also check the SSR to see what they require.

There is no connection between registration and insurance. In some countries (like Greece) it is a legal requirement to register your boat.

It is not a legal requirement in the UK and the main reason for registering a boat is to demonstrate it is a UK boat when visiting other countries. The SSR does this with minimal formalities, but there is a more formal regsiter (Part 1) which also records title to the boat and lenders can register charges against the boat.

The OP, on the basis of the information given quite legally use the boat anywhere and keep it in the UK, in just the same way as I kept my UK registerd boat (like hundreds of others) in Greece.

 

[james56]

THANKS

Thanks to everyone for the advice. VAT has been paid, so think I will just go over and bring it back to the UK and hope thats the end of it.

 

[Tranona]

The only problem with that is when you come to sell it you sill need to deregister it unless you sell it to another Greek national. The advantage of keeping it on the Greek register is that you have a formal record of ownership, but you may find it better to reregister now as the process is time consuming and could delay a sale. This might put potential buyers off.