Spanish Taxes

[Guest]

Does anyone have any experience of Tarif T5 as mentioned on Page 13 of the RYA/CRUISING ASSOCIATION Booklet 'Foreign Cruising'? Also has any one any knowledge of the Spanish temporary importation regs? - It would appear from the above booklet that any one resident in Spain for more than 6 months has to re-register their boat on the Spanish register and pay a 12% registration tax.Is the 6 months calculated cumulatively or does it have to be consecutive?(In which case a trip to France or Gib would solve the problem....)
P.S. Have just discovered this site think it is excellent.Please don't pull the plug on it Kim!

 

[cynthia]

What if the boat is there, but the owners are resident elsewhere? If the boat is wintered in Spain, but the owners are elsewhere in the EU, does this rule still apply? In our case the boat was bought in Spain, but delivered to the UK, where she is registered, but we're about to sail back over. How does this affect the tax situation?

Whoops! Just when you think you've got it all covered ..........

 

[Paulka]

My own boat, under Swiss flag, is in Spain since at least 20 years.
During the 80's, nobody did care!
During the 90's, the "precinto" was enforced, and I couldn't use my boat more than 6 months a year, the remaining 6 months, the boat had to be placed under custom's custody (precinto). This meant that the boat could not sail out of the port she was based in, but it was possible to live aboard, and/or make all type of maintenance works.
Last fall, I went to the custom's offices to place my boat under "precinto" as usual. I was then told by the custom's officer, that Spain adopted the European law.
According to this law the boat can stay into the country for 18 months as a maximum, and has then to leave the communitarian waters. She can then return for the next 18 months. Thus, a day's sail 12.5 miles out, once every 18 months is sufficient to satisfy the law, and avoid paying any taxes. The custom's officer told me that, as the Customs don't have the possibility to check that the boat really left the communitarian waters, no control would be done in the future, and that the "precinto" was de facto abolished.

I made some research, just to be as sure as possible, and found the following :

http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/fr/lif/dat/2001/fr_301R0993.html

.... in French!
I'm sure, you'll find the English text on the same site! Just try to replace the "fr" - is it for froggies? - by something like "en" or "eng" ;-)))

You'll find the 18 months under Article 562-e (of the law 301R0993).

The above is valid as long as the owner is NOT a resident of Spain.

If, you want your yacht, to become a spanish boat, you'll have to either show evidence that the IVA (VAT) has been paid ... somewhere, or pay it in Spain (16%). On top of it, you'll have to pay an "immatriculation tax" amounting to 12.5% on a funny "fiscal value" of the boat. The "fiscal value" is decided by the administration it seems without any rationality other than "somewhere between 50% and 120%" of the commercial value, at least for new boats. No clew available for used boats.

The above is true for the Balearics.
The interpretation of laws may widely differ from a province to the next, but I think the 18 months limit, is acceptable to every body, the more so that it is indefinitely renewable.

I hope it helps, and I am sure you will enjoy Spain and its friendly and festive peoples.

Paul

 

[cynthia]

Thanks for the research. We've paid tax in Spain, and as we won't be Sp. residents things look positive on the financial front.

 

[Guest]

Paul,
Thanks for the above.I have now read the Cruising Association Info Pak for the Western Med published 012002 and it would appear that the concession you describe above only applies to boats owned by Non EU Nationals.We EU citizens are still subject to the 6 month time limit.I am seeking further clarification from the resident expert at the RYA.I will post details of any reply.

 

[Martini]

I have just bought a Moody 346 in Gibtraltar and now face VAT when taking boat into Spain. I also would like similar info as Keltman.

Happy and safe sailing to you all

Martini

 

[colvic]

We are in our third year here and NO MENTION OF TAXES. All the books in the UK spell out the facts as in law, but fail to mention that the Spanish don't waste too much time on them.

We've had to show passport or SSR registration on about six occasions only. VAT (IVA @16% in Spain) is often waived if you pay cash.

Whenever we go anywhere in the boat and are requested to fill in previous port next port we always put a non Spanish one as previous.

Hope this eases the mind.

 

[Guest]

My boat is UK registered, kept in Spain since about '94 (before that France for 6 years). I live & work in UK. I've never been asked about importation or tax in Spain, no one cares. I have sailed from the French border as far as Barcelona and throughout the Balearics. I went through all the recommended fuss to obtain a S.A.D. (to show that UK VAT had probably been paid on the boat when new). I don't even know where the S.A.D. form is any more. Forget it. Have fun. Be alright ;^)

 

[gonad]

have lived in spain on & off for years.Just bought english registered boat in barcelona. got proof of vat paid in UK and am sure "when in spain do as the locals,no hay problemas" this is not yet beaurocracy gone mad. Look at all those hams hanging from the ceiling! Wouldn't the HSE have fun .

 

[Guest]

For those of you who do not have access to PBO there is an article in the Cruising Notes section in the July 2002 issue by Mike Harper titled 'Madness in the Med' -'Don't Make a Base in Majorca' which reads as follows;

"Owners of cruising yachts who want to base their boats in Palma de Mallorca,Spain's largest yachting centre,should be aware that afte residing there for 6 months they may be considered by Spanish Customs to have taken up permanent residence.They must therefore,pay import duty on certain means of transport which clearly refers to cars,but also includes boats.Duty is levied at 12 per cent of the owners assessment of the yacht's value,providing the figure is acceptable to Customs and you contact them first.If Customs initiates proceedings against owners after residence for 6 months,it can impose this duty on its assessment of value plus an equal sum as a fine."

Mr. Harper goes on to say that his informant paid over £500 last year after volunteering to Customs and found that their exact arrival date had been logged.Apparently at least 6 other yachts had to pay up some of which were fined.

Non EU flagged vessels can use the Precincto system described elsewhere in this thread.Mr Harper thinks EU flagged boats might be able to take advantage of this system as well if the owner's 'residence' is likely to exceed 6 months.These rules are applied differently throughout Spain."

Upon reading Mr.Harper's article I contacted the RYA Cruising Section who are aware of Spanish Customs applying these regulations on an occasional basis but it usually seems to be applied where the relevant boat owner has a dwelling ashore in which he/she has resided for more than 6 months.The RYA say that the regulations apply to yachts which are in Spain 'for 6 months in any one year' I asked them if a trip out of Spanish waters every so often would 'stop the clock' but they did not know and suggested that this could be taken up with Spanish Customs when first entering.This has the obvious drawback of flagging up the problem to the official(s) who you ask so it may pay to keep a low profile?Any comments personal experiences out there?