UK yacht registration for any Tom, Dick and Harry?

[Baggywrinkle]

Just had this add pop up ....
.. looks like it's not only the Polish who are selling themselves as a flag state for boats.

 

[RunAgroundHard]

... or rather "boatandyachtregistration.com" believe there is an opportunity in the registration market to make profit from UK and other jurisdictions from yacht registration.

From their web site: -

Boat and Yacht Registration
We can register and flag your vessel in Poland, San Marino, Langkawi, United Kingdom, Panama, Holland, Delaware, Cayman Islands, BVI, Malta, Marshall Islands, Gibraltar, Cyprus and many other jurisdictions

 

[Poignard]

Without wishing to excite the interest of those ever vigilant busybodies who hope to catch me mentioning anything to do with the B-word so they can report me to the moderators, may I ask what practical advantage is there in being registered in the UK, which is not an EU member state, compared with Poland, which is?

Especially as the advert states "Never have to visit UK."

 

[Irish Rover]

Without wishing to excite the interest of those ever vigilant busybodies who hope to catch me mentioning anything to do with the B-word so they can report me to the moderators, what practical advantage is there in being registered in the UK, which is not an EU member state, compared with Poland, which is?

Especially as the advert states "Never have to visit UK."

I'll ignore the bait.
In my case for instance being an EU citizen but resident outside the EU, I would qualify for temporary importation to the EU with a non EU VAT paid boat under a UK flag but not with a Polish flag. I did something similar prior to Brexit but I registered in Jersey to meet the non EU vessel requirement.

 

[Mark-1]

This isn't new, is it? Vessels have always registered pretty much wherever they wanted, hence "flags of convenience". Unless I'm missing something.

 

[Poignard]

I'll ignore the bait.
In my case for instance being an EU citizen but resident outside the EU, I would qualify for temporary importation to the EU with a non EU VAT paid boat under a UK flag but not with a Polish flag. I did something similar prior to Brexit but I registered in Jersey to meet the non EU vessel requirement.

There is no bait (try not to be too disappointed).

I am interested in this topic because I have a UK-registered yacht, which I keep in France. I looked into re-registering her in an EU member state after the UK left the EU but came to the conclusion it would neither be necessary or advantageous for me to do so, at least not for the time being.

 

[Roberto]

The offer seems to reflect a Part3 registration, I wonder how they cope with the UK residency obligation for the owner.

 

[Poignard]

This isn't new, is it? Vessels have always registered pretty much wherever they wanted, hence "flags of convenience". Unless I'm missing something.

I remember once reading that in 1905, 95% of the world's shipping was registered in Great Britain.

Sorry I can't provide a reference for this statistic.

 

[Poignard]

The offer seems to reflect a Part3 registration, I wonder how they cope with the UK residency obligation for the owner.

Does the owner actually have to 'reside' or just have an address to which documents can be sent?

 

[Irish Rover]

The offer seems to reflect a Part3 registration, I wonder how they cope with the UK residency obligation for the owner.

I think it's Part 1 and as @Mark-1 says there's nothing new about this.

 

[Mark-1]

I remember once reading that in 1905, 95% of the world's shipping was registered in Great Britain.

Sorry I can't provide a reference for this statistic.

I'm sure I've read similar. I'd guess being flagged by the nation with the world's currency and rule of law and also with by far the biggest navy (essentially the world's Policeman) made a great deal of sense.

 

[Stemar]

What do they offer that DIY Part 1 registration doesn't?

To my nasty, mean-spirited mind, it sounds a bit like those sites that come when you google car tax that look like the .gov site and offer to tax your car for a fee, with absolutely no benefit except to themselves.

 

[Roberto]

I think it's Part 1 and as @Mark-1 says there's nothing new about this.
View attachment 168451

Thanks, so that includes the Tonnage survey and measurement by an accredited surveyor who will have to visit and measure the boat, or has the survey requirement been removed from the rules?

 

[Irish Rover]

Thanks, so that includes the Tonnage survey and measurement by an accredited surveyor who will have to visit and measure the boat, or has the survey requirement been removed from the rules?

As far as I'm aware the tonnage survey requirement still stands so, assuming it's included, it seems good value for anyone living outside the UK rather than going the DIY route.

 

[GHA]

As far as I'm aware the tonnage survey requirement still stands so, assuming it's included, it seems good value for anyone living outside the UK rather than going the DIY route.

Survey is down to you, they don't provide it, it says on the website.

 

[Baggywrinkle]

When I did my own Part 1 UK registration, I got an accredited Croatian to do the tonnage survey, I was a U.K. citizen, had an address in the UK, but I was resident in Germany - the boat was in Croatia which was not in the EU at the time so it was there under temporary admission.

Taking into account all the footwork I had to do to prove title ... hunting down all the invoices from initial sale to my purchase contract it was a bit of a nightmare. I had to track down paperwork from Bavaria Yachtbau in Germany, a leasing company in Austria, and a charter company in Croatia and after I had done that, the UK ships registry required that all invoices were stamped with the words "Paid in Full" .. in English .... and intialed by the relevant party. What a pain in the ar$e it was.

The only issue I had with British registry was post B-day as the Croatians and Sloveniens wouldn't accept my Croatian VAT paid import paperwork because the boat was UK registered. I used the Croatian paperwork to obtain a 2TL and all was good.

 

[Roberto]

Just had this add pop up ....

One should see what happens with radio licences... Should OfCom make a thorough check of licence holders, they would find a number of them are granted to non-UK registered boats.
It happened a lot at the time of the "Dutch light registration", that ICP document, the Dutch telecom authority would not grant licences to boats not in Dutch waters so plenty of (free) UK licences were sold by the registration agencies to boats under ICP, with 235 xxx xxx MMSIs etc etc.

 

[Irish Rover]

Survey is down to you, they don't provide it, it says on the website.

Expensive then. I registered on Part 1 in Jersey a few years back. I did everything by email and post from Türkiye and it was a very straightforward process. UK part 1 and Jersey part 1 are pretty much the same. Arranging the tonnage survey wasn't that difficult either as there was an accredited surveyor within a couple of hours of me.

 

[RupertW]

There is no bait (try not to be too disappointed).

I am interested in this topic because I have a UK-registered yacht, which I keep in France. I looked into re-registering her in an EU member state after the UK left the EU but came to the conclusion it would neither be necessary or advantageous for me to do so, at least not for the time being.

It should make no odds at all but Greece and Spain started differentiating EU and non-EU flags in a way that makes it awkward for EU VAT paid boats with UK flags. Hopefully this will get sorted out and won’t spread to other countries. it sort of creates a confusing status in officials‘ minds.

 

[Baggywrinkle]

I try and keep everything from the same country ... Sailing Quals, Passport, Registration, Insurance, and Radio licence .... I also have a strange affinity to the Red Ensign even with the B word problems in Europe.

My next boat will be U.K. registered, just like my last one ... I also like the combination of Name and Home Port and I really dislike registration numbers plastered on the bow or stern.

IMO, a boat is a member of the family, not a product with a registration number.