VAT and transitting EU

[walker]

Had a good look through past posts on but can find no clear answer to this question. Nor from C + E website re at what point a boat is deemed to be imported.

Having in very short time had enough of grumpy Croats we are looking to move the boat (-share) from Split after the forthcoming season and are due to discuss at the group's annual meeting tomorrow. Although likely next home will be Greece we quite fancy Turkey. The boat is not VAT paid and we don't want to cough up before we have to. We would obviously have to pass through Greek waters to get to Turkey, so the question is, do we have to pay VAT immediately on entering EU waters or is it possible to transit without putting into a Greek port and (legitimately) not pay VAT. Is there any way (again legal - lets leave morality aside) round this, like transferring ownership to a non-UK resident for delivery trip then transferring back.

The boat is currently UK Part 1 registered and the owners are all UK residents.

 

[Gypsy]

If you do not intend to stop in ANY port in Greece I would suggest there is no issue to deal with. However, it is a bit of a long haul to get from Croatia to Turkey without taking on water/fuel/food.

Non EU boats which are non VAT paid can stay in EU waters for up to 18mths but may leave to a Non EU country and return for another 18mths. There are good details on www.noonsite.com. This information may include something to deal with your situation

In a practical sense I think you are being over-cautious. I have cruised in Italy, Malta, Greece and Turkey and I have never had a question about the VAT status of my boat. It is not mentioned on my Ship's Papers. If you are in transit I suggest it is the last thing the authorities are worried about. If you stay in one EU port for a number of months you might attract some attention.

I rekon if you sail down to Corfu, check in at Gouvia (in the summer season) or the New Port and pay the current EU35 for a cruising permit you will be able to transit through Greece, stop wherever you want to and arrive in Turkey with minimum stress and not have to worry about risks of problems if you need to find shelter because of the weather.

Ray

 

[walker]

Thanks for that Gypsy. I know it would be a long trip but I rather like the idea of doing my first long passage knowing that if the going got really tough I could always duck into a port (albeit cheque book to hand just in case). Reckon could be done in a fortnight if we carried some 'just in case' extra fuel.

Do you have any view what the consequences would be if we chanced our arm and were caught out (however unlikely) - would we just have to stump up the VAT? Or could they seize the boat?

In any case I'll put your suggestion to the group tomorrow. The other option on the table is to bite the VAT bullet and book a berth at Gouvia for 2006, which I certainly wouldn't be averse to - main attraction of Turkey is the better food and quite frankly my waistline could do without the additional temptation, although two weeks at sea should help on that front.

 

[Sea Devil]

If you are flying the red ensign - your boat is of european origin, it is part 1 registered - I would be amazed if anyone asked the vat status - nobody has ever asked me if my boat was VAT paid in 15 years of non uk cruising -
Only problem comes when you sell it........

 

[jerryat]

I agree with Bambola. We've never been asked for any VAT documents anywhere, despite going through a lot of annoying trouble to get them before we set off cruising. I don't think you'll have anything to worry about.

 

[Gypsy]

As the other posters have similar views to mine I think you may recognise that there is a lot of hype about this VAT paid status. Obviously the various authorities are on the lookout for EU residents trying to avoid VAT in EU but as Bambola suggested the real crunch is when the boat is sold.

Although I have no direct experiance of being questioned about VAT upon arriving in EU, I think that if you can validly claim you are in transit then you can expect reasonable time to exit the EU.

When I first picked up my boat in France ex VAT I was highly sensitive to following the letter of the law and expecting checks and controls at any border/port of entry. In practice even though I still stay within the EU time limits for foreign flagged boats I have never had any query about VAT, how long I have been in EU etc. We do keep moving, seldom more than 2 weeks in a port unless for wintering but I can see that the authorities do not want to actively interfere in what is by and large a very orderly cruising community which brings income to their local businesses.

If on the otherhand you tried to flout the rules e.g. charter your boat where you don't have the rights, you can expect someone to notify the authorities to have you checked out "bigtime".

For what it's worth, we preferred Turkey to Greece. The people are more friendly and yes liked the food better although the Ionian is also our favourite Greek area due to the range of islands, more W.European influences (Italy and UK) and more trees rather than lumps of bare rock like the Aegean. Once we are done with Sardinia I expect we will head back to Turkey.
Ray