VAT Status

[Dazzajohm]

Will hopefully be taking the boat across the channel to France this season, and have just been reading up on paperwork I need to take and the topic of VAT status came up.

I've got a 1990 Princess and now I come to think about it I remember the dealer saying he's part of some scheme or somethng and at the bottom of the invoice it says "Input tax has not and will not be claimed B' respect of the goods sold on this invoice"

Has anyone got any ideas what the above means and whether it would satisfy officials if they want to see the VAT status of the boat... Or how else I would go about satisfying this requirement.

Cheers

 

[Neil_Y]

If it was new you should have paid VAT and have a receipt for VAT paid unless the dealer was not VAT registered which I doubt.

If it was second hand and he was the broker then he charges VAT on his fees, but you are paying the seller the amount for the boat and in which case should get a copy of the original VAT invoice with the boat from when the boat was new.

Or at least that's how it's worked for me.

 

[Dazzajohm]

If it was new you should have paid VAT and have a receipt for VAT paid unless the dealer was not VAT registered which I doubt.

If it was second hand and he was the broker then he charges VAT on his fees, but you are paying the seller the amount for the boat and in which case should get a copy of the original VAT invoice with the boat from when the boat was new.

Or at least that's how it's worked for me.

I got the boat from second hand dealer and on the invoice it says I paid zero VAT.

As the boat was built in 1990 I’m guessing the original receipt has been long lost along the way which I’m sure must be the case for other boats.

 

[Tranona]

I got the boat from second hand dealer and on the invoice it says I paid zero VAT.

As the boat was built in 1990 I’m guessing the original receipt has been long lost along the way which I’m sure must be the case for other boats.

Yes, you are in no different position from thousands of other boat owners. It really is not a problem. I assume that you have a Bill of Sale transferring title to you when you bought the boat in addition to the invoice. This will prove that the transaction took place in the UK so any VAT issues (and there are none) will be the responsibility of HMRC. Transactions between private citizens are not subject to VAT, but if the sale goes through a dealer he pays VAT on his profit, not on the boat itself. Hi sinvoice is saying that he is not claiming any VAT as an input, but will report VAT on his profit using what is called the "margin" scheme - just like a used car dealer.

It is highly unlikely you will ever be asked to show any VAT document in France as they have much more important things to worry about. Just make sure you have your registration document for the boat, insurance, radio licence and passports. Good advice on taking your boat abroad can be found on the RYA site.

 

[Dazzajohm]

Yes, you are in no different position from thousands of other boat owners. It really is not a problem. I assume that you have a Bill of Sale transferring title to you when you bought the boat in addition to the invoice. This will prove that the transaction took place in the UK so any VAT issues (and there are none) will be the responsibility of HMRC. Transactions between private citizens are not subject to VAT, but if the sale goes through a dealer he pays VAT on his profit, not on the boat itself. Hi sinvoice is saying that he is not claiming any VAT as an input, but will report VAT on his profit using what is called the "margin" scheme - just like a used car dealer.

It is highly unlikely you will ever be asked to show any VAT document in France as they have much more important things to worry about. Just make sure you have your registration document for the boat, insurance, radio licence and passports. Good advice on taking your boat abroad can be found on the RYA site.

Ah that’s a great help, thanks very much - indeed the RYA info on sailing abroad is exactly the info I’m looking at to make sure I have everything covered. People in my marina say they’ve never been asked for more than their passports and the SSR but I prefer not to leave anything to chance.

Only one thing - I wasn’t given a bill of sale from the dealer, just an invoice detailing the vessel particular etc. Will this matter?

 

[Tranona]

Only one thing - I wasn’t given a bill of sale from the dealer, just an invoice detailing the vessel particular etc. Will this matter?

Not really as that is good evidence of title. However it is better to have a continuous record of changes of title from the day the boat left the factory. Boats don't have any definitive legal existence so proving you own it is solely down to the history of title and the Bill of Sale has become established as the best way to achieve that. For example if you want to register the boat on the Part 1 register you need to have a Bill of Sale history. I am surprised the dealer did not give you one plus any other previous documents. I bought my boat from a dealer and it came with the bill of sale from the builder to the dealer and then one from him to me. I did a part exchange and transferred title from me to the dealer with a Bill of Sale.

There is a section on the RYA site on ownership issues that is worth reading.

 

[Dazzajohm]

Not really as that is good evidence of title. However it is better to have a continuous record of changes of title from the day the boat left the factory. Boats don't have any definitive legal existence so proving you own it is solely down to the history of title and the Bill of Sale has become established as the best way to achieve that. For example if you want to register the boat on the Part 1 register you need to have a Bill of Sale history. I am surprised the dealer did not give you one plus any other previous documents. I bought my boat from a dealer and it came with the bill of sale from the builder to the dealer and then one from him to me. I did a part exchange and transferred title from me to the dealer with a Bill of Sale.

There is a section on the RYA site on ownership issues that is worth reading.

Ok great, as long as it looks like the invoice will be sufficient then that’s good for me. I know the particular dealer I got my boat from buys cheap from all over the place and does them up or gets insurance write offs with reparable damage and fixes them up. Perhaps that’s why he doesn’t have any paperwork. My last boat was the same in that it didn’t come with any paperwork either but I never took that abroad so wasn’t an issue

I’ll have a google of the rya and see if I can find their section on ownership issues. Cheers for the help.