Yacht Registration in Gibraltar

Entitlement

People entitled to be owners of British Flag vessels are:

• British nationals

• Citizens of the European Union

• Companies incorporated in ju risdictions which are subject to UK laws, and have principal places of business in these lo cations

Non-British nationals can make use of Gibraltar companies to own their vessels. The vessels can then be registered in the names of their Gibraltar companies,with the own ers or their nominees holding aU the shares in the Company.

All vessels registered in Gibral tar be they in the name of Gibraltar companies or EU citizens, are re quired to appoint Registered Agents in Gibraltar who are en trusted with the annual renewal of the registration of the vessels for and on behalf of the Beneficial Owners of the vessels.

VAT(Value Added Tax)

Advantages

Gibraltar's situation at the gate way to the Mediterranean, its Brit ish Flag Registry and the facilities provided by all three of its marinas means that it is ideally placed to service all registration, mooring,re pair and maintenance needs asso ciated with the yachting world.

All vessels registered in Gibral tar are registered as British flag ves sels with documentation being identical to the UK requirements and are required to fly the Red En sign.

Gibraltar's status within the EU is that it is a full EU member except that it is exempted from levying VAT as it does not form part of the EU's Common Customs Tariff area.

For this reason, it is important to differentiate between countries fall ing within the HU's CCT area and other EU territories such as Gibral tar.

Under the laws applicable to yachts registered in Gibraltar in the name of limited companies it is;

• Not necessary for shareholders or company directors to be na

All vessels registered in Gibraltar are registered as British flag vessels ... and are required to fly the Red Ensign

For the reasons described above, if you register your yacht in Gibral tar you pay;

• No VAT in Gibraltar

• No Import Duty (if your vessel is not based in Gibraltar)

• No tax on sale of your vessel tionals or residents of Gibraltar

• Not necessary for the vessel to be surveyed annually

• Not necessary for the skipper to hold any form of mariner's cer tificate in the case of pleasure yachts under 80 GRT.

VAT is normally charged on yachts which are used within Com mon Customs Tariff waters,regard less of whether the yacht is owned by a Gibraltar company. For this reason it is important to note that whether a yacht is registered in Gi braltar or any other British Flag port, it is also subject to the condi tions imposed by other countries as to the length of time that it may re main in any port without becom ing subject to Import Duty as a for eign registered vessel.

Although VAT-free temporary importation status is still available to yachts that do not spend more that eighteen consecutive months in CCT waters, this is conditional upon the yacht not being used by any EU residents during its time in CCT waters.

If a vessel which is seeking a transfer of its Port of Registry from a country within the Common Cus toms Tariff area to Gibraltar,has al ready paid VAT on its purchase value, it would be important to show that the "resale" of the vessel to the name of a Gibraltar company is effected within the CCT area in order to preserve its VAT-paid sta tus.

EU citizens seeking to re-register their vessels in Gibraltar in the name of Gibraltar companies should note that any VAT levied by CCT member countries on their vessels would be conditional upon their status as EU citizens and not on their vessel's Port of Registry. For this reason it would certainly bean advantage if those EU citizens seeking to re-register their vessels in Gibraltar and continue to use their vessels within CCT waters, havealready paid VAT on theirvessels.

4. A Notarised copy of the vessel's current Certificate of Registry (if not a new vessel).

5. A Notarised copy of the ven dor's passport(if not a new ves sel).

6. A "Declaration of Ownership" form.

7. Either an original Measurement and Tonnage Certificate or a Notarised copy of the same as issued by any one of the follow ing Classification Societies:

• Bureau Verilas

• Lloyds of London

• Germanischer Lloyd

•American Bureau ofShipping

• Det Norske Veritas

• RINA

• TheYBDSA

8. If the intention is to register the vessel in the name of a com pany,then all of the above pro cedures should be preceded by the setting-up of the Company itself.

The Gibraltar Yacht Registry is itself able to act as the Accounting Authority for Gibraltar registered vessels

Procedures for the registration of a vessel in Gibraltar

If you were to choose to proceed with registration in your own name,there would be a number of documents that would be required to be completed in a particular manner in order to comply with Gibraltar Registry conditions. These would be:

1. A Bill of Sale(in a format com pliant with Gibraltar Registry conditions) to be signed by the vendor of the vessel before a Notary Public.

2. Either the original Builder's Certificate or a Notarised copv of the same.

3. Confirmation of the name of the vessel that is to be registered in Gibraltar.

Radio Licensing for Gibraltar registered vessels

All vessels .seeking a Radio Li cence in Gibraltar, are required to appoint an Accounting Authority in Gibraltar to attend to the settle ment of all costs arising from the usage of the on-board Radio equip ment. It is useful to note that the Gibraltar Yacht Registry is itself able to act as the Accounting Au thority for Gibraltar registered ves sels, subject to certain conditions being met by the client.

Forfurther iuforivatiou please con tact: Jonathan Sta^netto, Form-a-co (Gibraltar) Limited, E-Mail: formaco@gibnet.gi Tel: 79959 Fax: 79894

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