Registration/insurance

[Unchained]

I live and own a home in colorado. If I buy a boat currently registered in Australia and want to sail it in Florida
Can I register the boat in colorado?
Is there additional tax such as important or just colorado sales tax?

[Sailmonkey]

You can document it in Colorado, but you'll need to register it in Florida, and the sales tax and import duties will be due at either one of those places


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[Unchained]

Thanks, any idea what the import taxe would be on a $70000 sailboat?

[Perstarebob]

You want to sail it in Florida , is that the same as base in Florida , long term ? Sometimes you can avoid sales tax if you have owned it for a certain period of time . Could you leave the Australian flag on it ? Are you a U.S. citizen ? Many questions come into play !

[Unchained]

I will be in Florida for a year or 2. I am a U.S. Citizen and I will keep colorado residency with a home. My goal is to be legal, insured but avoid or at least postpone any sales or import tax. Being a coloradoan I know about open range laws water rights and marijuana laws but not a thing about marine registration and taxes.

[Lizzy Belle]

There are so many topics already about VAT and im/exporting boats ...

Click 'Search' and look down a little, you'll see a Custom Google Search. Use that to find these topics and you'll have plenty of reading material

[denverd0n]

My question would be, why would you go to Australia to buy a boat and then bring it to Florida? I honestly do not believe that there is anywhere in the world that you can find as wide a variety of boats available for sale, in as wide a variety of prices, as there are in Florida. Any boat that you could buy, at any price, anywhere else in the world, you can almost certainly find right here.

[WindwardPrinces]

Register and pay tax in Florida.

[rwidman]

I can't comment on import taxes but if you intend to keep the boat in FL you will have to pay taxes on it and register it in FL. There's no way to legally avoid this. Documentation does not relieve you of paying taxes on your boat.

[WindwardPrinces]

Originally Posted by denverd0n

My question would be, why would you go to Australia to buy a boat and then bring it to Florida?

I'm assuming he means he'll buy in Florida, but the boat is already registered in Australia.

[Unchained]

Yes I will buy it in Florida from a couple of Aussie who sailed it here and need to leave this summer

[Lizzy Belle]

If the US situation is similar to the EU, then it doesn't matter where the boat is - it's registered in AU and you'd be importing her.
What the exact costs are, you can probably check with a phone call to your local authorities.

Here in the EU, it depends on the year the ship was build and some other factors. And which EU country you pick

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by Unchained

Yes I will buy it in Florida from a couple of Aussie who sailed it here and need to leave this summer

Okay, that makes more sense than what I was thinking.

In that case, there really is no way to avoid paying Florida sales tax. As for importation tax, I think it is 1.5% of the value of the boat, but check the customs website to be sure.

[Unchained]

Thanks everyone this answers my question and then some. Really excited about doing this and really happy a found this forms so helpful