Best Marina in Med - Price, Services, Safety ?

[MartinW]

PS - used to work in Turkey and also considering to go for the 5 years residency ...

[Dockhead]

Contrary to what some people may be advising you, don't fudge any of the customs, taxes, or visa rules. It will bite you in the ar*e if you do.

In general, your boat is an entirely separate question from you as a person. If your boat is non-EU registered and non-EU VAT paid, then you need to use the "temporary importation" regime and follow it scrupulously. You get 18 months at a time and can reset the clock easily so this is not a big problem -- but you have to be very careful to dot every "i" and cross every "t", particularly being careful to have airtight documentation of any trips you make out of the EU for resetting you clock.

Visa questions are different in different countries -- don't fudge. Getting caught with a visa violation is a massive problem nearly everywhere. Turkey is supposed to be a snap with pretty automatic residency permit if you have a berthing contract -- check it out (nice country, too). Schengen countries I think you require you to spend 90 days out for every 90 days in, but I'm not sure if that applies to Ozians.

If you leave your boat in one place for more than half the year, some countries will hit you with a local tax -- I think Spain does this, maybe others. Be careful of that. It is an entirely separate issue from VAT, and a temporary importation exemption from VAT will not help you with that -- something many cruisers have learned the hard way, hit with thousands in unexpected taxes.

Have fun! What a joy, to spend a few years exploring the Med. . .

[MartinW]

What a lucky guy I am ... six blissful months day and night on the net trying to work out how to unravel red tape ... Back in 1980/1 I sailed from Poole to Brisbane on a Roberts 33. We left with passports but no money, no set plan, no visas, no radio, small water and fuel tanks and a builders two stroke diesel we called dumper! Boy, how the world has changed ... I even need to go and get an ICC to prove I can dock a boat!

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Eleebana

This is how I would love to do it, but how can you do this without running foul of the EU boat importing regulations? I was hoping to spend the northern hemisphere summer in the Med, then put the boat on the hard somewhere, fly home for the Australian summer and return to the Med for the Med summer, if possible for 5 or 6 summers. Is this possible?

Had an Aussie mate in the 90's name of Mark who kept his folkboat in Agua Dulce.. evry winter he'd come over for our summer and cruise then head back to OZ for his summer...
But he did it with a little help from his friends ()... he was UK registered...

[Buena Vista]

Hi Martin,

We are also Aussies and spent last year in the western Med, the boat is in San Remo for winter and we will leave and make our way to Turkey this year.

As for regulation, here is a quick primer.

• VAT shouldn't be a problem, if you are going to Malta, a quick trip over to Tunisia (less then 200nm from Malta) will sort that out for another 18 months
• Schengen does apply to Aussies although we didn't have a problem last year. It seems to depend on where you enter and where you leave from. However, with the current economic situation and countries looking to gather as much tax as possible, we will take no chances this year, hence the trip to Turkey
• Unfortunately you won't get an ICC, I tried and it is not yet possible for an Aussie (I won't go into details as there are other threads on here). I did a Yachtmasters Coastal instead, which is accepted. Nobody asked to see it this year, but I feel better having it if they do.

Just one other comment, like someone else mentioned .... 3 weeks from Antibes to Malta!! .... do that and you will miss some of the best experiences available. Our plan this year was to be in Croatia after 3 months but that came and went and we hadn't got further that the Cote d'Azure. We still only made it to San Remo, although we did go to Corsica, the Tuscan islands and along the Ligurian coast.

Good luck with your plans.

Brownie

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

If you leave your boat in one place for more than half the year, some countries will hit you with a local tax -- I think Spain does this, maybe others. Be careful of that. It is an entirely separate issue from VAT, and a temporary importation exemption from VAT will not help you with that -- something many cruisers have learned the hard way, hit with thousands in unexpected taxes.

Have fun! What a joy, to spend a few years exploring the Med. . .

There are no taxes ( other then recently enacted boat vist taxes) that apply in the EU med countries unless you become a tax resident. It matter not how long your boat stays there ( other then VAT clock issues) Spain has no taxes on boats that do not belong to non tax residents.

Dave

[Buena Vista]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

There are no taxes ( other then recently enacted boat vist taxes) that apply in the EU med countries unless you become a tax resident. It matter not how long your boat stays there ( other then VAT clock issues) Spain has no taxes on boats that do not belong to non tax residents.

Dave

I have no idea how they know you are in any specific EU country for more than six months anyway.

Last year try as we may we could not clear in/out of an EU country if we were headed to/from another EU country. We cleared customs in Spain and after that we visited Gibraltar, back to Spain, France and Italy. Each time we sought out customs and frontier police with an arm load of documentation and a request to be cleared in or out, all we got was a confused look and always the same question "why?".

Brownie

[suzanne]

We have had our boat wintered in the med for last four years. Kusadasi, Turkey has a good marina with all facilities. Leros (near the Turkish coast) has a great marina and reasonable prices, also an airport.

[Roaring Girl]

If you want to get out of the EU from Antibes then either Tunisia (a hop skip and a jump from southern Sardinia and then round the the corner to various acceptable marinas. I've not been there but lots on here and the yew boards have, and report no problems this winter: Albania - not been there yet, but going this summer. There may be issues re ability to haul the boat but you could think about it; Montenegro: there are boat yards and I know Cruising Association members who have hauled out there for years.

So if you only have a short time from Antibes and you're worried about visas etc then have a lovely time cruising to Corsica and Sardinia, visit Cagliari and then go to Tnisia. Next year: southern Italy, Pelopponese, Croatia, and haul in Montenegro ... Or visit eastern Spain and Balearics, and return to Tunisia or Morocco.

HTH

Sarah

[Roaring Girl]

Sorry - YBW boards (ybw.com/forums).

Cruising Association - Uk based association of cruising sailors, source of much information, and a Mediterranean email net which is very useful. Yes I'm a member, yes you could join, and be very welcome - myCA

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Buena Vista

I have no idea how they know you are in any specific EU country for more than six months anyway.

Last year try as we may we could not clear in/out of an EU country if we were headed to/from another EU country. We cleared customs in Spain and after that we visited Gibraltar, back to Spain, France and Italy. Each time we sought out customs and frontier police with an arm load of documentation and a request to be cleared in or out, all we got was a confused look and always the same question "why?".

Brownie

Yeap, we like confusion, strict laws that nobody inforces, keeps us amused. Chill. ( and yes in general they dont know, unless of course you are a certain belgian in spain, when asked how long he was there, a year he said in all innocence, and he complained they taxed him!).

Dave

[Roaring Girl]

Ps - if you are still heading for turkey be aware that for uk nationals the law has changed dramatically just now, with a strict limit of 90 daysbn 180 being enforced. This may be different for Aussies (Gallipoli) so do check with your consulate and/or online.