Help Me Choose a Hailing Port

[vintageray]

Need to change the hailing port of my boat. The previous owners had abbreviated the city's name (not supposed to do that) on the pretty board on the stern of the vessel. Only have room for 5 letters for the name of a hailing port city. Can be anywhere in the U.S. or a U.S. territory. I'm experiencing a mental block on this.

[Vasco]

MIAMI

[Noname]

Moab, Utah??

[vintageray]

Miami would fit, but Florida is funny about taxing boats that come there if they are staying awhile if they had previously planned on staying awhile in Florida. Showing a Florida hailing port on the documentation might subject me to taxes when I go there.

[sarafina]

Would it be silly to make *your* hailing port your boats *hailing port*...?

and maybe a smaller font would allow more letters?

[vintageray]

My hailing port right now is Holden Beach (too many letters). Coast Guard reg's say letters have to be 4". Can't use smaller font.

[Surveyor]

Dover

[sarafina]

Well, Reno is short and no danger of a nevada tax man finding you!

[Ironhorse74]

I do believe that a hailing port has to have a US Post Office. Which eliminates Y Alaska. Ada Oklahoma has one, So do Ajo Arizona and Ely Nevada

[Delfin]

Originally Posted by sarafina

Well, Reno is short and no danger of a nevada tax man finding you!

I like Reno too. Unlikely for the Nevada State Legislature to come up with boat ownership rules that would interfere with you.

However, for pure class, it would be hard to beat BRONX, although there are few taxing authorities more heinous that those guys.

[Rick R]

State register it in a state that does not have a sales tax (Delaware), and you don't need to list a hailing port at all

[CarinaPDX]

It might be easier to help if we knew where you were based.

I would avoid like the plague any place that is tax advantaged, like Dover, Delaware. It is a red flag for the taxman. I would also tend to avoid any state that you actually might visit, unless you are prepared to pay their taxes.

Once out of the states the federal document is all that you need, so you can stop paying the state registration fees wherever you register once you are gone.

A state registration can cause problems in a few places (perhaps most notoriously Guadeloupe, which was not recognizing them - after $1000 fine you are free to go :-( )

[vintageray]

I'm at a boatyard in NC, refitting the boat. I plan on moving it to Florida in the fall and then to the Caribbean, probably Panama after hurricane season next year. Don't have a real base. Live on the boat with my dog. Put NC stickers on it to make them happy here. Previous hailing port, Philadelphia, PA. with Maryland stickers,

[Loco Gato]

Weed,Ca.
But then there is the DEA,Ca tax and???????????

Or there's Cool,Ca.
How cool is that!

[Unicorn Dreams]

State registration has nothing to do with hailing port for documentation criteria, any city, state can be used.

Hailing port has nothing to do with taxes, only state registration..

Mine is registered in Texas, but my hailing port is Marathon. Fla.