Flagging Vessel

[rpelton]

We are going to purchase a boat in international waters and plan to sail Portugal and the Med. We plan to Flag non vat, such as Cayman or Channel Islands.

Has anyone used a company they'd like to recommend for Flagging?

Thank you!
Bobby

[huramentzefix]

there is no such thing as purchasing in international waters.
A contract to be legaly recognised has to have a date, a location and a signature.
Other than "planet earth" or "above the fish".


Check for legal requirements of sales contracts in the european union.
no country supports tax-evasion.



You are limited to a certain amount of time within europe when not european flagged.
So you will have to go to africa then ... (probably not a bad choice)
Where are you going to sell the boat then? No european is going to buy it, no north american either ...
What you think to have saved on the taxes you will loose twice on the boat.


An UK boat you can only sell in the UK. Or not stay anywhere for long ...
The Current nine EU candidate countries are Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Moldova, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine



You can go Dominican Republic though.
We are promoting recreational boating at the moment and you can get a dominican title and flag tax-free. But we need to see the boat here.
Reach out if you need help.

[jzk]

Originally Posted by huramentzefix

You can go Dominican Republic though.
We are promoting recreational boating at the moment and you can get a dominican title and flag tax-free. But we need to see the boat here.
Reach out if you need help.

Let's say I buy a catamaran in France that I want to use in the Caribbean, Bahamas and US. Can I flag it in the Dominican Republic? What are the costs? What is required on an annual basis?

Thanks!

[SailingHarmonie]

Originally Posted by huramentzefix

there is no such thing as purchasing in international waters.
A contract to be legaly recognised has to have a date, a location and a signature.
Other than "planet earth" or "above the fish".

Actually this is WRONG. You know not of which you write, although you do state it very emphatically.

There are many vessel sales that are made “offshore”. The usual reason is that US citizens are prohibited from buying a foreign flag vessel inside the USA. I suspect this is the case with the OP.

The usual solution to this silly problem is to just sail the boat outside US territorial waters and consummate the deal there. 100% legal, and happens all the time. It has nothing to do with tax evasion, and nothing to do with the vessel’s ultimate flag state registration.

Many boat sales are concluded 3.5 miles off the coast of Florida for this reason.