Importing Boat to Brazil

[barrycame]

Hello Folks,
I have a 39 foot Bavaria, currently moored at Ostia on the coast of the Med near Rome. My employers are transferring me to Brazil and I was initially thinking of taking my boat with me. But initial inquiries indicate that may be impossible, or at least prohibitively expensive. I understand that a foreign flagged boat can stay in Brazilian waters for six months, after which it is subject to 130 percent import duties. Even worse, Brazilian customs decide the value of the boat based on the delivery price of a brand new boat of the same size and length. Does anybody have any experience with this kind of issue or, better yet, any suggestions?

[conachair]

Pretty much the case it seemed when I was there recently. The boat can actually stay there for 2 years as long as you only have 6 months a year. Or something like that. There was talk of the mercasol (not sure of the exact spelling, but a bit like a south american EU) agreement which possible meant that you could register in, say, Uragay and keep the boat in Brazil. But as often down there no one knew what the rules actually are. Not going to be easy or cheap to get your boat there.

[dpons]

The best thing will be to ask the consulate. Failing that, try to contact a marina in Brazil (Ports Harbours Marinas in Brazil), they'll know for sure. If you have a resident visa I venture that you should have no problems with your boat.

If you have to take it out once a year or so, the closest/best place is Piriapolis, Uruguay (http://www.puertosdeportivos.com.uy/puertos/index.php?Id=6).
Is about a 10 day sail off Rio de Janeiro, and there is no time limit for the stay of your boat.

[conachair]

Originally Posted by dpons

If you have a resident visa I venture that you should have no problems with your boat.
.

Think you´re wrong there. Had a friend with residency tried that and all hell broke loose. Authoroties were as helpful as they could be but he had to get the boat out of the country straight away.

[gauvins]

@conachair -- I guess you meant MERCOSUR(Mercosur - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) a free trade zone. I do not know the first thing about the implications wrt boats, but I'll venture that it is a bit like the Schengen zone in Europe. I have a Canadian registered boat, based in Europe. I must exit the Schengen at least one day every 18 months to avoid VAT. I would guess that MERCOSUR has something similar.

--

@barrycame -- Can you give us an idea of what it is like to keep a boat in Brazil? I am planning to sail back to Canada from the Med during the next few years. Crossing from Senegal to, say, Natal and then up north over several years seems like an interesting possibility. Where can we safely and economically leave a boat for an extended period of time? What are the conditions during the May-August period?

[conachair]

Originally Posted by gauvins

I would guess that MERCOSUR has something similar.

I wouldn´t try to guess anything about Brasil . It´s a bit chaotic down there. Some legal people I met socially said that Mercosor (or mercosul in Brasil) wasn´t really working as far as boats were concerned. No-one, in the north anyway, knew exactly what the rules were and nobody was going to stick their neck out to create a precident.
I went from Cape Verde to Natal in Feb and it was fine, trades all the way to equator. Route is here Sailing in conachair
If you are only going to go north afterwards I would head straight to Jacare, up the river from Cabadelo, about 80Nm south of Natal. There´s a marina there ( Marina Jacaré Yacht Village ). You can leave your boat there long term (well, 2 years anyway). Phillipe and local customs office know the paperwork needed so not difficult. But the barnicals and mussels grow spectacularly there. You can dry out against some pilings to scrub off.
Natal they charged 35R$ just to anchor near the yacht club, outrageous price for Brasil, I much prefered Jacare. If you are interested in anywhere further south you should head there for landfall, very difficult to get south from Cabadelo during their winter (April - Nov).

[gauvins]

@conachair -- Thanks for the information. As far as you know, can we leave a sailboat on the hard for an extended period of time? Somehow I do not like the idea of leaving a boat at a mooring for months on end

[Adventurer1]

Hello all,

I am a property owner of a house on the shore of the Island of Itaparica, just south of Salvador. Lived there for two years. Importing is not a desired option. The two year rule applies and is the right course of action.

If I were to leave a boat there unattended I would definitely put in on the hard and have it well protected. Thievery abounds. I had a friend there buy a cruisers boat that needed cash and did a complete refit to generate documents that identified it as a domestic build. That's the way Brazil operates.

Enjoy yourself.