Possible to Cross Atlantic from New York to Spain in July ?

[PyotrBee]

Originally Posted by Ram

not if the boat was documented in the USA and owned by a corp. thenn all he would need do is buy the Corp and no vat or tax would be due

Depends how long he wants to stay in the EU.

[PyotrBee]

Originally Posted by KWICK

Okkey folks i am ready to go, i decided going to Bahamas.
Stamp the passport there and back to Maiami.
Thanks a lot eveybody....

Make sure your passport allows this... Even for EU countries, people are allowed into the US 90 days at a time, but a max of 6 mo per year IIRC under such conditions....

[slomotion]

Originally Posted by Ram

not if the boat was documented in the USA and owned by a corp. thenn all he would need do is buy the Corp and no vat or tax would be due

This may well be true, but the U.S. documentation would no longer be valid.

[hellosailor]

Ram-
"if the boat was documented in the USA and owned by a corp. thenn all he would need do is buy the Corp"
Bear in mind that if he buys a corporation that is holding US documentation? The documentation is invalid at the instant he buys the corporation, since federal documentation requires a 51% US-citizen-ownership.

But we're only getting dribs and drabs, not the whole real story. i.e. his location is New York--or Miami, depending on what you read. He doesn't mention the boat's registry, or his visa eligibility. Absent the complete information, one can only speculate.

Think he'll make it back in? <G>

[osirissail]

Like other countries you can get a multiple entry, multi-year visa so if he has one of those popping over to the Bahamas and then back would work barring any X-months/year restrictions.
- - Whatever his destination is in Europe - assuming E.U. country citizenship, he will have to arrange for E.U. documentation and radio and other licenses for the vessel before departure.
- - So many people do this - buy in U.S. and take the boat to Europe that is cannot be very difficult, although is probably going to take some time and money for air-courier back and forth.
- - I would surmise that the paperwork and getting the boat ready for the crossing will eat up his next 90 days of visa easily.

[osirissail]

- - Part II - After a little looking around the US "travel.state.gov" sites are anything but clear. Looking at the herd of support companies wanting to help you with your visa problems - the consensus is that extensions are possible if applied for at least a month before the expiration date on your I-94 (card you get when you actually enter). Air Travel entry via VWP seems to be a max of 3 months. Entry from a pre-approved B1/B2 is up to 6 months with a possible additional 6 month extension.
- - What the companies providing support to you for visa problems agree to is that exiting the USA to Canada, Mexico, and the Bahamas (and/or anywhere else in North America) is not going to work. You have to leave North America completely before you can re-enter on a multiple entry B1/B2. All of the various sites including the travel.state.gov emphasis that the actual person (official) who you see at the USA border is the controlling determinant on whether you get in; back in; or must fly home or somewhere else.
- - It will be interesting to see what actually happens to KWICK when he tries to re-enter from the Bahamas . . .

[J Ventura]

Summing it up , Kwick's visa was running out , there were justified concerns for boat and crew readiness plus it's Hurricane season , and the main objective was to sail to Europe.
After doing research and calculations and reading the advice given here , he chose to sail about 900 miles bucking the Gulfstream right in the usual path of any hurricane or tropical storms that may come up . This to stamp his passport in the Bahamas and then return to Miami , presumably to start working on his transatlantic again.
Talk about complicating your life...

[PyotrBee]

Didn't he say he was going to fly to the Bahamas?

[J Ventura]

oh...he might have. When I read "I'm going" I assumed sailing .... oh well, good luck flying back into MIA after a day in the Bahamas

[osirissail]

Most everything we are conjecturing is based on 1% fact and 99% unknowns since he never stated exactly where is is, what his visa status is, what his home country is, and maybe a dozen other pertinent facts. In any case assuming a VWP entry to the USA via airlines, he is most probably in for a rude shock when he tries to re-enter from the Bahamas.
- - Due to 9/11, the USA is currently in max-xenophobic mode compared to the years before especially if it involves somewhat young males traveling alone.

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by osirissail

...the US "travel.state.gov" sites are anything but clear.

I think "anything but clear" is being very kind. They seem almost deliberately designed to make things more difficult than they have to be. And yet, having worked through getting long-stay visas for both Spain and France, and having dealt with the websites (and the bureaucrats) for both of those countries, I can also tell you that the U.S. website is substantially more user-friendly than either of those!

I think that the various immigration departments of the world's countries intentionally try to make it difficult to work through their maze of paperwork--perhaps on the assumption that if you don't want to come to their country badly enough to put up with all of the headaches and roadblocks that they throw in your way, then you don't want to come badly enough that they would want you there.

[sestina]

Don't forget that St Pierre et Miquelon are part of the EC. They're just south of Newfoundland.

[GordMay]

The Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon is a self-governing territorial overseas collectivity of France. Saint Pierre and Miquelon elect one member to the French Senate, and one member to the French National Assembly.
Altough part of the European Union, Saint-Pierre & Miquelon has its own Immigration procedures and regulations. Upon arrival in St-Pierre et Miquelon, tourists are required to have the following documents :

Citizens from the European Union must provide a passport, which will be necessary during transit via Canada.

Canadians and foreign nationals holding Canadian identification documents, and entering Saint-Pierre and Miquelon directly from Canada, are exempted from passport and visa requirements for stays of maximum duration of 3 months within a period of 6 months.

Americans and citizens from other countries must carry a valid passport.

Other nationalities must provide a valid passport and in some cases a visa will be required.

EU Relations with Saint Pierre and Miquelon
➥ European Commission - Development - Regions and countries

[cayennita]

I would sail along the Long Island sound. Cape Cod Canal, around Cape Elizabeth. Maybe Skip to Halifax and after a suitable time get to St. Pierre (Latitude 46.90, longitude 55.92 degrees). There you are in France. From there to Gibraltar (36 degrees latitude 5 degrees 22 minutes longitude) keeps you mostly above the hurricane paths. The great circle route plays in your favor. Should be able to get a weather window with enough days to get you to the east of most storms. It is still 50 degrees of crossing even though the distance is shorter, it's a long time.
The other choice is a bee line to the Azores. Warmer passage and the quicker you get past 60 degrees longitude, the better.

[hellosailor]

I wonder if I can open a betting pool and take PayPal online so folks don't have to mail in their dollars...

How about a $5 bet, come on folks, who wants to start while the month is still open, buy a date in the betting pool (starting with the 19th, before midnight Eastern time since he's last been trying to get into the Eastern seaboard of the US), place your bets for what day he gets BACK IN on....

All bets are void and the house keeps the pot, if he doesn't get back in within 90 days...

Come on folks, we're sailors, sailors always place bets on when the ship would make landall, don't they?