There are implications surrounding the country of registration and UK VAT<\/p>\n
\n Formalities for boat registration in France vary depending on whether owners may wish to take it to sea or only use it on inland waterways
\n RVillalon\/Shutterstock\n <\/p>\n
Legally owning a French second-hand boat as a UK resident is proving an administratively complex task, reports a reader with a home in the Camargue area.<\/p>\n
Tony Poulson said he had a second home last year and it is next to a marina with a mooring to the back of the property.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt seemed we should look at getting a boat \u2013 and I assumed it wouldn\u2019t be complicated, but it turns out that post-Brexit, it is. You wouldn\u2019t think buying a boat would cause more complications than buying a house.\u201d<\/p>\n
Read more:\u00a0\u2018Our \u20ac8,000 barge in France gives us an off-grid retirement\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n They are looking at a small boat, under 10m long, to use on their visits to France, potentially taking it to sea, but also to use in the Rh\u00f4ne-S\u00e8te canals or Canal du Midi.<\/p>\n He said they have had discussions with officials at the nearby boat registration department in S\u00e8te, and with local Douanes customs officers.<\/p>\n They have found that if a UK-resident buys from a French resident they must de-register it, remove the French flag and register it in the UK.<\/p>\n Mr Poulson said he has started discussions with UK registration authorities, who say they will accept this. However, they are now looking into whether there may also be UK VAT implications, despite the fact the boat would be staying in France. (The French Douanes reassured him there should be no issue with potential levying of French VAT, since they would assume it to have been paid on the original sale.)<\/p>\n Read also:\u00a0\u00a0What are the visa rules for boat owners visiting France?<\/a><\/p>\n He said he and his wife are also investigating insurance options for a UK resident and a boat located in France. \u201cOur house insurer in France wouldn\u2019t insure it as we are UK residents, so now I\u2019m speaking to insurers in the UK, but haven\u2019t had a firm answer yet.\u201d<\/p>\n We note that formalities for boat registration in France also vary depending on whether owners may wish to take it to sea or only use it on inland waterways. Registration for sea allows both, but inland registration does not allow use at sea.<\/p>\n According to French government information<\/a> on pleasure boats that can take to the sea to register one in France it must belong to a French or EU\/EEA citizen or a British Brexit Withdrawal Agreement beneficiary who either lives in France or has elected France as the boat\u2019s \u2018domicile\u2019 (a French address must be provided where paperwork can be sent).<\/p>\n Read also: Make sense of\u2026 boating in France<\/a><\/p>\n