Live in US - Where Can I Buy My Lagoon 410 ?

[scoobert]

So i am scanning all of the ad's i see for the lagoon 410.
i run across several phrases.
tax not paid
vat not paid
vat paid
not for sale to US residence in us waters.

out of all of those what ones can i buy and not pay a huge tax when i get it home to my new home base of New Hampshire? i understand the most tax i can pay the state is 1800. i do not need a $20,000 surprise when i get home. prices are ranging from 180,000 to 275,000 so i need to know before i proceed.

[Rick R]

New Hampshire does not have a sales tax, but there may be import duties. You will need to talk to US Customs to find out. VAT is a European tax, so NA to you.

[scoobert]

well that is the question.

[kevingy]

If you purchase a non-US flagged vessel for pleasure use and then import the vessel into the United States (thereby flagging the vessel in the US), the import duty is 1.5%. So, for your price range, you're looking at $2700-$4125 in import duty to import the vessel.

Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States

The above document also indicates that there are provisions for duty-free importing of vessels from countries with whom the US has trade agreements. While I was able to determine which countries were applicable, I was unable to find the rules determining how the provisions were applied. For example, the rules may only apply to new buildings originating from the specified nation or only to vessels imported for commercial use.

Concerning VAT, the Value Added Tax is a European Union sales tax. As an American, the VAT doesn't apply to you, provided that after purchasing the vessel, if the vessel is in EU waters, it is removed from EU waters with 18 months after closing. VAT is levied on a vessel once. When you see "VAT paid", obviously, that means the VAT has been paid. Similarly, "VAT not paid" or "tax not paid" means that it hasn't been paid. If VAT applied to you, you would either want a "VAT paid" vessel or you would take into consideration needing to pay the VAT in your offer price.

[scoobert]

ok just one more section to answer.
what does it mean, "not for sale to US citizen in US waters"?

[Sand crab]

Scoobert, Florida charges a sales tax of 6% on boats. The new law caps this at $300,000 of the purchase price so the most you might pay is $18,000 not $1800. The way I understand it out of state residents are exempt so in your case it is a moot point. I have some info to send you if you PM me your email. BOB

[kevingy]

"Not for sale to US citizen in US waters" means that the seller can't sell the boat to US citizens because the US import duty has not been paid.

In general, before any product can be sold to a US citizen in the US, the product needs to be imported into the US and the import duty paid. Typically, this happens without you being aware of it and the cost is rolled into what you pay at the checkout counter. It's the same with boats. The boat has to be imported before you can buy it. It's also possible that seller doesn't want to pay the import duty before the sale and wants to pass the import duty onto the buyer.

You can look at the boat in the US, then leave the US, purchase the vessel, return to the US with the bill of sale, and import the boat.

[Rou-Coo]

If the VAT has been paid and you are a non-EU citizen and take the vessel out of EU waters within the first 18 months do you know if you can apply for a VAT refund?

Also, does anyone know of a similar link (Harmonized Tariff Schedule) for Canadians importing a vessel?

[kevingy]

Originally Posted by Rou-Coo

If the VAT has been paid and you are a non-EU citizen and take the vessel out of EU waters within the first 18 months do you know if you can apply for a VAT refund?

I don't know, but I would be absolutely stunned if it were possible. Firstly, when do taxes ever get refunded? In the case of the US income tax refund, they're not refunding the taxes you paid. They're returning to you the amount you overpaid. Secondly, you would be applying for a refund of taxes that you didn't pay. I can't see any government giving you the money that someone else legally paid.

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Rou-Coo

If the VAT has been paid and you are a non-EU citizen and take the vessel out of EU waters within the first 18 months do you know if you can apply for a VAT refund?

Also, does anyone know of a similar link (Harmonized Tariff Schedule) for Canadians importing a vessel?

Vat on a 2nd hand boat is not reclaimable. You cannot reclaim VAt somebody else paid

On a new boat it is possible to export it vat free

Note VAt is a transaction tax there are circumstances where it can be levied several times in the same asset.


Dave

[kevingy]

Originally Posted by Sand crab

Scoobert, Florida charges a sales tax of 6% on boats. The new law caps this at $300,000 of the purchase price so the most you might pay is $18,000 not $1800. The way I understand it out of state residents are exempt so in your case it is a moot point.

Yes, mostly. Depending on the county, there may be a surcharge of up to an additional 1.5% of the first $5000 of the purchase. Miami-Dade county, for example, will levy an additional 1%. Then, if Scoobert took his time going home to New Hampshire and stayed in Florida for 90 days or more, he would have to pay the tax regardless of where in the US he returned.

What is the new law capping the amount of tax at a $300K purchase price? I haven't been able to find anything about that. Honestly, I find it hard to believe the State has reduced the amount of tax they will take in by adding a cap in these economic times. Then again, we're talking about government.

[Sand crab]

I'm quoting an article the May/June 2010 of Multihulls Mag by Grace Johnson pages 14 and 15. It's copyrighted so I can't post it here. It's a new law pushed forward by the yacht brokers to keep the business in Fla. The $18,000 amount is about the same as setting up an offshore corporation to legally avoid sales or VAT taxes. So why bother. If your boat costs more then you actually save money by registering in Fla. If it costs less than $300,000 then you save money as well. I PMed you. BOB

[Rick R]

Originally Posted by Rou-Coo

If the VAT has been paid and you are a non-EU citizen and take the vessel out of EU waters within the first 18 months do you know if you can apply for a VAT refund?

Also, does anyone know of a similar link (Harmonized Tariff Schedule) for Canadians importing a vessel?

Sorry I can't give you a link, but if you search the Canadian Border Services Agency site you should be able to find what you are looking for. If you import a boat into Canada, you will get hit with HST plus import duty which varies depending on where the boat was made. A Canadian owning a foreign pleasure vessel can keep it in Canada for a max. of 24 hours without paying tax.

[Sand crab]

Rick and Roucou, I have read here that the exception would be a North American built boat as the Lagoon TPIs are. Nafta allows the exchange duty free of products between the US, Canada, and Mexico provided those products were built in these countries no matter how old they are. Manta, Endeavor, Maine Cat plus the older boats and monos are duty free. Even those Mexican built boats fit the criteria. If I was a Canadian I would be looking for a US built boat in the US. Likewise a yank could buy a Canadian built PDQ in Canada for the same reason. I may be wrong but this is what the Forum members said. And the US brokers are advertising them that way. See here..
http://multihullcompany.com/Catamara...Lagoon_TPI/441
BOB