Customs clearance to get diesel only

[Discovery 15797]

Originally Posted by Jammer

There are reciprocal laws in the other countries under different names.


WRT to the OP, it may be possible for you to clear into the DR and the Bahamas without a passport, depending on the citizenship of those aboard, provided that they have the necessary documents. Again, this is important because there are some US citizens who do not qualify for a passport for various reasons, or who cannot obtain one in time, or who do not have it in their possession because it is off somewhere getting a visa stamp or has been sent for renewal or stolen or whatever.

This is absolute nonsense!

When entering a country after departing another country the citizenship of people aboard a boat is irrelevant. EVERYONE on the boat must have the proper documentation (whatever that documentation requirement is) AND they must clear into customs and immigration.

The OP's question was about clearing customs not about what paperwork is required. Leave one country and "enter" another and you must clear customs and immigration. If you don't have the required documentation you will likely be detained or instructed to leave immediately. StuM's post #12 in this thread spells it out pretty clearly. The moment you dock, moor, or drop a hook within the territorial waters of another country you have officially 'landed' or 'entered' that country.

If a US citizen does not qualify for a passport they are not allowed to leave the US. PERIOD. This doesn't mean they can leave by various means and enter another country illegally. (In virtually all countries except the US, if you are found to be in the country illegally you will likely be immediately detained and deported, and possibly jailed.) US passport are not issued to people who have a warrant, are on probation, have been convicted of certain crimes, owe child support, or have outstanding federal debt. Passports may be denied or delayed due to submission errors.

Not getting your passport in time, or it's being renewed is a completely absurd assertion. You can't board a plane (if a passport and/or visa is required). What makes you think you and land or enter another country by boat if you don't have the required documentation? If you land in a different country and tell the authorities "you didn't have time" or "your passport didn't arrive before you departed" will likely be met with being taken into custody so they can verify you are not a fugitive.

If you're passport has been submitted to get a visa (some visa take a long time to process), you can legally get a second passport. I have 2 passports for that exact reason (and also because I have a Israeli visa in one and cannot enter some middle eastern countries with that visa in my passport).

If your passport is lost or stolen is a completely separate issue. It is important to have both paper copies and digital copies of the front page of a valid passport in case a passport is lost or stolen. In the case of pleasure vessels, I keep passports and copies of passports online and also in my rapid ditch bag.

it's pretty damn simple. Whether you dislike the rules, or think they are unfair, or burdensome, or rediculous they are the rules. And generally, when traveling internationally by pleasure boat you are generally required to have a passport (and obtain a visa if required prior to entry). Puddle pirates who navigate between US and Canada are generally excluded from this rule only if they have other required documentation. For everyone else...research and follow the rules and regulations of the countries you intend to visit well in advance!

(Oh..BTW...most countries in the Pacific will also require a Zarpe issued by customs from the country you are departing...including US and US territories. (For example, a Zarpe is even required to travel by boat between Guam and CNMI even though they are both US territories).

[Tupaia]

Originally Posted by contrail

I sincerely doubt that what the "immigration lady" told you was legal, in fact, is, and having dealt with this countless times over seventeen years, that would not surprise me. Here is why: when you take your ferry back to the BVI, you have left the USVI. You have to re-enter the BVI to pick up your boat. A quick return spares you some of the paperwork, but it doesn't change the fact that you are now in the BVI. And that means you will have to depart the BVI, again, and re-enter the USVI, again, only this time on your own boat, which you can't do with a visa waiver.



I think you were the victim of wishful thinking, loose interpretation, or a misunderstanding, almost certainly.



Cheers
Tim

If you already have a B1/B2 visa you will granted entry under B2 and be given 6 months (183 days) from the date of first entry. When you leave and return you will be granted 6 months from the date of the re-entry.


If you do not hold an existing visa and enter on an ESTA you will be granted a WT/WB entry permit for 90 days. When you leave and return you will be granted WT(R) with an end date equal to 90 days after your first entry.



The cruising permit for the boat is for 1 year from the time the boat enters the US.

[Discovery 15797]

Originally Posted by rubberduck

People keep saying 'of course you need to check in', 'if you need to ask' bla bla. But its not that simple. There are of course places in the world where some fuel docks are in special areas. Gibraltar is a great example of this. We were in spain and could just take the boat over fill up and go back. It was legal and exactly how they wanted you to do it.

Did you ever consider the fact that ALL Schengen nationals can travel to any other Schengen country without a passport check or having to "clear in," and that there is an existing agreement between Gibraltar and Spain?
https://www.etiasvisa.com/etias-news/etias-gibraltar

[contrail]

Originally Posted by Tupaia

If you already have a B1/B2 visa you will granted entry under B2 and be given 6 months (183 days) from the date of first entry. When you leave and return you will be granted 6 months from the date of the re-entry.


If you do not hold an existing visa and enter on an ESTA you will be granted a WT/WB entry permit for 90 days. When you leave and return you will be granted WT(R) with an end date equal to 90 days after your first entry.



The cruising permit for the boat is for 1 year from the time the boat enters the US.

Of course, you can go in on a B1/B2! It's a visa. That is how all the non US charter crews do it. I will check again on the ESTA, and the Visa Waiver, because I know that you can't get in on a private boat on a document that allows you in on the ferry. And, you do have to go to Barbados to get that B1/B2.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by contrail

Of course, you can go in on a B1/B2! It's a visa. That is how all the non US charter crews do it. I will check again on the ESTA, and the Visa Waiver, because I know that you can't get in on a private boat on a document that allows you in on the ferry. And, you do have to go to Barbados to get that B1/B2.

A 500nm voyage to windward to get a visa to sail the USVI's... is it worth the hassle..

[Anders]

Originally Posted by Discovery 15797

Did you ever consider the fact that ALL Schengen nationals can travel to any other Schengen country without a passport check or having to "clear in," and that there is an existing agreement between Gibraltar and Spain?
https://www.etiasvisa.com/etias-news/etias-gibraltar

The linked agreement has not been implemented and there are passport checks by both Spain and Gibraltar at the border but anyone can go to the fuel dock in Gibraltar and fill up on cheap fuel without clearing in.

[Discovery 15797]

Originally Posted by Anders

The linked agreement has not been implemented and there are passport checks by both Spain and Gibraltar at the border but anyone can go to the fuel dock in Gibraltar and fill up on cheap fuel without clearing in.

Thanks for the info Anders. I misread the page in the link. And indeed Gibraltar allows any vessels to refuel without "clearing customs." It is a platypus in the animal kingdom. But so is Diego Garcia BIOT.

[Tupaia]

Originally Posted by contrail

Of course, you can go in on a B1/B2! It's a visa. That is how all the non US charter crews do it. I will check again on the ESTA, and the Visa Waiver, because I know that you can't get in on a private boat on a document that allows you in on the ferry. And, you do have to go to Barbados to get that B1/B2.

You missed the point you can also enter on an ESTA obtain entry and then leave and return with your boat. The reason for insisting on a commercial carried before obtaining entry is that the carrier has responsibility for returning a failed entrant to their point of origin.

[goboatingnow]

The fact that a few sparse situations allow limited entry without formal clearance doesn’t invalidate that in the greater majority formal clearance is needed

[contrail]

Originally Posted by Tupaia

If you already have a B1/B2 visa you will granted entry under B2 and be given 6 months (183 days) from the date of first entry. When you leave and return you will be granted 6 months from the date of the re-entry.


If you do not hold an existing visa and enter on an ESTA you will be granted a WT/WB entry permit for 90 days. When you leave and return you will be granted WT(R) with an end date equal to 90 days after your first entry.



The cruising permit for the boat is for 1 year from the time the boat enters the US.

I stand corrected...checked up, and with the ESTA, on a private visit, you can enter commercially, exit, and then return on your own boat. However, my original comment that you can't just come and go, as the OP referenced, is still correct, and is not applicable to just passing through and stopping for fuel. As for charter crews, they need their B1/B2, as we both noted.

[contrail]

Originally Posted by boatman61

A 500nm voyage to windward to get a visa to sail the USVI's... is it worth the hassle..

It's usually done by plane, which is expensive and still a hassle! And the yacht crews, who are not covered by the ESTA, do it on a regular basis, as it is essential for their work. Tupaia outlined the less cumbersome, but still far from hassle free, procedure for private vessels.

[Adelie]

Originally Posted by rubberduck

….



In Bermuda, where i am now... plenty of super yachts have passed through come in and docked, fillled up and left. I doubt they checked in.



…..

Super yachts are going to be like cruise ships, they have agents that handle all the paperwork as the yacht is in transit. They pay extra to have customs meet them at the fuel dock so they can kill 2 birds with one stone.

When you have the money to have a super yacht then you have the money to pay the world to work differently for you. Doesn’t mean you are skipping any steps. Although sometime you get to.