Refusing Arrival Fees

[atoll]

a true vagabond would blend in with the herd and avoid checking in, that and keep a low profile. if confronted say they had just arrived..............

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by boat_alexandra

I am of course researching the fees in advance, but they change frequently, and for example I cannot find any information on what they are in St Barts.

What if the fees are more than all of your money?.

If the fees are more than all of your money, you probably should find a cheap place and stay there. And if you can't find the information on a particular country, don't go there.

Information you get off the Internet is worth exactly what you pay for it. You'll look pretty foolish telling the authorities that you shouldn't have to pay because you read it on the Internet.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by atoll

a true vagabond would blend in with the herd and avoid checking in, that and keep a low profile. if confronted say they had just arrived..............

Anchor in Marigot Bay SMX.. you'll get at least a week before the daily patrol comes over.. or Groot Bai, Phillipsburg.
Marigot Bay side go under the bridge and join the herd in the Lagoon 'Before' the patrol starts noticing would be better.. do not use the Dutch side.. they nail you as you enter.
Quite a few boats in there you could lose yourself amongst in the shadow of 'The Witches Tit'..
St Barts.. drop the hook in Gustavia ( big mooring field to port as you enter) I doubt anyone will come and check.. I was there 2 weeks once and no one showed..

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by boat_alexandra

I am of course researching the fees in advance, but they change frequently, and for example I cannot find any information on what they are in St Barts.

What if the fees are more than all of your money?

It seems in this case reasonable to politely refuse and continue on, but I would like to verify where this is perfectly acceptable.

St Barts:
Clearance €3.20
Anchorage €7.90 per night.
Some anchorage outside Gustavia are free for 7 days, Isle Forchu
Some charge a park fee: Columbier but its new and don't know how much.

Country information is on noonsight.com

No money gets you chucked out. The refuse poor people in every country. If you have no proof of funds you must be refused entry.

On entering any new country you need to be able to up-anchor and sail on if need be.

Finally: Customs, Immigration of every country know every scam you can imagine. They are not stupid.
They do share information from country to country. Get a Red blob on Big Brothers computer and every country will be a hassle.


Sorry for the bad news.

By the way. Try stopping in Dominica and saying you have no money... then when they ask last port of call and you say "St Barts!"
ROTFLMAO

[jeanathon]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Actually if his Avatar is correct he's currently in Namibia... as to running out of money.. it happens all the time.
In my time as a live aboard in the Med (pre-delivery skipper) I often ran out off money.. what you do next is find a way to earn some.
I free dove for items lost over board, scrubbed bottoms, washed masts, painted house's, sold stuff I'd made to other cruisers like nicely spliced lines etc.
I have nothing against the guy having known about him since the Kerfuffle he caused in NZ way back.. he's done well to get so far.
When I crossed in my Hunter from NC to the UK I had £200 left to provision and pay my dues in the Azores.. thankfully it was a really busy year in Horta and the marina was full and the Reception dock 3-4 deep with boats rafted alongside so I got to anchor in the harbour for free..
I'm pretty used to sailing on a fence..
But after sailing so far round the world he surely must have picked up some idea of what's what.

Wasn't replying to you boatie. Thought you're rant about taking advantage of hospitality is much needed.
And yeah hope he picked up some uncommon sense.

Sent from my SM-T230NU using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[neilpride]

The Harbor fees at marigot are illegal, a scam,, if someone want to pay thats fine but its just illegal and they dont have any right to ask for any fee ,, read the french laws about that and you found for example that the french rules ask for a delimitation in the harbour or separation marked by buoys about fee area and free area, saying that i spend in marigot at anchor months and get every week those trolls in a big tender asking for money,, i refuse every time and nothing happen simple because they dont know yet what to do with this isue,, even there is a cruisers group with a lawyer pushing SENSAMAR that piece of crap of ORG who ask a fee for nothing, they are out of the boundaries of legality....

[sailorboy1]

I didn't really see any answer to the OP and I certainly don't know the real answer. My guess it that it will vary at every location even within the same country. And I bet the answer will mostly be based on your ability to either pay the fee or whether you have any assets the entry country can claim.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by neilpride

The Harbor fees at marigot are illegal, a scam,, if someone want to pay thats fine but its just illegal and they dont have any right to ask for any fee ,, read the french laws about that and you found for example that the french rules ask for a delimitation in the harbour or separation marked by buoys about fee area and free area, saying that i spend in marigot at anchor months and get every week those trolls in a big tender asking for money,, i refuse every time and nothing happen simple because they dont know yet what to do with this isue,, even there is a cruisers group with a lawyer pushing SENSAMAR that piece of crap of ORG who ask a fee for nothing, they are out of the boundaries of legality....

In that case I recommend you avoid Salcombe in Dorset UK... if you anchor you pay the same as if you picked up a mooring.. refuse and your in the ****..!!
Its only legal when YOU make the laws

[neilpride]

Originally Posted by boatman61

In that case I recommend you avoid Salcombe in Dorset UK... if you anchor you pay the same as if you picked up a mooring.. refuse and your in the ****..

With the diference that in SXM marigot you refuse and they have nothing to do...

[NahanniV]

Originally Posted by atoll

a true vagabond would blend in with the herd and avoid checking in, that and keep a low profile. if confronted say they had just arrived..............

I met an elderly gentleman from England in the Leeward islands of the Caribbean around 2003 who was doing this.

Told me he had never checked in since arriving in the Caribbean from the Cape Verdes.

He said he would just move on if hassled.

We saw him several places: North part of Guadeloupe, Nevis, Ille Fourchue.

The only place I ever saw a patrol vessel was at Monserrat, where they were keeping boats out of an exclusion zone due to the volcano.

Perhaps things have changed since then ?

Cheers,
JM.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by neilpride

With the diference that in SXM marigot you refuse and they have nothing to do...

Never tried to test it.. figure its fair I pay to clear in and IF asked at the office to pay anchorage I pay a week and when that's up move to Grand Case.. then hop back and forth.
After that 1st encounter they leave me alone.
As I'm using their refuse facilities, roads and beaches.. I pay.
Taking the piss is not in my nature.
Except on here..

[barnakiel]

A EU flagged boat can visit any overseas French territory without any fees. Elsewhere we were always charged something.

Where charges exist, and you refuse to pay them, whether you can get out or not without paying them will depend on the officers in charge. Never disagree openly with one who tells you you cannot leave. Remember if you get out without paying while an officer took the view you should have, they can send a letter to the neighbouring countries and you will be trapped wherever you land. The actual legal base is of importance only if you have the time and money to litigate. (But we have assumed at the top, you do not have that much money).

72 hours for repairs is mostly respected. Not all countries have signed the treaty though. I would not play this (as a trick) in the US nor in Australia though, much as one can attempt to stop for repairs should repairs be actually required.

Etc. There are the rules and then there is something oddly called common sense which is nether common nor makes much sense. Sailors who step lightly and avoid trouble get far and leave clean wake which is always for sailors visiting the same spot one day later.

Since in our times one can nearly always learn what the fees are before landing I think the discussion is nice but not all that practically applicable.

Cheers,
b.

[unclemack]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Taking the piss is not in my nature.

Mine neither!

I used to be full of piss and vinegar but now it's piss and biscuits.

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by boat_alexandra

As far as I can tell this practice is perfectly legal...

Where? There is no such thing as something being "perfectly legal" everywhere. Every nation has its own laws, and when you are in their country you have to obey their laws.

Originally Posted by boat_alexandra

Furthermore, isn't it true that any vessel can claim the right to stay 72 hours to make emergency repairs?

No, it is not. Again, this depends on the particular country, its laws, its participation (or non-participation) in international treaties, and its own interpretation of how those treaties should be enforced. Again, their country, their laws.

Bottom line is, if you don't have enough money to move on to the next country, then you had darned well better stay where you are.

[jeanathon]

Originally Posted by denverd0n

Where? There is no such thing as something being "perfectly legal" everywhere. Every nation has its own laws, and when you are in their country you have to obey their laws.


N

Bottom line is, if you don't have enough money to move on to the next country, then you had darned well better stay where you are.

Without the legal right to work in that country, your advice could prove problematic .