yellow flag thru Turks & Caicos because of dogs?

[SailSB]

We have 2 very old small dogs on board and hope to work our way south from the Bahamas to Granada.

Part of the import process for dogs to clear into the Turks & Caicos as well as BVI is a rabies titer test that can take 2 to three months to get results from.

We can't wait that long, and frankly did not expect the dogs to live this long so we did not get the test before leaving the states to head south.

My question is, has anyone gone thru the turks and caicos, without clearing in, just stopping for sleep and one or two of the out islands without getting off the boat?

I don't want to break laws, but I can't legally clear in with the dogs. I'm OK not going ashore, but would like to anchor once or twice for a good nights sleep and to potentially wait out weather.

We have been through the BVI's before and can skip them if necessary (if the dogs are still alive)

Would appreciate any advice from those who may know.

Thanks

Ken

[jibstay]

We have friends that anchored off a beach on the west side of Providenciales. He went ashore and walked to the customs office in the commercial port to clear in. The subject of pets never came up.

[skipmac]

To anchor and not clear in is illegal, whether or not you leave the boat. The right of innocent passage is just that, passage.

[theglo]

Sent you a PM! Please respond if you have time. Appreciate it

[ItDepends]

It seems that many yachties do not understand the actual meaning of the "Q-flag".

In the code of signal flags the yellow "Q" flag means, "My Vessel is healthy and I request pratique..

So to translate that, flying the Q-flag actually REQUESTS clearance into the country, it does NOT exempt you from it! Sailing into an anchorage, flying the "Q-flag" and then sailing away without checking in... NO. It makes no sense. Some countries DO allow 24 hours of anchoring under Q but ONLY if you check in the next day. it is not for a free ride passing through.

You might get away with it. I hope you are the not kind of person who counts that as the important piece of data. If you are, I would really rather you stay home instead of giving cruisers a reputation as a bunch who "try to get away with things."

[JPA Cate]

Ken, the deal is as stated above. Free passage means you do not stop and anchor overnight. It is okay to pass through another country's national waters without going through clearance and entry, so long as your anchor does not contact the bottom, as long as their Covid restrictions are honored. Some places demand quite a large clearance zones, and others (like Canada) have restrictions on where you can go ashore, due to vulnerable human populations, or wildlife sanctuaries.

Look up the information online, and follow their rules. I'm sure your country of origin applies its rules to foreigners, without regard to their convenience. When we travel, it is the same for us. It is their house and they make the rules: it is up to us to follow them even when we think it is a stupid restriction--not that you feel that way. In some countries such a violation means they confiscate your boat. You really don't want to have that happen.

Ann (who has spent a number of nights hove to, waiting for good light in which to make entry to a country)

PS. By the way, we have some cruising friends who kept a separate notebook with photos of the officials who helped them clear in, everywhere they went. It turned out to be a great ice breaker and very popular with them, and even other cruisers. ("Oh, yes, I remember him!.... And then the story would follow.)

Ann

[SailSB]

Since this thread seems to have gained some traction again, I thought I would post how we wound up proceeding.

We skipped T&C and BVI because of the dogs and the titer test requirement. Sailed straight from Mayaguana to Ocean World in DR. We have now passed through DR, PR, USVI, St Martin, Dominica, Guadalupe, Martinique, and are now in Granada. No problems with the dogs in any of those spots. Some places wanted a vet certificate from the last country and pre approval, but that was fairly easy to get. If a country used sail clear, i checked the box that we had animals, and if the officials asked we had all the required paperwork. In fact the only place that asked was Grenada, and even there, out of 4 boats I know of with dogs that arrived in the same week, we were the only ones that got asked. I think we had an interim official who was very by the book and the normal one that everyone else used did not want the hassles.

Thanks for any constructive help provided.

Ken

[jeanathon]

Thank you for the rest of the story.