Beyond the Yacht | Practical Insights

The yachting industry moves fast.

Decisions around the ownership, structuring and operation of a yacht are often taken under pressure which can, sometimes, require decisions to be made quickly. In such an environment, certain considerations can be overlooked. Yet beyond the yacht itself sits a wider regulatory and compliance framework that yacht owners, operators, captains and advisers need to consider and manage properly throughout the yacht’s lifecycle.

How a yacht is owned, used and operated can influence different obligations, and a decision taken in one area can have implications elsewhere.

This is the focus of Beyond the Yacht, where our colleagues at Zampa Partners come together to share practical insights into some of the areas industry stakeholders encounter in practice. Rather than considering each area in isolation, the discussion brings together different perspectives and looks at how they interact from a corporate, tax and operational standpoint.

The discussion explores, from a high-level perspective:

• the concept of VAT paid;
• the VAT implications that may arise as a result of mixed or change in use;
• the VAT treatment of crew management arrangements;
• practical VAT matters, including the correct use of VAT identification numbers in sale and purchase transactions as well as Malta’s VAT deferment mechanism;
• crew payroll including social security and direct tax from a Malta perspective; and
• audit considerations for yacht-owning companies, including the potential application of an audit exemption.

Throughout the discussion, our team also addresses some of the misconceptions we continue to encounter in practice, including the preservation of VAT paid status, the distinction between a change in flag and the VAT status, and the difference between VAT deferment and VAT exemption.

The discussion is intentionally practical and conversational, providing a high-level view of some of the considerations that sit beyond the ownership and operation of the yacht itself.

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Watch the full discussion for practical insights from our team.

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