TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums British Virgin Islands Ouch!

What is this?

"Charter companies have also been found to be posting false information on their website, especially as it regards Customs’ procedures. “That’s a no, no,” emphasised Mr Smith."

THe retoric of island journalism often leaves something to be desired but this one is remarkable in its obfuscation. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/jester.gif" alt="" />

The comment section is even more enlightening.

"They are worse than murderers and robbers." As Uncle George would say, "Oh, My-y-y." That certainly makes you feel welcome.

“They are housing their guests for accommodation prior to going on to the cruises without the proper licenses.”

This is apparently a reference to sleepaboards the night before charter.

I guess they are trying to fund the runway one inch at a time.

The photo on the original story shows the Marine Max dock so I assume it is them that has been fined. As a relatively new company they may not know the 'rules' of doing business as a non-belonger in the BVI... pay up as soon as a small problem arises or that small problem will get a whole lot bigger very quickly.

I kind of doubt that. A yacht is considered a floating accommodation and sleep aboards have been offered since the inception of the charter industry in the BVI.

Unless I was misinformed (by government) more than 20 years ago, the cruising tax was introduced as a "room tax" for yachts and the National Parks Trust mooring fee was initiated to cover the use of and costs related to maintaining the pubicly owned moorings at the various parks.

I think the reference is likely to be exactly what the article stated ... that some companies may be offering accommodations (not aboard yachts) without being properly licensed or registered as a villa, hotel or whatever.

Are we paying our "cruising tax" on the night before our charter contract starts at 12 Noon the next day? When the cruising tax started boats where much simpler and nothing like a hotel. Today many of the boats have 24/7 air-conditioning, electric flushing toilets, real showers, real hot water and lots of actual space. In the 80's we always did a night in a room the day before and after a trip and would never sleep on the boats at the dock. Today the sleep aboard is just a better all around experience the day before a charter.

I can see why the government will want to try and take another bite out of this much bigger apple.

I am still curios about the false claims on the website? What did those of us who "know everything" not catch here?

When I worked at BVI Yacht Charters, which had only one yacht (a 50' Beneteau) with air conditioning, back in the day ... we offered sleep aboards and probably 50% of all charter guests booked them. It was so much more convenient to just wake up, not have to pack up your belongings and move from a hotel to the boat, do your briefings, provisioning, etc. and be on your way.

I think sailors were a little less pampered back then. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Grin.gif" alt="" />

Are there companies other than the Moorings that still has shore-side accommodations they offer? Voyage used to have a few rooms but they have been off the market for a several years.

Just last month as the accomodation tax increase was being discussed there was some discussion by some NDP minister that the accomodations tax should apply to boats. It wasn't clear whether they were referring to sleep aboards or the whole charter.
It sure looks like they are going to eventually kill their golden goose.

They killed the golden goose a while back. It is slowly roasting on high heat right now, soon to be a crispy critter. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/duh.gif" alt="" />

"Smith said one of the companies in the Hodges Creek/East End area paid $95,000 in fines and $13,000 for licenses.

The other company located in the Purcell area paid $25,000 in fines and $3,000 for licenses."

As someone else pointed out the comments are revealing.... the actual facts and details not so much?


http://bvinews.com/new/companies-fined-over-100k-for-breaking-laws/

A couple of years back I read in the ASA magazine "Sailing," an editorial that mentioned how the charter business changed from the USVI to the BVI solely because of greed. It gave no other info and was sort of an off handed comment that was just stuck in the article. In light of the discussion on this current thread, does anyone here know what that comment meant and why the charter business did transition from USVI to BVI?

Post deleted by Carol Hill

Anyone can spin it the way they like....... but the charter business is NOT dead in the USVI.

Any transition to and growth in, the BVI was, at least in MHO, due to a wide combination of things. 9/11 and changes in clearing between the 2 territories, BVI rules and regs for vessels registered elsewhere, some perceived advantages won by doing business in the BVI VS the US, and.. as always, the perception of " more time to explore the BVI" when you start on Tortola vs starting in St Thomas.

The BVI could lose some of those perceived advantages if the government makes it more difficult, and more expensive, to charter there.

Actions have an equal and opposite reaction. Intentions are not always rewarded in the way one hopes. Weather is what you get, not always what was forecast.

Taking it to the point where tourists and boat owners alike need a team of international lawyers and accountants doesn't seem to me to be a " growth perspective".

I'm sure others will disagree <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Wink.gif" alt="" />

The USVI charter business is certainly not dead - the transition to the BVI goes way back to the 1980's and was influenced by a few factors starting with the changes in the IRS passive/active investment deductions. The lack of large affordable dock space for fleet operations is still affecting the industry in the USVI, the improvements over time particularly in the provisioning and repair capabilities, in the BVI, also made the change from STT harbor based charters moving to the BVI attractive, the rapid emergence of large BVI bareboat fleets was also a tax based decision and the perceived 'more time in the BVI' did push that movement along as things got so much easier to bareboat there. The huge shift from crewed to bareboat charters with fleets of identical vessels vs. the distinctive yachts that serviced the industry in the 70's and 80's really made a difference and changed the demographics of charterers in favor of the BVI with its growing bareboat companies.
I really miss those old elegant charter boats on the docks in STT Yacht Haven as a personal aside.
When STT in its heyday was the charter capital of the Virgins and only competed with Antigua - the crew services, booking offices, chandleries and provisioning were all far ahead of the options available elsewhere.
And of course the air traffic landing in STT made it a very desirable destination, the problems of BVI access are still discussed here daily.

[/list] nI had heard that the large Hurricanes a couple decades ago impacted the USVI boats more severely than the BVI and gave rise to BVI having better Hurricane survival chances for charter yachts. Have no idea if true but do remember coming down after Marilyn I believe and the area was quite a mess.

StormJib--I don't understand why you copied and pasted what appear to be whole sections of the same article that you linked above, especially without even making any personal comment on it. "Fair use" of copyrighted material is a fairly amorphous thing, but it probably doesn't include six whole paragraphs of material.

THanks guys. That's what I was after.

Because it was from Facebook where the links can be troublesome. There was material in there that was not in the original article.

The US Islands must adhere to the much more stringent US Coast Guard Regs. In the past the BVI was much more flexible in some areas. Maybe that is changing?

When The Mooring really exploded the French income tax could easily reach 90%. One "loophole" was you could make just about any capital investment with full depreciation over 36 months. Then immediately sell the asset with no recapture of the depreciation. Buy a Beneteau and deduct the full cost over 36 months. Sell that boat for cash in the BVI with no tax consequence. Maybe no record you even have that cash? All things being equal and they are not. The dock space was not available in the USVI.

I don't know with regard to Facebook, as I am not on Facebook. I frankly would be surprised if copyright laws don't apply, but I really don't know. I think that people ASSUME that copyright doesn't apply to Facebook, but I wouldn't know. However, humor me in future and if you're referring to the Beacon, post a link or a small quote and if you are referring to a Facebook entry, again, try a link or a small blurb.

I think the 1991 'Luxury tax' of 10% on boats costing $100,000+ had a major impact not only on the boating industry in the US but on people buying and registering boats in the US Virgin Islands for charter use, hence the move to the BVI's. When governments start to get greedy it can have major impacts, hope the BVI government thinks before it acts.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1991-06-09/business/1991160128_1_luxury-tax-yachts-harrison

http://www.wsbradio.com/weblogs/nealz-nuze/2011/jun/30/lesson-yacht-tax/

Well maybe Belize is a timely example. After introducing the tax on boats, TMM pulled out. Is moorings still there?

Did not realize TMM had pulled out of Belize. Taxes have affected a lot of companies, large and small. In my line of work (Medicine), a mega company (Medtronics) moved to Ireland due to US Tax laws.

Horizon at Nanny Cay does. We stayed at their hotel after a charter several years ago, and the amenities there are really nice (maybe not as fancy as Moorings.)

Here is a little more dribble of published local news on the subject as always the comments tell their own story:

http://bvinews.com/new/boat-captains-being-smuggled-into-bvi-smith/

Saw one hiding in a duffel bag just the other day!