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Les Yachts Commerciaux : avantages pour les armateurs, une solution pour résister à la crise ?
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La crise n’a pas épargné
l’industrie du nautisme, même de luxe, bien que certains chantiers
navals ou autres acteurs du secteur maritime affirment le contraire.
C’est peut-être une façon de conjurer le mauvais sort après une longue
période où les carnets de commandes étaient remplis sur deux à trois
ans.
Pour résister à la crise, les Yachts Commerciaux peuvent être une
solution "gagnant-gagnant", expression bien connue depuis 2007.
Pourquoi préférer un yacht commercial à un yacht de plaisance?
- l’armateur, quels que soient le pavillon et la longueur de son
yacht, bénéficie d’exonérations fiscales et douanières dans les eaux
territoriales françaises (Monaco, inclus), conformément à une
réglementation datant de 2004 et de 2005 (voir ci-après). Ce qui
signifie que ce statut ne concerne pas exclusivement les yachts battant
pavillon français ou les grandes fortunes; est admissible, par exemple,
un yacht de 12/13m donné en charter avec pour seul équipage: un skipper,
- l’industrie du nautisme et les activités économiques induites,
emplois inclus, tous secteurs confondus, peuvent mieux résister à la
crise en France. En effet, la Riviera française est l’une des zones de
navigation les plus fréquentées au monde. Par ailleurs, un pavillon
étranger, construit/acquis en France ou à l´étranger et qui croise dans
les eaux françaises, peut bénéficier des mêmes exonérations qu’un
pavillon français. Les chantiers navals et autres fournisseurs étrangers
bénéficient donc également du statut français.
En 2004 et 2005, l’administration française a élaboré le statut des
Yachts Commerciaux, en application de la directive européenne TVA. En
l’état actuel du droit, les exonérations fiscales et douanières dont
bénéficie l’armateur, quels que soient le pavillon et la longueur de son
yacht, sont soumises à trois conditions: inscription du yacht sur un
registre commercial (ou lettre de pavillon commerciale), équipage
professionnel et permanent (à quai, un seul marin suffit) et
affectation, exclusivement, à une activité commerciale (contrats de
charter conclus avec le bénéficiaire économique et/ou des tiers).
Sont ainsi exonérés de TVA et de droits de douane la livraison du
yacht (construction, acquisition, importation/acquisition
intracommunautaire), les biens qui y sont incorporés, l’avitaillement,
les prestations de services (entretien, réparation, utilisation des
installations portuaires, refit, etc..) et l’activité de charter. Ces
avantages sont assortis d’exonérations de TIPP (taxe sur les produits
pétroliers) et de droit de navigation ou de passeport initial et annuel.
Contrairement à ce qui se dit ou se publie parfois, les exonérations de
TVA afférentes au charter demeurent en vigueur (sous réserve de
respecter certaines précautions contractuelles), bien que les principes
de territorialité aient été modifiés par la loi de finances pour 2010 et
l’instruction du 4 janvier 2010, après transposition en droit interne
français d’une directive européenne de 2008.
Un conseil, toutefois: Il me paraît plus judicieux, au plan fiscal,
et évidemment plus rentable, de louer le yacht à des tiers également; ce
qui n’est pas bien compliqué, en raison de la demande actuelle.
Quel pavillon choisir?
Quel que soit le pavillon, dès lors que le yacht est inscrit sur un
registre commercial. Le choix d’un registre et de la structure armateur
nécessite une étude exhaustive avant toute opération d’achat ou de
construction d’un yacht. Les critères de choix sont multiples: résidence
fiscale, situation personnelle et professionnelle du bénéficiaire
économique; zones de navigation; référentiel technique applicable au
yacht (MCA ou équivalent, SOLAS, etc..); équipage (certificats
nécessaires, nationalité, aspects sociaux et fiscaux); formalités
simples ou non et coût d’immatriculation; etc..
En pratique, chaque cas est différent et requiert une attention
toute particulière ainsi qu’une expertise sérieuse dans les domaines
spécifiques du conseil maritime et du tax planning international. |
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| Publié dans AGEFI Luxembourg - Juin 2010 |
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So you want to build a yacht?
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As an expert in international maritime law and international tax law,
Alexandra Verges has built up a great deal of expertise in the
highly specialised field of maritime consulting and international tax planning.
In practise, this means she consults with clients on every aspect of buying,
building, owning, chartering, managing and selling boats.
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"There is much more to owning a yacht than meets the eye,"
says Alexandra. "If you commission a new vessel to be built
to your requirements, you need to ensure the design, price and quality of
construction are right, so it is important to find a good naval
architect and shipyard, and to appoint the right people to
manage the whole project". "If you decide to build or
buy a yacht, there are tax and registration issues to bear in mind,
as well as the yacht’s maintenance and crew.In short,
it is an exciting and specialised field in which no two cases are exactly
the same."
To give an indication of what is involved in commissioning a yacht from
a shipyard and how important it is to carefully manage the process from
beginning to end, we cite an example from one of Alexandra’s clients:
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"If you commission a new vessel to be built to your requirements,
you need to ensure the design, price and quality of construction are right,
so it is important to find a good naval architect and shipyard,
and to appoint the right people to manage the whole project"
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"We received a request to take over the management of a yacht in
the process of construction. It was quite an unusual request for us,
as we usually advise our clients from the outset, helping them to select
the shipyard and naval architect. In this case, construction was already
underway but the owners felt the project had gone astray."
"We asked for the Shipbuilding Agreement and Appendices,
the GAP (General Arrangement Plan) and technical specifications
made by the naval architect. After a review of these documents
and having checked the yard’s financial statements,
we concluded that our client’s interests were not being protected:
- The contract had been drafted to the benefit of the yard and mentioned,
for example, that instalments had to be paid every month,
regardless of progress.
- Most of the articles of the specifications were incomplete,
and although the yacht was under construction there were no plans.
- What’s more, a look into the yard’s financial status revealed
that it had been bankrupt for two years!"
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"We advised our client to transfer the work to a reputable
shipyard that we could vouch for, and the completed sections of the
boat were moved there and construction began in earnest.
In the meantime, we set up a company for yacht ownership and
registered it for VAT. Certain items had yet to be finalised,
such as the noise levels, the delivery date, the drafting of
the bank guarantees and the final price."
"We arranged for the owner’s representative (usually the future captain)
to be on-site, so he could ensure building proceeded according to schedule
and withheld legal and technical documents agreed.
This was the build-up to the sea and dock trials,
which are final proof of the yacht’s proper functioning,
according to the sea/dock trial protocol.
Periodic instalments were made upon receipt of a certificate of
construction progress issued by the yard and
countersigned by the owner’s representative."
"Although the actual building was now tightly controlled,
there were still many matters that needed organising, including:
- Yacht registration: the motor yacht under construction was over 24 metres
and the client wanted to use her for both private use and chartering,
so we registered her in London as “a merchant vessel”. This meant that the vessel
and crew had to comply with the regulations of the MCA Large Commercial Yacht Code (LY2).
- Application for a ship radio licence; all marine radio equipment aboard the vessel must be registered.
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The Classification Society
sets standards of quality and reliability for the design, building and functioning of vessels.
A vessel’s hull and machinery must comply with the standards and are inspected to ensure they do.
The MCA
(Maritime and Coastguard Agency) is responsible for implementing the maritime safety policy of the government throughout the UK.
This includes coordinating search and rescue at sea through Her Majesty’s Coastguard
and checking that ships meet UK and international safety and anti-pollution regulations.
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- Negotiation of yacht and crew insurances.
- Recruitment of deck officers and crew and drafting of their contracts.
- Conclusion of charter party agreements for the summer and winter seasons."
"Upon delivery and acceptance of the yacht, and after a joint survey checking
that she conformed with all documents signed, the yard provided us with the builder’s certificate,
the Classification Society certificate of conformity, the declaration of warranty stating that
the yacht was delivered free of all liens and encumbrances,
and the commercial invoice of the vessel.
Finally, with the signing of the Protocol of
Delivery and Acceptance, the yacht was cast off and the owner’s dream had become a reality.
Had he not
sought competent and reliable specialised assistance when he did, his dream might well have become a
costly nightmare."
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