SuperyachtNews – 10 April 2018
With Palma Superyacht Show underway, we speak to Anne Sterringa about the growth of the local charter market…
In October 2013, the Spanish government made changes to legislation to include an exemption to the matriculation tax for EU and non-EU flagged yachts commercially operating in Spain. Until then, superyachts intending to operate commercially in Spain were obliged to pay a one-time charge consisting of 12 per cent of the yacht’s value. Not only was this value immensely ambiguous, it was an enormous expense that prevented many superyachts from registering to charter in Spain.
This change in legislation came about as a direct result of many years of lobbying by the various Spanish nautical associations. The associations collectively argued that more revenue could be brought into Spain from the yachting sector by eliminating the tax. While the tax has not been completely abolished, four years after it was modified, the benefits are clear.