Consequences of the UK's withdrawal from the EU on recreational boats will concern not only customs but also have an indirect tax dimension. The relevant legal bases to which will be further referred in this letter are: the Union Customs Code (UCC) - Regulation (EU) 952/2013 (OJ L 299/1 of 10.10.2013) - the supplementing Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/2446 (UCC-DA) (OJ L 343/1 of 29.12.2015) and the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2447 (UCC-IA) (OJ L 343/558 of 29.12.2015) for the customs issues. For indirect taxes it concerns the Council directive 2006/112/EC (the VAT Directive) (OJ L 347/1 of 11.12.2006).

Where the recreational boat has been released for free circulation at import in the EU or has been manufactured in the EU, it has obtained the customs status of Union goods. After the UK's withdrawal from the EU or the end of the transition period in case a Withdrawal Agreement with a transition period is concluded, in general, any goods in the customs territory of the UK will lose their Union status and will become UK goods. This was also mentioned in a Brexit preparedness note from the Commission, published on 30 January 2018: https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/file_import/customs_and_indirect_taxation_en.pdf. Following the Brexit preparedness notice mentioned above, a specific notice on VAT was published on 11 September 2018: https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/value-added-tax_en.pdf.

The customs status of a UK boat will depend on its location at that point in time: if the boat is located in an EU port or sails in EU territorial waters, it will keep its Union status; if the boat is located in the UK, its status will be that of a third-country boat when arriving in the territorial waters of the Union, i.e. it will be treated as non-Union goods. Customs controls for such UK boats will be the same as for boats coming from a third country.



Vice Commodore, OCC