Fulvio Luise, President of Federagenti Yacht (Italian Ship Agents) Division, expressed satisfaction today at the passing of the Grillo and Cutrufo amendment to the Italian berth tax legislation passed in late December 2011 which was to go into effect May 1st 2012. The amendment, approved late Tuesday Feb 21nd stipulates that the berthing tax will only be applied to Italian citizens who possess a vessel (regardless of whether it is kept in Italy, or overseas) even if it has a foreign flag. Foreign citizens who own a vessel are exempt from this tax, regardless of their length of stay in Italian waters.
Fulvio Luise President of Federagenti commented today, “We are very pleased that this amendment to the law has passed. Our organization every year monitors the mega yacht traffic in Italy and evaluates the impact our industry has throughout the Italian territory. The passing of this amendment is an important recognition to the economic impact the yachting industry has in Italy and we look forward to welcoming new and returning mega yacht clients to Italian waters this summer.”Luise continues, “In fact our most recent data shows that 96% of foreign visitors on mega yachts who select Italy as their destination of choice, generate an important economic impact to our local economies along the coastline. Each year 200 million euro is managed and spent by maritime agencies on behalf of mega yacht clients in everything from fuel, provisions, logistics, flowers, entertainment and repairs.”
“The legislative process has not yet concluded, however with this important normative passed, we sincerely hope that it will be officially confirmed shortly. This will allow us to compete on an equal playing field with other countries in the Mediterranean for this important sector of the yachting market, and to continue to promote one of the most valued aspects of our country, nautical tourism. It will be necessary to wait for clarification on a few aspects of the law, in particular how this tax will be applied to leasing and the charter market and for foreign flagged vessels who have Italian citizens on board.”
“Thanks to the tremendous effort and collaboration between Federagenti, various nautical associations throughout Italy and governmental institutions, we have obtained an important recognition for Maritime Agents in Italy and the valuable role they fill in ensuring that regulations are implemented correctly along the Italian coastline. Maritime agents will work in close collaboration with local marine authorities to ensure that regulations are applied and executed correctly.”
