Among the possible troubles connected with the purchase of a yacht or other vessel, the buy-and-sell act is the simplest part of the deal. It is crucially essential to take into account the registration process peculiarities, namely, what your dream country is to create a record on her. In Europe, one of the most beneficial choices is to give your preference to the Maltese ship registry services. It is amongst the largest centers of the kind there. When taking a global perspective, it is ranked sixth in the international rating of the biggest registries.
Main registration peculiarities on vessel
Over the past decade, this industry has been developed significantly in Malta, and they owe their success to their own impressive efforts towards improving their offers and policies. Nowadays, one of the leading and most reputable flags a ship may fly belongs to Malta. This outstanding prestige resolves itself to endless efforts of the responsible parties to promote the desired tempos of the yachting industry on the islands. If you are considering whether deciding on the Maltese flag is your cup of tea, here the key advantages of the program to stick to:
the geographic position that is strategically beneficial;- the clear approach of the relevant authorities who work on the policies’ improvement;
- active and dynamic performance of the organization on various online and offline communication channels;
- a wide range of maritime services that involves thorough assistance in terms of documentation preparation and further management and registration affairs;
- a solid reputation on the global market in the role of a flag of choice and confidence;
- 24/7 guidance and maintenance from the Maltese Authority for Transport;
- a ship is welcome to be registered on behalf of any entity, regardless of what its national belonging is;
- the ability to achieve enticing tax incentives for shipowners;
- cost-efficient procedures that involve low tonnage tax spending;
- no limitations on further owner’s manipulations related to Maltese registered ships (mortgaging and sales are allowed).
Under Maltese Law, interested parties can accomplish one of the two kinds of yacht and superyacht registrations. The first option is to record your property as a pleasure means. In this case, the use terms will be limited by private needs or for charters within the local territorial waters (please note it requires obtaining CVC). The second solution is to prefer a commercial line of registration and make your possession serve different commercial purposes. The latter also includes the ability to freight outside the Maltese territorial waters.
Procedure Requirements and Duration on registration of the yacht or other vessel
The initial registration under the Malta flag is temporary and allows the target applicants to prepare the further necessary documentation for receiving a permanent yacht record. The term is restricted to six months from provisional act finalization. Thanks to the local relevant authorities’ efforts to implement and then comply with the high standards of the global shipping and yachting industry, the overall process of registration isn’t an extremely complicated and complex task. Besides, you can experience a smooth process with the help of CSB support.
The estimated completion date is dependent on how fast the yacht owner (or his/her representative/agent) will be able to gather and prepare on-stream documentation to be forwarded for Transport Malta on approval. As soon as your data is correct and verified, the project’s duration may take around a couple of business days.
It doesn’t matter whether the yacht owner, either a foreign natural person or a legal entity, has an intention to create a new record or change the previous flag residence: there are only two possible variants for end users. On the one hand, the registration may be held under the entity/individual name which requires an appointment of a resident agent testament to the Maltese law. On the other hand, the registration may be performed under a dedicated Maltese Shipping Company. If you opt for commercial purposes, then the latter solution is the right choice — it provides an asset separation opportunity.
At the same time, subject to certain qualification requirements, property owners have a chance to take advantage of the corporate income tax at the rate of five percent. The Maltese Shipping Company is obliged to proceed with a thirty-five percent tax rate on achieved profits. Along with some minor exceptions, this is a vitally important step to benefit from a low efficient tax. The remaining part of the increment would have to be operated as distributed dividends to shareholders. In turn, a net effective tax rate would be possible to get when the shareholder claims to be partly refunded back on the investment on the Maltese tax paid.
Due to special corporate regulations, there is no problem with creating a company under the local merchant laws with one shareholder. Apart from the latter authority, your board of the Maltese Shipping company incorporated will include an individual sole director. One thousand two hundred euros or equivalent sums in other currencies — every company has to share at least this amount of capital, and not less than twenty percent of it are to be paid up.
Professional Guidance
Consultancy Company VERITAS JUS will guide you through the process to make it flawless and smooth. Our representatives will become the special attorneys of your establishment. Please be informed it is not a compulsory act for the company’s board members to be Malta residents. With the help of our services, incorporated organizations will function under the Maltese office address. The communication between our customers and corresponding Maltese authorities will be much simplified as well. If you are looking for step-by-step instructions on how to succeed with a yacht registration and Maltese shipping company incorporation, don’t hesitate to contact our support center for more details and write to vertaslaw2009@gmail.com.