20% vat on independence of the seas & no duty free

bit of a shock but we had to pay 20% vat on independence of the seas

And the duty free shop was empty of all alcohol and cigarettes

It's UK VAT. Not much RCI can do about it.

It's the same when sailing from Spain there's an 18% (I think) Spanish tax levied on everything

Also, they can only sell Duty Free if the ship vists a non-EU destination which I presume your sailing isn't

We’ve sailed with RCI over the past 10 years and have never experienced what happened on this particular cruise ... we usually buy a few things whilst on board but spent nothing this time round !! Even shops at the ports we visited didn’t open ... everything seemed very strange

On a cruise out of a European port with no Non-European port on the itinerary there has to be paid the VAT of the country the cruise is departing.

Out of Barcelona you pay 10% VAT on all drinks/restaurants plus 21% on all other purchases. UK has 20% on almost everything.

steamboats

We’re on a Canaries cruise next week, so no VAT?

Well we have done the 14 day med cruise / canary cruise & also around Norway with RCI all from Southampton and on each of those cruises we were able to buy duty free tobacco / cigarettes / wine / spirits all from the on board duty and tax free shop ...

Nothing saying about added tax anywhere but on this particular cruise there was signs everywhere and also a leaflet to our state rooms saying there would be 20% added vat and also the duty free shop had no alcohol and no tobacco for sale ... just chocolate and the usual RCi merchandise :mad:

First time in 15 years sailing around Europe

Well we have done the 14 day med cruise / canary cruise & also around Norway with RCI all from Southampton and on each of those cruises we were able to buy duty free tobacco / cigarettes / wine / spirits all from the on board duty and tax free shop ...

Nothing saying about added tax anywhere but on this particular cruise there was signs everywhere and also a leaflet to our state rooms saying there would be 20% added vat and also the duty free shop had no alcohol and no tobacco for sale ... just chocolate and the usual RCi merchandise :mad:

 

First time in 15 years sailing around Europe

Just curious, why no spirits or cigarettes. Aren't they subject to the VAT.

Just curious, why no spirits or cigarettes. Aren't they subject to the VAT.

I don’t know hence I’m here on this forum find out ... ?

Very strange and none of the staff could give a straight answer to why

I asked if it was to do with brexit etc but the staff said no it’s always been a RCi rule ... but when I said that we had brought duty free from out of the RCi duty free shop in the past they couldn’t answer!!

I looked at buying some aftershave and the price was $69 but add 20% vat and it brought it back to pretty much what I would pay in the uk from boots ?? How’s that duty and tax free?? Also they were advertising Invicta watches 70% off retail price ( which they always do every cruise) which is Normal but then you add 20% vat ... why advertise in the compass that it’s a duty and tax free if it isn’t ?

Well we have done the 14 day med cruise / canary cruise & also around Norway with RCI all from Southampton and on each of those cruises we were able to buy duty free tobacco / cigarettes / wine / spirits all from the on board duty and tax free shop ...

Nothing saying about added tax anywhere but on this particular cruise there was signs everywhere and also a leaflet to our state rooms saying there would be 20% added vat and also the duty free shop had no alcohol and no tobacco for sale ... just chocolate and the usual RCi merchandise :mad:

 

First time in 15 years sailing around Europe

Not sure which itinerary you were sailing but Norway is a non-EU country and the Canaries has special tax status within the EU. Virtually all sailings from Southampton visit a non-EU country, or the Canaries or Gibraltar (which also has special tax status) and this allows the cruise to be "non-VAT" at least whilst not in port. Perhaps you were on one of those very few cruises from Southampton that only sailed to EU ports?

Perhaps you were on one of those very few cruises from Southampton that only sailed to EU ports?

We recently sailed to Gijon , Bilbao , Cherbourg , La Havre

Which are EU ports ... but this didn’t get explained on the ship!

We cruised before all round the med 2,3 or 4 times and also the fjords and canaries , we also did a tester cruise in 2005 which went to Guernsey all of which once so many miles out the duty free shops opened

We recently sailed to Gijon , Bilbao , Cherbourg , La Havre

Which are EU ports ... but this didn’t get explained on the ship!

 

We cruised before all round the med 2,3 or 4 times and also the fjords and canaries , we also did a tester cruise in 2005 which went to Guernsey all of which once so many miles out the duty free shops opened

Yes that would make sense - this was a EU only cruise so RCL are required to charge VAT throughout based mainly on UK regulations (as the port of departure).

The other cruises you mention either go to a non-EU port (Norway) or port with special tax status (Guernsey and Canaries) and I would guess that the other Med cruises you mention stopped at either Gibraltar or a non-EU country such as Turkey.

Yes that would make sense - this was a EU only cruise so RCL are required to charge VAT throughout based mainly on UK regulations (as the port of departure).

 

The other cruises you mention either go to a non-EU port (Norway) or port with special tax status (Guernsey and Canaries) and I would guess that the other Med cruises you mention stopped at either Gibraltar or a non-EU country such as Turkey.

Don't forget Montenegro.

Just curious, why no spirits or cigarettes. Aren't they subject to the VAT.

Yes, both are subject to VAT of course. But the OP is talking about duty free in that case ;)! Duty free shops are closed on "closed loop EU cruises".

steamboats

This is the same as UK airports, you cannot buy alcohol and tobacco at duty free prices unless you leave the EU. As your ports of call were not outside the EU, then the ship cannot sell alcohol and tobacco at duty free prices and as all the stock if prices to sell at duty free prices, they can't sell it. I would have been illegal under UK laws for them to have done so.

If it had been 'UK duty paid' and an appropriate customs stamp (bit of paper attached to the bottle or printed within the label) to prove that the UK duty was paid, they could have sold it - but it wold have made the cost prohibitive (you know what our prices are like!!). It would also have meant they would have had to change all their stock to stock with had the UK duty paid stamp on it.

Hope that helps :-)

Jean

Don't forget Montenegro.

and North African ports

Based on these posts, am I correct in assuming that a cruise that begins in Amsterdam (EU), with ports to include the UK, will not incur a VAT?

A cruise can begin and end anywhere but in order to qualify for duty free prices it must visit a country NOT in the EU. The countries in the EU (for now) are

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the UK.

A cruise can begin and end anywhere but in order to qualify for duty free prices it must visit a country NOT in the EU. The countries in the EU (for now) are

 

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the UK.

Clarification, I thought (or maybe not yet) the UK exited the EU

Clarification, I thought (or maybe not yet) the UK exited the EU

Not yet.

They've invoked the article to leave and are in negotiations, but it hasn't completed yet.

Clarification, I thought (or maybe not yet) the UK exited the EU

Not yet. Negotiations are underway but for the time being the UK is still a member of the EU. As it stands, the scheduled date for actual departure is 29 March 2019.

For anyone who wants to know more, the BBC recently published some pretty extensive info here: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-32810887

Based on these posts, am I correct in assuming that a cruise that begins in Amsterdam (EU), with ports to include the UK, will not incur a VAT?

The closest non EU would be Guernsey. If you are only "mainland" UK then you will face the VAT (of the Netherlands as your cruise departs from Amsterdam).

steamboats