The Customs Agency is providing important updates and clarifications regarding the Temporary Admission regime for private and commercial yachts from outside the EU.

Moores Rowland Partners Tax Column

Contribution by Dr. Ezio Vannucci and Dr. Andrea Barabino

With Circular No. 11/2026 of 15 May 2026, the Italian Customs (ADM) have once again addressed the temporary admission regime for Extra-EU yachts, both for private and commercial use, providing new clarifications that are of paramount importance to the yachting sector. These clarifications are intended to supplement those previously provided by the Administration, in particular in ADM Circulars No. 8/2025 and No. 20/2022.

Having outlined the conditions and procedures under which an Extra-EU private yacht may be placed under the temporary admission regime, the Administration first set out the operational procedures for verifying compliance with that regime.

Furthermore, in the same Circular, Italian Customs addressed the issue of yachts registered in a Extra-EU country and used for commercial purposes within the EU to carry out charter activities under the temporary admission regime.

The temporary admission regime for “Pleasure Yachts”

With regard to yachts used for private purposes (so-called ‘pleasure yachts’), the Administration has pointed out that pleasure yachts registered in a Extra-EU country entering the territory of the European Union may, in principle, be placed under the temporary admission procedure simply by crossing the territorial waters boundary, without the need for further customs formalities. Therefore, entry into the territorial waters of an EU Member State, within 12 miles of the coast, is sufficient to place the vessel under this customs procedure.

However, the person concerned still has the option of not availing themselves of this simplification and submitting the verbal declaration of entry under the procedure (the so-called Form 71-01), which allows the date of the vessel’s arrival in the EU territory to be certified for the purposes of complying with the maximum time limits set for the discharge of the procedure (the maximum discharge period for private yachts is 18 months). The Customs also indicates a further alternative for certifying the date of arrival, which is to visit the Port Authority Office.

The Italian Customs also reiterated the conditions that must be met for means of transport to be placed under the temporary admission procedure, noting that they must be registered outside the territory of the Union in the name of a person established outside the Union or, if not registered, must be owned by a person established outside the customs territory of the Union and, in any case, must be used by a person established outside the territory of the Union.

As regards the procedures for discharge of the procedure, the Customs authorities, in line with the findings of a recent judgment by the Second Instance Tax Court of Liguria, have clarified that the procedure is deemed to be discharged upon the vessel’s exit from EU territorial waters. Such exit may also be demonstrated by means of satellite detection systems recording the vessel’s arrival in international waters, via the A.I.S. (Automatic Identification System). Alternatively, proof of exit from the Union territory may be provided by documentation certifying arrival at a third-country port. Proof of exit must also be recorded in the logbook.

The temporary admission regime for Extra-EU “Commercial yachts”

With regard to yachts used for commercial purposes (so-called ‘commercial yachts’), the Customs Agency has clarified that, in the presence of a commercial contract for consideration (e.g. charter), the yacht cannot be considered a means of maritime transport for private use; therefore, the period for the clearance of the temporary admission regime is limited to the time necessary to carry out the transport operations (as provided for in Article 217(b) of the RD).

A commercial yacht registered in a third country, whose users (crew and guests/charterers) are also established in a third country, may enter territorial waters under temporary admission for private use—on the same terms as a pleasure yacht—provided that no commercial contract for consideration (e.g., a charter agreement) is in effect at the time of entry into the EU territory.

If, during its stay in Italian territory, the commercial yacht becomes subject to a charter contract, it must exit the customs territory of the Union, demonstrating such exit even by merely reaching international waters (12 miles from the baseline of the coast), which will allow for the closure of the temporary admission regime for private use. The yacht may re-enter the EU customs territory (Italy) under the temporary admission regime for commercial use in order to commence the charter contract.

The circular specifies that, in order to allow for the monitoring of activities carried out during the period of stay in national territorial waters, commercial yachts must, upon entry into Italian territory, submit Form 71-01 to the local Customs Office, attaching the charter contract and recording the operations carried out in the logbooks. These documents must be kept on board to be presented in the event of a customs inspection.

Once the commercial yacht has completed the aforementioned formalities, it may remain in EU/Italian territory under temporary admission for the entire duration of the charter contract, for the period specified in the contract, and for the itinerary set forth therein. Once the charter activity is completed, the yacht must exit the territorial waters of the Union, providing evidence of the exit in the manner already described.

This clarification is of considerable interest to the yachting sector, as it now allows a commercial yacht from a third country to be used, even on a temporary basis, for charter activities under the temporary admission regime – as has, in fact, long been permitted in France for yachts flying the flags of the Cayman Islands and the Marshall Islands and registered in the Yacht Engaged in Trade (YET) register.

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