How do you register a yacht in St Vincent and the Grenadines?
How to register a yacht in St Vincent and the Grenadines: registered agent, eligibility, documents, provisional entry, survey and renewal.
Registering a yacht in St Vincent and the Grenadines runs in a fixed order: put the owning company and its registered agent in place, check the vessel's age against the survey trigger, choose between private, limited charter and full commercial status, take a provisional certificate if the yacht is abroad, then complete the full entry.
Who may own a yacht on the St Vincent and the Grenadines register?Link to this section
Ownership is held through a company rather than personally: a foreign individual is not a qualified owner here, and a foreign company registers through a registered agent in the country, whose fee recurs. Older vessels are not barred, but past a threshold they need a preliminary flag state survey and the Administration's agreement.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Who may own a registered vessel | Foreign companies register through a registered agent in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; a foreign individual is not a qualified owner. Keeping the agent typically costs an estimated US$900 to US$2,100 a year on providers' published prices.Shipping Act 2004 (No. 11 of 2004), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as published by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · s. 6(1)Retrieved 2026-09-01Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Which vessels qualify | Vessels older than 18 years (15 for tankers) need a preliminary Flag State survey and the Administration's special consideration before registration; it is not an automatic bar.Circular REG 001 Rev. 1, Additional procedure for registration and change of Flag surveys, 10 September 2014, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · para. 1Retrieved 2026-09-01Effective 2014-09-10Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
Private, limited charter or fully commercial: which route applies?Link to this section
Three routes are open, and they price differently: private, fully commercial, and a limited charter allowance that lets a private yacht trade for a capped number of days a year. Where the yacht may then charter is decided by each coastal state, and chartering in the country's own waters is not permitted.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Private and commercial regimes | Three regimes, including a Limited Charter Allowance of 84 days a year for private yachts.Circular YAT 005 Rev 3, Pleasure (Private) Yachts With Limited Charter Allowance, 20 February 2019, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · Section IRetrieved 2026-08-27Effective 2019-02-20Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Charter permissions | Coastal states decide; the EU cabotage freedom does not extend to this flag, and charter in home waters is barred.Council Regulation (EEC) No 3577/92 of 7 December 1992 applying the principle of freedom to provide services to maritime transport within Member States (maritime cabotage), EUR-Lexeur-lex.europa.eu · Art. 1(1)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
Which documents does the Maritime Administration ask for?Link to this section
Expect a bill of sale, a certificate of good standing for the owning company, a tonnage certificate, evidence of protection and indemnity cover, and an inspection report. The register keeps several class-specific checklists, so confirm which one applies before assembling papers against the wrong list.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Documents required | A bill of sale, corporate good standing certificate, tonnage certificate, P&I entry and an inspection report are required.PRO 005, Procedure for the Registration of Pleasure Yachts from 24m up to 500 GT with No Charter Allowance, 15 June 2015, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · Administrative requirementsRetrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
Can a provisional certificate be issued while the yacht is abroad?Link to this section
A provisional certificate is issued abroad and lets the yacht fly the flag while the full entry is prepared. It runs for a set period and can be extended once. The register publishes no processing time for the full entry, so the outer limit of the provisional cover is the deadline that actually binds.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Provisional registration | Provisional certificates run six months, extendable by a further six, and are issued abroad.Shipping Act 2004 (No. 11 of 2004), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as published by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · s. 28(1)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Time to full registration | Twelve months on a provisional certificate is the outer limit; no processing time is published.Shipping Act 2004 (No. 11 of 2004), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as published by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · s. 28(3)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
What surveys are required, and which codes does the flag accept?Link to this section
A tonnage survey is carried out before registration, followed by renewal surveys and a dry docking cycle for as long as the yacht stays registered. The flag applies its own yacht codes and accepts a British large yacht code certificate as equivalent for load line purposes, which matters for a yacht arriving from a Red Ensign flag.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Survey requirements | A pre-registration tonnage survey applies, then renewal surveys every five years and dry docking every 36 months.Shipping Act 2004 (No. 11 of 2004), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as published by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · s. 14(1)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| MCA code equivalents | The flag applies its own yacht codes, accepting the UK Large Yacht Code LY3 as equivalent to the Load Line Convention.Safety Code of Practice for Pleasure Yachts Engaged in Commercial Trade, SVG Code Edition 2008 Rev. 7, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · § 4.2.2Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
Do officer certificates need a flag endorsement?Link to this section
Officer certificates issued under STCW or by the United Kingdom's maritime authority need a flag endorsement before they are valid on a vessel of this flag, and the yacht carries a safe manning document setting the crew it must sail with. Commercial yachts meet the Maritime Labour Convention at any tonnage.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Crew certification requirements | STCW or MCA officer certificates must carry a flag endorsement, alongside a Safe Manning Document.Shipping Act 2004 (No. 11 of 2004), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as published by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · s. 99(1)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Maritime Labour Convention applicability | Commercial yachts meet the MLC at any tonnage; certification is voluntary, inspection falls every three years.Safety Code of Practice for Pleasure Yachts Engaged in Commercial Trade, SVG Code Edition 2008 Rev. 7, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · § 14.8.1Retrieved 2026-09-01Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
How do mortgages rank, and what is a ban on further mortgages?Link to this section
A lender's mortgage is registered against the vessel as a separate act, and priority runs strictly by the order of registration. The register will also record a ban on further mortgages, after which a later mortgage granted in breach of it is void rather than merely postponed.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Mortgage registration | Mortgages rank strictly by order of registration; a registered ban on further mortgages makes any breach null and void.Shipping Act 2004 (No. 11 of 2004), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as published by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · s. 68(1)Retrieved 2026-09-01Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
What falls due each year, and how is the registration closed?Link to this section
The annual tax falls due every year while the compliance certificates run on a longer cycle. An owner may close the registration voluntarily, but mortgagees must be notified and can block it outright. The flag's port state control record travels with the yacht, and it is worth reading before a purchase rather than after.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Renewal cycle | Tax falls annually at US$250.00, while compliance documents run five years.Shipping Act 2004 (No. 11 of 2004), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as published by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · s. 9(1)(b)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Deregistration process | Owners may close registration voluntarily, but mortgagees must be notified and can block it outright.Shipping Act 2004 (No. 11 of 2004), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as published by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Maritime Administration (archived copy)www.svg-marad.com (web.archive.org) · s. 9(1)(d)Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Paris MoU standing | Grey List, rank 54, with 245 inspections and 19 detentions across 2023 to 2025.Performance Lists, Paris MoU 2025 Annual Report (published 1 July 2026), Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Controlparismou.org · Flag Performance – Grey ListRetrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
Who supplies the registered agent and files the application?Link to this section
Registered agents, registration firms and shipping lawyers file these applications routinely and can supply the agent the register requires. Read the cost guide, check timing with the registration timeline checker and the papers with the documents checklist generator, then ask a specialist.
Every position above sits on the St Vincent and the Grenadines yacht pillar beside the alternatives, including Malta. This page is informational, not legal or tax advice.
Informational only, not legal, tax or financial advice.
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