A Greek ferry provider has requested that the EU prohibit some benefits for the International Italian Register it claims are giving these ships an unfair advantage in the Adriatic trade.
Greece is considering taxing shipowners on overseas earnings to generate revenue but needs to also consider the impact such a tax would have on maintaining national jobs.
With a backdrop of increasing tax authority scrutiny of offshore vessel registration structures, leasing and VAT structures were animatedly discussed at Marine Money’s Superyacht Finance Forum in Monaco last month.
World City America, home of the American Flagship Project, has written to US President Barack Obama encouraging him to reconsider legislation currently prohibiting the financing of nationally-flagged overnight passenger vessels.
Thanassis Martinos of Eastern Mediterranean Maritime has proposed a European Union flag "based on a tonnage-tax regime but allowing payment of taxes in the sovereign state."
While South Africa has promised to introduce a tonnage tax regime in early 2013, some are skeptical of whether the country will be able to do so by that date.
