Spezialisten für Freizeit- und Schifffahrtsrecht auf den Balearen
INFORMATION NOTE OF 11/02/2021
Can British citizens register a boat in Spain?
Due to the current status of "third country" as a result of BREXIT, UK citizens will be affected by the content of Article 252 of Royal Legislative Decree 2/2011, of 5 September, approving the Consolidated Text of the State Ports and Merchant Shipping Act (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2011, de 5 de septiembre, por el que se aprueba el Texto Refundido de la Ley de Puertos del Estado y de la Marina Mercante).
This article clearly states that to register a boat in Spain for commercial use, for example charter, it is necessary to be a resident or have domicile in Spain or be a resident or have a domicile in another State of the European Economic Area, that is, the States of the European Union plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, and in that particular case a representative should be appointed for the purposes of the vessel. However, if you wish to register for private use, residency is not required but a representative in Spain would need to be appointed.
So, every citizen of the United Kingdom, as of any other third State, will have the following options:
Palma, 10th February 2021