Duty-free fuel in Italy confirmed by authorities

The Italian Customs Authority has confirmed that the application of an exemption of excise duty on fuel for commercial superyachts carrying out charter activity under the conditions and procedures stated in the past, namely the effective navigation on the high seas for more than 70 per cent of a charter vessel’s trips.

“This important result was achieved thanks to the request of juridical consultancy put forward by three associations involved in the initiative by a group of 10 Italian suppliers of fuel, which have shouldered and faced the uncertainty triggered by the infringement procedure launched by the Court of Justice of the European Union, arguing that the Italian exemption on excise duty for pleasure boats is incompatible with Article 14 Directive 2003/96/EC (the so-called Energy Directive),” explained Carla Bellieni of Piana, Iluzzi, Queriolo, Trabattoni.

The request for juridical consultancy was brought several weeks ago by Santacroce & Partners, with the support of Carla Bellini, who submitted the request for juridical consultancy to the Italian Customs Authority. In their answer, the Italian Customs Authority confirmed the legitimacy of the exemption regime with regards to the excise duties on the fuel for yachts carrying out charter activity. The answer, fortunately, has arrived in time for the application of the exemption in Italy for the 2021 summer season in the Mediterranean.

Click here to search for fuel bunkering companies in Italy.

For more news and yachting tips, connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.