Published August 2026. Written for anyone holding a first crewed charter quote and wondering what the three numbers mean and what has been left off.
A Mediterranean crewed yacht charter quote has three numbers on it: the charter fee, the VAT, and the APA. The crew tip is not on it, and neither are the flights. When you compare two quotes, the VAT line can show two different percentages for two near-identical boats, and that is usually the point at which the comparison stops making sense. This article takes a real quote line by line and explains what each figure is doing, why it is the size it is, and what to ask before signing.
What is on a crewed yacht charter quote?
The quote below is for a crewed 46-foot sailing catamaran in Greece, 8 guests, 7 nights in peak season 2026. The fee and the percentages are those quoted on the yacht.
Line on the quote | Amount | What it is |
|---|
Charter fee | €15,000 | The yacht, the crew, insurance and equipment for the week |
VAT 12% | €1,800 | Tax on the fee only; the rate depends on the yacht |
APA 30% | €4,500 | A running-cost float, spent at cost, with the balance refunded |
Delivery fee | €0 | Embarking at the boat's home port |
Payable before departure | €21,300 | Of which €4,500 is the guests' own money held in trust |
Not on the quote: crew tip | €1,500 to €2,250 | Customarily 10 to 15% in the Med, at the guests' discretion |
Not on the quote: flights, transfers, shore dining | Paid directly | Getting to the boat, and anything paid for ashore |
On the charter this quote was written for, the captain collected €4,800 of APA rather than the quoted €4,500, spent about €4,450 of it and returned the balance. The full settlement is set out in our article on what that week actually cost.
Line 1: the charter fee, and what it includes
The fee buys the yacht for the week together with its permanent crew, its insurance, its equipment and toys, and its consumables. Under the MYBA-form agreement that most Mediterranean crewed charters are written on, the owner's side of the contract covers crew wages, crew food, hull and liability insurance and maintenance, so none of those reappear as extras.
For a sense of scale in Greece in 2026, current listing fees for crewed catamarans run from €15,500 to €20,500 for a Lagoon 51 with 2 crew, €20,000 to €26,900 for a Lagoon 55 with 3 crew, and €32,000 to €42,500 for a Lagoon 65 with 4 crew, from low season to high. A crewed 46-foot catamaran sits a little below the 51.
One thing worth checking on the fee is whether it is quoted with the crew included or as a bareboat price with a skipper and hostess added per day, because Greek operators price boats in the 42 to 46 foot range both ways. A boat listed at €13,500 bareboat that then adds €1,470 for a skipper and €1,330 for a hostess is, in effect, a €16,300 boat, and the two quotes are only comparable once that has been added up.
Line 2: VAT, and why two similar yachts show different rates
The VAT line is the one that causes the most confusion, among clients and among a good many brokers, so it is worth setting out how it works in Greece.
A crewed charter in Greece is treated for VAT purposes as passenger transport, which falls into the reduced-rate category. The statutory rate is 13%. A bareboat charter, with no crew, is taxed at the standard rate of 24%. That distinction was made permanent from December 2023 and was restated in an AADE circular in February 2026.
A second rule is what produces the unusual percentages on quotes. Under a tax circular dating from 1997, the taxable base of a crewed charter is reduced according to the yacht's navigation licence: by 60% for a vessel licensed for unlimited or international voyages, by 50% for large coastal navigation, and by 40% for small coastal navigation. Applying 13% to the reduced base gives an effective rate of 5.2%, 6.5% or 7.8% of the charter fee, as the table shows.
Yacht's navigation licence | Taxable base | Effective VAT on the fee |
|---|
Unlimited or international | 40% of the fee | 5.2% |
Large coastal | 50% of the fee | 6.5% |
Small coastal | 60% of the fee | 7.8% |
No reduction applied | 100% of the fee | 13% |
Bareboat, no crew | 100% of the fee | 24% |
This is why two Lagoon 46s moored next to each other can legitimately carry different VAT: one holds an unlimited navigation licence and the other a coastal one, and the rate follows the licence rather than the boat. Industry practice also holds that charters shorter than 48 hours, and static charters that do not leave the dock, do not receive the base reduction.
In practice you will still see quotes at 12%, which is a figure from before the 13% rate that some operators continue to apply, and quotes at a flat 13%. The 12% on the quote above is what the operator of that yacht applies. The useful question to ask the broker is which VAT rate applies to this specific yacht and why, and a good broker can answer with the licence category.
Two further points about the VAT line. It is charged on the charter fee and on any delivery fee, and never on the APA. And it varies by country: Croatia charges 13% on charters starting there, France 20%, Italy 22% and Spain 21%, each with its own rules for time spent outside EU waters. Between Greece and Croatia the difference is small, and against France or Italy it is a real amount on a week's charter.
Line 3: APA, and what a lower APA actually means
The APA, or Advance Provisioning Allowance, is money the guests put in before the charter so that the captain can pay for fuel, provisioning, drinks, port fees and anything else that depends on how the week is spent. It is spent at cost, with receipts, and whatever is left is returned. The MYBA-form contract does not set a percentage; 25 to 35% of the fee for sailing yachts and catamarans and 35 to 40% for motor yachts is the broker convention, and 30% is what most Greek catamaran quotes show.
This matters when comparing quotes because a quote with a 20% APA can look €1,500 cheaper than one at 30% on the same €15,000 boat, when it is not. The APA is the guests' own money held in trust, and if the week costs €4,450 to run it costs €4,450 whether €3,000 or €4,800 was paid in advance. The only difference is whether the guests receive a refund at the end or a request for a top-up halfway through. A lower APA on a quote means a smaller deposit, and the week costs the same.
The more useful question is what a particular boat actually spent last season. On the 46-foot catamaran above, a €4,800 APA settled at about €4,450, or just under 30% of the fee, so the convention was very close to right. We can usually show a settlement of that kind for the boats we propose, and the mechanics are explained in full in our APA guide.
What is not on the quote?
The crew tip is discretionary and is never on the paperwork. The MYBA guidelines for captains and crew state that brokers generally suggest 5 to 15% of the charter fee for excellent service, and in practice 10 to 15% is what Greek charters see. It is calculated on the charter fee alone, never on the fee plus VAT plus APA. Our tipping guide gives real rates by region.
Getting to the boat is the guests' own cost: flights, airport transfers, and a hotel night before embarkation where the flights require one. On most Greek charters the transfer from the airport to the marina is inexpensive, but it is still separate.
Shore spending is also separate. Restaurants the guests walk into and pay for, shopping, and excursions they book themselves are paid directly, whereas anything the crew arranges and pays for on the guests' behalf goes through the APA.
The yacht is insured; the guests' trip is not. Cancellation and travel insurance are bought separately and are worth having on a week costing over €20,000.
A security deposit is standard on bareboat quotes and common on Caribbean all-inclusive quotes, where it is usually held on a card. On MYBA-form crewed charters in the Mediterranean it is uncommon but does appear, and if there is one it should be stated on the quote.
Delivery fees: when do you pay to move the boat?
If the charter starts and ends at the yacht's home port there is nothing to pay. If the guests want to start in Athens and finish in Mykonos, or collect the boat somewhere other than where it is based, the owner has to reposition it and the quote will carry a delivery or re-delivery fee. The MYBA-form contract lists this as a separate line, and there is no fixed tariff: it is usually the fuel for the transit plus the crew's time, agreed in advance, and VAT applies to it. It sits outside the APA, and the transit fuel should not then reappear in the APA settlement.
One-way charters in Greece are popular for good reason, and the sensible step is to ask for the delivery fee in writing before committing to the itinerary.
When is it paid?
On a MYBA-form charter the money is paid into escrow with a stakeholder rather than to the broker. The usual schedule is 50% of the charter fee on signing, with the remaining 50% together with the VAT, the APA and any delivery fee due about a month before departure. The owner receives the fee in stages around the charter dates. The payment schedule should be written into the contract rather than agreed by email.
A Greek quote compared with a Caribbean quote
The two are not comparable line by line. A Mediterranean crewed charter is priced as fee plus VAT plus APA, and the guests pay for what they use. A Caribbean crewed catamaran is normally sold all-inclusive under Caribbean Terms, with one weekly rate covering the yacht, crew, all meals, the bar, fuel and moorings, and only a small allowance, if any, for extras. The Caribbean price therefore looks higher on the first line and lower on the last, and the tip convention there is also higher, at 15 to 20% against 10 to 15% in the Mediterranean.
The comparison that works is the all-in figure per person. On the Greek week above that was about €2,650 per person before the tip and about €2,840 with a 10% tip. The same calculation on a Caribbean quote, including its tip, gives a fair basis for the decision.
Five questions to ask before you sign
1. Is the fee crewed, or bareboat plus crew? Especially on boats under 50 feet in Greece.
2. Which VAT rate applies to this yacht, and why? The answer should be a licence category.
3. What did this boat's APA actually settle at last season? Any decent broker can find out.
4. Is there a delivery fee, and is it on the quote? For anything other than a home-port round trip.
5. Where does the money sit until the charter? The answer should be a named stakeholder.
The short version
A Mediterranean crewed quote is fee plus VAT plus APA. The fee is fixed. The VAT is charged on the fee only and, in Greece, depends on the yacht's navigation licence, which gives effective rates of 5.2%, 6.5% or 7.8%, or 13% with no reduction and 24% for bareboat, and that is why similar boats show different rates. The APA is the guests' own money, spent at cost and refunded, so a lower APA is only a smaller deposit and the week costs the same. The tip, flights, transfers and shore spending are not on the quote, and adding 10 to 15% of the fee for the crew gives the real number.
Common questions
What is included in a yacht charter price? The charter fee covers the yacht, its crew, insurance and equipment. VAT is charged on that fee. The APA is a separate float for running costs such as fuel, provisioning, drinks and port fees, spent at cost and refunded. The crew tip, flights, transfers and anything paid for directly ashore are additional.
Why is VAT different on two similar yachts in Greece? Crewed charters are taxed at 13%, but the taxable base is reduced by 40, 50 or 60% depending on the yacht's navigation licence, giving effective rates of 7.8%, 6.5% or 5.2%. Some operators still quote 12% or a flat 13%. Bareboat is 24%. The rate follows the licence, so ask which applies to the yacht you have been quoted.
Is a lower APA a cheaper charter? No. The APA is the guests' own money held in trust, and the week costs what it costs to run. A smaller APA only means a smaller deposit and a greater chance of a top-up request during the charter.
When do I pay for a yacht charter? On a MYBA-form charter, typically 50% of the fee on signing and the balance plus VAT, APA and any delivery fee about a month before departure, all paid into escrow with a stakeholder rather than to the broker.
About the Author
Maurits is a professional yacht charter broker and founder of Frontier Yachting, based in Belgium. Before moving ashore he worked as a yacht captain across several Mediterranean seasons. He writes quotes like the one above every week and has had every one of these conversations with clients.
Contact: hello@frontieryachting.com | +32 487 22 08 22
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Sources
Greek VAT on crewed charters (13%) and bareboat (24%): AADE circular E.2006/2026, February 2026, and the codified Annex III of the Greek VAT Code. Reduced taxable base by navigation category: Greek tax circular POL 1156/1997, as applied by Greek fiscal representatives such as SOS Yachting. Crew gratuity guidance: MYBA Guidelines for Charter Yacht Captains and Crew, April 2018. Other-country VAT rates: SOS Yachting and IYC charter tax pages, 2026.
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