Crew movements in and out of Italy have been a pain point during the past year, with immigration officials declining to stamp passports of non-EU crew boarding yachts in its ports. The new rule — to no longer recognise vessels as ex-EU territory unless departing from the Area — meant that the 90-day period permitted under the Schengen ‘C’ short term visa continued to count down while in Italian waters. To great fanfare, it was announced recently that Italy would from 2023 offer its 365-day ‘D’ visa to seafarers, to get around the problem of overstaying. There had been some speculation among local agents that a new stamping protocol would also be (re-)introduced, while seafarer visa issues were being addressed. However, unfortunately this appears not to be the case. The ‘D’ visa entitles the holder to stay for up to 365 days in Italy only, which is useful for those non-EU crew stationed in the country for extended periods. It does nothing to address the issue of Schengen-wide travel rules. One benefit the D visa does offer is that it incorporates the ‘C’ visa, meaning that ‘D’ holders do not need to obtain a separate ‘C’ visa for travel around […]
With the end of the Med season upon us, we have been asked by many (British) crew in the past days to sort out their passports for them. There’s a high occurrence of crew that have been aboard for the season without stamping out of the EU and onto the boat. This can mean that they have overstayed their permitted 90 days in the EU and is potentially a big problem. **Please note that these regulations are not new and have applied to British crew since Brexit came into effect.** Stepping onto a boat and marking up the crew list accordingly is not enough for non-EU crew. Only by attending Immigration police and having your passport stamped can your days in the EU be ‘stopped’. While the captain or purser should advise you of this requirement, it is ultimately the responsibility of the bearer to ensure that passports are correctly stamped and visas valid. A representative can visit immigration on most crew’s behalf; they are not required to attend in person. Note that crew must also stamp OFF the boat before travelling to the airport to fly home. Not doing so is technically illegal and can land you in trouble […]
