Topic: Service charge

QUOTE:

Egentlig veldig bra. Jeg studerte det for ett år som en del av mitt primære grad! Jeg tilbrakte to somre i Norge de siste 5 årene for å friske opp det som jeg var litt rusten!
Trenger du å gå tilbake for et lite oppfriskingskurs.

Isn't Google translator brilliant


Actually very good. I studied it for a year as part of my primary degree! I spent two summers in Norway over the past 5 years to brush up on it as I was a little rusty!
Need to go back for a little refresher course.

QUOTE:

And I thought I was the cynic around here!

My cynicism is based on my experience on Grandeur OTS last Oct when I protested about not being in Spanish waters on one of the sea days and was told

"this is how the company interpret the Spanish ruling"

QUOTE:

Isn't Google translator brilliant


Actually very good. I studied it for a year as part of my primary degree! I spent two summers in Norway over the past 5 years to brush up on it as I was a little rusty!
Need to go back for a little refresher course.

Staggering - that is exactly as I wrote it. I thought it would have trouble with terms like 'rusty' , 'to brush up on' and 'refresher course' as they are is it idioms (i think!)

QUOTE:

My cynicism is based on my experience on Grandeur OTS last Oct when I protested about not being in Spanish waters on one of the sea days and was told

"this is how the company interpret the Spanish ruling"

So not cynical then! Where were you sailing from / to?

QUOTE:

Under EU rules it's just when in Spanish ports or territorial waters, mind you that could be just 5 mins that day if they cut a corner (probably not a good time to suggest ships do that sort of thing)

I think some ships plead ignorance and then pocket the difference as pure profit

pete

Wrong - if the cruise starts and ends in EU ports and does not go outside the EU then you will cop VAT all the time. Spain charges 8% on drinks etc. so BCN to BCN has 8% VAT.
Italy zero-rates drinks so with Rome/Venice starts and finishes you do not get VAT on drinks. (No duty-free purchases though)

QUOTE:

So not cynical then! Where were you sailing from / to?

Palma around W. Med.

I checked the onboard live charts (display) before protesting and they agreed that we had not been in Spanish waters that day but stood by the company line.

QUOTE:

Wrong - if the cruise starts and ends in EU ports and does not go outside the EU then you will cop VAT all the time. Spain charges 8% on drinks etc. so BCN to BCN has 8% VAT.
Italy zero-rates drinks so with Rome/Venice starts and finishes you do not get VAT on drinks. (No duty-free purchases though)

We sailed on the Jade from BCN to BCN but did stop in Monte Carlo (not in the EU ) and we had the VAT all the time!
I am not sure when the Spanish VAT kicks in?

QUOTE:

Wrong - if the cruise starts and ends in EU ports and does not go outside the EU then you will cop VAT all the time. Spain charges 8% on drinks etc. so BCN to BCN has 8% VAT.
Italy zero-rates drinks so with Rome/Venice starts and finishes you do not get VAT on drinks. (No duty-free purchases though)

Agreed you cop VAT all the time but every cruise i've been on has included a non EU port (even if that is Gibraltar) (10 cruises in all) so as to avoid the VAT, but you still get the Spanish VAT(in spanish waters ) on drinks and services from the date of the new spanish law


Pete

QUOTE:

We sailed on the Jade from BCN to BCN but did stop in Monte Carlo (not in the EU ) and we had the VAT all the time!
I am not sure when the Spanish VAT kicks in?

The attachment states 'France (including Monaco)'.

We did the same trip (Jade BCN - BCN) and paid 8% all the time.

Last summer we did a Jade B2B out of Venice - first week we visited Croatia and Turkey so no VAT and duty-free sales. Second week was Greek islands so VAT 'charged' (at 0%) and no duty-free.

QUOTE:

We sailed on the Jade from BCN to BCN but did stop in Monte Carlo (not in the EU ) and we had the VAT all the time!
I am not sure when the Spanish VAT kicks in?

EXACTLY




Pete