Buying • Selling • Building
Part 8
In this 12-part series Rosemont Yacht Services looks at key transaction issues in Superyacht Acquisitions, Superyacht Sales and Superyacht New Builds, and considers how we can assist owners in the process.
The Yacht Has Been Sold - Is the Seller Really Finished?
Accounting and reporting
Record sale proceeds, brokerage, professional fees, financing repayment and transaction costs. Reconcile stakeholder and bank movements to the closing statement. Complete applicable VAT, customs, tax or regulatory reporting and preserve supporting evidence.
Clear the balance sheet
Settle crew, management, insurance, suppliers, taxes and professional fees. Collect receivables, deposits and refunds. Close banking, insurance and management arrangements no longer required.
Plan distributions and reserves carefully
The amount received at closing is not necessarily the amount immediately available for distribution. The company may still face late supplier invoices, crew claims, professional fees, tax adjustments or contractual matters. Before distributing all proceeds, consider whether an appropriate reserve is required.
The destination of the sale proceeds should also be planned. Where the yacht-owning SPV forms part of a trust, foundation, holding company or family-office structure, distributions should be coordinated with the owner's home-country and fiduciary advisers before funds are moved. This can be particularly important for internationally structured families.
Final accounts should tell the story of the sale
The accounting records should clearly show the disposal price, stakeholder receipts, brokerage commission, professional costs, financing repayment and other transaction expenses. This is important for tax and audit purposes and for demonstrating how net sale proceeds were calculated before distributions.
Do not lose the VAT and customs file
Even after the yacht has left the structure, the seller may need to demonstrate the VAT or customs treatment adopted on sale. Bills of Sale, invoices, export evidence, import documents and supporting correspondence should therefore be retained for the applicable periods.
Liquidation is a process, not a formality
Selling the yacht and closing the yacht-owning company are two separate processes. Final accounts and returns, creditor clearance, distribution approvals, record retention and the formal dissolution procedure all need to be addressed. The precise process depends on the company’s jurisdiction.
Closing the company may take time
Formal liquidation or dissolution may not be immediate. Final tax clearances, audits, creditor periods or registry procedures can extend the timetable. During that period the company still needs proper administration, books and records, a functioning bank account where necessary and authorised persons able to deal with outstanding matters.
Retain a complete sale file
The final corporate file should preserve the signed sale agreement, Bill of Sale, PDA, closing statement, mortgage-release evidence, registry deletion documents, VAT/customs records and relevant bank evidence. These documents may later be needed for tax enquiries, audit, source-of-funds evidence or future estate and investment planning.
The sale file can later provide important source-of-funds evidence when the proceeds are reinvested, transferred within the family structure or used to acquire a replacement yacht or other major asset.
How Rosemont Yacht Services can assist
RYS’s involvement does not need to end when the yacht is delivered to its new owner. Where RYS administers the yacht-owning structure, we can continue through the entire post-sale close-out process.
This can include reconciling sale and closing movements, completing accounting records, coordinating VAT/tax reporting and audit requirements with relevant advisers, settling or providing for outstanding liabilities and receivables, and maintaining the company while it remains in existence.
RYS can assist with distributions and, where the yacht-owning SPV no longer has a purpose, coordinate its orderly liquidation or dissolution in accordance with its jurisdiction and relevant professional advice.
The objective is to take the ownership structure from completed yacht sale to completed corporate close-out, with the accounting, liabilities, distributions and records properly dealt with in between.
RYS Transaction Check
☐ Closing funds fully reconciled?
☐ Sale and transaction costs correctly recorded?
☐ VAT/tax/audit requirements completed where due?
☐ Creditors, crew and professional costs settled or provided for?
☐ Receivables, deposits and refunds collected?
☐ Appropriate reserve retained?
☐ Distributions properly approved and documented?
☐ Banking, insurance and management arrangements closed when appropriate?
☐ Complete sale/source-of-funds file retained?
☐ Company genuinely ready for liquidation or dissolution?
You may also be interested in
- Insight - The Complete Guide to Superyacht Ownership by Rosemont Yacht Services
- Who we are - Rosemont Yacht Services
- Part 7 – The Yacht Survey from the Seller's Side: Preparing for the Buyer's Inspection
- Part 9 – Building a Superyacht: From First Concept to Delivery
Important note: General information only. Transaction-specific legal, tax, customs, regulatory and flag advice should be obtained where required.