Buying guide

Buying a yacht abroad and bringing it home: the 2026 import duty, the Coast Guard label, EPA engine rules, and the charter limits

Updated October 31, 2026 · Written by the House of Biz & Company Editorial Team · General information, not legal or financial advice

Some of the world’s most coveted yachts come from yards in Italy, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Taiwan, and owning one is a statement of taste few purchases can match. Bringing one home to U.S. waters takes more than a wire transfer: a customs entry whose cost changed sharply this summer, a Coast Guard label, an EPA engine check, and a documentation rule that decides whether the yacht can ever take paying guests. Here is how each works, read from the federal sources themselves.

Why this matters now

Many of the yachts that discerning owners covet are built abroad, in the yards of Italy, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Türkiye, and Taiwan. Buying one there, or from a foreign seller here, has always meant a customs entry, a Coast Guard question, and an EPA question. What changed this year is the duty. The ordinary U.S. duty on most motor and sailing yachts is 1.5% [1]. Since 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on July 24, 2026, a new Section 301 tariff sits on top of it for products of sixty economies, and for yachts built in the European Union the two together now come to 10% [2][3]. EPA’s own page on which boat engines may be imported was updated the same day [10]. With the winter boat-show season under way, here is how the pieces fit, read from the tariff schedule, CBP, the Coast Guard’s rules, EPA, and MARAD themselves.

1. The duty: 1.5% on paper, 10% or more in practice

The Harmonized Tariff Schedule puts yachts and other pleasure vessels in heading 8903. Sailboats and motorboats other than inflatables carry a general (Column 1) rate of 1.5%, whatever their length; inflatable boats, including rigid-hull inflatables of the kind used as tenders, carry 2.4% [1]. The “Special” column lists the trade-agreement programs under which those boats can enter free; the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Taiwan are not among them [1].

The Section 301 action layers on top. U.S. Trade Representative set the rates by economy, and CBP’s guidance to importers gives the tariff headings [2][3]. For a product of an EU member state whose Column 1 rate is under 10%, CBP assesses “a combined column one and Section 301 duty rate of 10%” [3]. Taiwan is treated the same way. The United Kingdom pays an additional 10% on top of the ordinary rate, and Türkiye and China an additional 12.5% [3]. Products of Canada pay an additional 10%, except goods entered free of duty under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement [3].

What the table can’t tell you. The exemption headings in CBP’s guidance cover items such as goods already in transit on July 24 and civil aircraft; we did not see yachts called out, but the product lists behind them are long, so have a licensed customs broker confirm the full ten-digit line and any exemption for your boat on your entry date [2][3]. The duty follows the country the yacht is “the product of,” not its flag or where the seller lives [3], so a hull built in one country and finished in another deserves a written origin answer before you sign.

A hypothetical, to show the scale. Suppose a motor yacht built in Italy is entered at a value of $3,000,000. The 1.5% Column 1 rate alone would be $45,000. At the combined 10% rate it is $300,000. The same value built in the United Kingdom would owe 11.5%, or $345,000 [1][3]. These figures are arithmetic on the published rates, not a quote; the customs value, fees, and the rate on your entry date decide the real number.

2. If you’re not a U.S. resident, or the boat is only visiting

The tariff schedule itself says vessels brought into the United States “by nonresidents thereof for their own use in pleasure cruising” are admitted without a formal consumption entry or payment of duty [1]. A foreign-flagged yacht from one of the countries listed in CBP’s regulation (among them Italy, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Canada, the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, and the Marshall Islands) can also get a cruising license, for up to one year, that lets it move between U.S. ports without formally entering and clearing each time [5].

The license carries a warning every buyer should read. The vessel is dutiable if it is owned by a U.S. resident, or brought in for sale or charter to a resident, or brought in duty-free by a nonresident and sold or chartered within a year. Any offer to sell or charter, “for example, a listing with yacht brokers or agents,” is treated as evidence of that, and a yacht sold or offered without a consumption entry and paid duty “may be subject to seizure or to a monetary claim equal to the value of the vessel” [5]. In plain terms: a U.S. resident who buys a foreign yacht can’t keep it duty-free by leaving it under a foreign flag and a cruising license.

3. Buying at a U.S. boat show

Two federal provisions explain why foreign yachts appear at U.S. shows before anyone has paid duty on them. CBP admits vessels entered for display at boat shows, for testing, or for a race (not for money) without a formal consumption entry or bond if they stay no more than 90 days [6]. And for a large yacht, defined as a pleasure vessel over 79 feet that has already been sold once to a retail buyer, federal law lets the importer defer the duty when the yacht is brought in for sale at a U.S. boat show, by certifying that purpose and posting a six-month bond equal to twice the duty [4]. If the yacht sells within the six months, entry is completed and the duty is deposited, based on its value at the time of import; if it neither sells nor leaves within six months, the duty is due anyway, and the bond period can’t be extended [4].

For a buyer, the practical point is simple: if you fall in love with a foreign-built yacht at a show, ask in writing whether it was admitted for display or under the large-yacht deferral, who deposits the duty when you buy it, and at what combined rate. The statute says how the duty is calculated; who bears it is a matter for your contract [4].

4. The Coast Guard label and the hull number

Federal boating law says no one may import into the United States a recreational vessel that doesn’t conform to the Coast Guard’s recreational-boat rules, unless it is intended only for export and labeled that way [9]. For boats covered by a federal safety standard in 33 CFR part 183, the Coast Guard’s regulation adds that no person may import the boat unless it carries a certification label naming the manufacturer and stating that it “Complies With U.S. Coast Guard Safety Standards” in effect on its certification date, and no one may remove or alter that label [8].

The hull identification number has its own rule. A manufacturer, which for these purposes includes a company importing boats for sale, must fix primary and secondary hull numbers to each boat. A person who imports a boat for their own use and not for sale must instead get the hull number from the issuing authority of the state where the boat will mainly operate and fix it to the boat the same way [8]. Before you commit to a yacht built for another market, ask the builder in writing whether that hull was built and labeled for the U.S. market, and have your surveyor confirm the label and hull numbers aboard.

5. The engines: EPA’s questions

EPA says marine engines installed on vessels flagged or registered in the U.S. are generally subject to its emission standards, and its decision tree shows whether a vessel is exempt “or whether it is not eligible for import to the US with its current engines” [10]. The quickest check is the engine itself: EPA says the best way to verify certification is a label with a heading that includes “Emission Control Information” and a valid EPA engine family name. EPA also notes that only recreational vessels may use recreational engines [10].

The importer files EPA Form 3520-21 with CBP for each imported nonroad engine, which the form says includes propulsion and auxiliary engines installed on marine vessels; the exception is new products covered by an EPA certificate and label when the original manufacturer is the importer [11]. An older yacht may qualify under the form’s code for engines built before standards applied. The form’s schedule gives the start dates: for recreational marine diesels of 37 kW and up, model year 2004 for engines of 2.5 liters per cylinder or more, 2006 for 0.9 to 2.5 liters, and 2007 under 0.9 liters; for gasoline sterndrive and inboard engines, model year 2010 [11]. The form also warns that new engines not certified to the standards for the model year before the year of import can’t be imported [11]. If an engine fails these tests, settle what happens before you pay, not at the dock.

6. Documentation: pleasure yes, paying guests no

A foreign-built yacht owned by an eligible U.S. owner can be documented with a recreational endorsement: the statute asks only that the vessel meet the general documentation requirements, not that it was built here. It may be operated only for pleasure, can sail to a foreign port and back without formally clearing, and must still report its arrival home [12]. A coastwise endorsement, which you need to carry passengers for pay between U.S. points, is generally reserved for vessels built in the United States [13], and CBP’s rule for pleasure-endorsed and undocumented American yachts says they must be used exclusively for pleasure and may not carry passengers for pay [5].

There is one narrow door. MARAD can waive the U.S.-build requirement so a foreign-built vessel at least three years old can carry no more than 12 passengers for hire, after public notice and a finding that it won’t hurt U.S. builders or operators of U.S.-built vessels [14]. MARAD’s page says the owner must be a U.S. citizen or organization, the application fee is a nonrefundable $500, the notice runs 30 days in the Federal Register, waivers are limited to two coasts, some areas are closed, and a waiver doesn’t excuse any Coast Guard documentation, manning, or inspection rule. It also warns that marine diesels certified as recreational engines are in some cases prohibited from commercial use [15]. If you hope a foreign yacht will earn its keep in charter, read our guide to chartering a yacht in U.S. waters and make the waiver and the engines conditions of the deal.

7. Bringing her home

If the yacht arrives under her own power from a foreign port, the master must report the arrival to CBP immediately, and an in-person inspection is required unless an approved alternative applies; CBP’s ROAM app and telephone reporting lines are the current routes, and the older Small Vessel Reporting System is no longer in service [6]. The arrival report doesn’t replace the customs entry and duty described above. Our guide to taking your yacht to the Bahamas walks through the reporting steps in detail.

For an Illinois owner. When you title or register a watercraft in Illinois with the Department of Natural Resources, you must show payment of tax or proof that none is due. A purchase from an out-of-state dealer or other retailer goes on Form RUT-25, due within 30 days after the boat is brought into Illinois or the purchase date; a purchase from a private party goes on Form RUT-75. The Department of Revenue adds that not titling or registering the boat doesn’t stop it from assessing the tax [16]. If the boat will live in Florida instead, our Florida yacht-buying guide covers that state’s rules.

Before you sign: a checklist

1. Get the builder’s country of origin in writing, and have a licensed customs broker confirm the ten-digit tariff line, the combined rate, and any exemption on your expected entry date [1][2][3].
2. Work the duty into the price you agree, at the combined rate, not the 1.5% headline [1][3].
3. If you’re a U.S. resident, plan on a consumption entry; a foreign flag and a cruising license won’t avoid duty [5].
4. At a show, ask whether the yacht came in for display or under the large-yacht deferral, and who deposits the duty at closing [4][6].
5. Confirm the Coast Guard certification label and hull numbers aboard, or the plan for a state-issued hull number if you import for your own use [8][9].
6. Photograph every engine’s emission label, check model years against EPA’s schedule, and agree who files Form 3520-21 [10][11].
7. If charter income matters, make a MARAD small vessel waiver and commercially usable engines conditions of the deal [14][15].
8. Report the arrival home immediately, and file Illinois’s RUT-25 or RUT-75 within its deadline if the boat will be registered there [6][16].

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. U.S. International Trade Commission: Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (2026) Revision 22, Chapter 89 (PDF)
2. Federal Register: USTR, Notice of Actions in Section 301 Investigations ... Related to the Failure of Each Economy To Impose and Effectively Enforce a Prohibition on the Importation of Goods Produced With Forced Labor, 91 FR 47318 (July 28, 2026)
3. CBP: CSMS # 69326983, Guidance: Section 301 Forced Labor Import Duties (effective July 24, 2026)
4. 19 U.S.C. 1484b, Deferral of duty on large yachts imported for sale at United States boat shows (Cornell LII)
5. eCFR: 19 CFR 4.94, Yacht privileges and obligations (cruising licenses)
6. CBP: Pleasure Boat Reporting Requirements (last modified Mar. 4, 2024)
7. U.S. International Trade Commission: Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (2026), Chapter 98, heading 9801.00.10 (PDF)
8. eCFR: 33 CFR part 181, Manufacturer Requirements (certification label, hull identification numbers)
9. 46 U.S.C. 4307, Prohibited acts (Cornell LII)
10. EPA: Marine Engine and Vessel Program Applicability (last updated July 24, 2026)
11. EPA Form 3520-21, Engine Declaration Form: Importation of Engines, Vehicles, and Equipment Subject to Federal Air Pollution Regulations (August 2024, PDF)
12. 46 U.S.C. 12114, Recreational endorsement (Cornell LII)
13. 46 U.S.C. 12112, Coastwise endorsement (Cornell LII)
14. 46 U.S.C. 12121, Small passenger vessels and uninspected passenger vessels (Cornell LII)
15. MARAD: Small Vessel Waiver Program (last updated June 30, 2025)
16. Illinois Department of Revenue: Illinois Tax Requirements for Watercraft and Snowmobiles

Related guides

• Buying a pre-owned yacht
• Buying a yacht in Florida
• Taking your yacht to the Bahamas
• Chartering a yacht in U.S. waters