Clearing Customs 101
by Marion Bermuda Race 19 Apr 2023 16:41 UTC
Clearing Customs 101 © Marion Bermuda Race
Sailing to a foreign country involves a great deal of planning and paperwork. The Marion-Bermuda Cruising Yacht Race Organizing Committee is here to help. We have many years of experience and local knowledge of Hamilton and all of Bermuda.
From Customs to docking, provisioning, and the much-recommended tourism of this beautiful island, you are welcome to email us with questions and suggestions by replying to this email.
Bermuda Customs Department
Yes, we know often the first order of business is to grab a cold one (Goslings Dark N Stormy if you're truly traditional) upon arrival, but you'll also need to clear customs!
Bermuda Customs personnel will attend RHADC on arrival of vessels to provide a timely inward clearance at the premises. Stay tuned for more information regarding protocol.
For outward clearance, Bermuda Customs would be available at RHADC between the hours of 1200 to 1500 on specific post-race departure dates, which will be announced soon.
Should outward clearance be required after these stated times, vessels will need to report to the Yacht Report Centre in St. George's for clearance.
US Customs And Border Patrol
For the return to the US, or Bermuda-based boats arriving for the start, There is a new, easy way to clear customs on the East Coast when returning to the US. The procedure involves accessing and downloading the app called CBP ROAM in the app store on your phone, or visit here.
The skipper is the only person on the vessel who needs the CBP Roam app. The skipper sets up an account and enters the pertinent data about themselves and the boat. Then you can list the crew with their passport numbers. When you arrive back in the US you communicate with US Customs through the app, and you are cleared.
You can also continue to utilize the procedure used in the past, which you can read more about here.