It was the result of a bureaucratic dilemma: according to Croatian law, the scope of the recreational boating licence is only valid for vessels with a maximum tonnage of 30 "gross tons": large catamarans, usually from around 45 feet - depending on the manufacturer - could therefore only be operated in Croatia with a recreational boating licence or the recreational offshore boating licence. However, very few skippers have these licences, which require a lot of learning and training. Croatia was therefore the only European country in which such a high requirement existed for charter skippers.
The VDC had been arguing against the law for years due to the impracticality of this regulation; most recently, Christian Zaloudek, third chairman of the association, was even involved in various rounds of talks with Croatian authority representatives. According to the VDC, this has now finally paid off.
"According to this, the '30 gross tonnes' regulation is to be changed to a length limit of 18 metres. This was announced during the boot Düsseldorf trade fair. Apparently this has already been passed and all that is missing is the publication of the written amendment to the law," says Christian Zaloudek. The next few weeks will show whether the regulation will apply for this charter season. If in doubt, customers should contact their agency or fleet operator.
For those who want to know exactly: The "gross tonnes" is the gross tonnage GT (formerly gross register tonne). It therefore has nothing to do with the weight of the ship "hanging from the crane". The GT is stated in the measurement documents.
The GT is calculated using the following formula: GT = K1 times V. V stands for the measured ship's volume in m³, i.e. length x width x height. The height (note - not draught) refers to the "closed" ship's hold, i.e. without mast in the case of SY!
K1 depends on the ship type and size. The EU has defined 0.24 for yachts. According to this formula, catamarans of over 45 feet are over 30 GT and therefore in the SSS/SHS range!
UPDATE FROM 7.2.
YACHT reader Tonislav Stonjan, a native Croatian who was affected by the regulation himself, asked the responsible Ministry of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Infrastructure in Zagreb when exactly this regulation would take effect, as he has a ship that is subject to the change. He was then told verbally that the new regulation was in the works, but that it would probably take effect in the near future.will not become valid before 2021. The reason for this is that the training content for driving licences and the guidelines for examinations have to be changed accordingly. This would take about as long.
Andreas Fritsch
Editor Travel
