Montserrat - Clearance
PRE-ARRIVAL
The SailClear advance web notification service for clearance is now operational in Montserrat.
All the SailClear online forms should be completed in advance. However there is a computer terminal at Customs in Little Bay where details can be entered on arrival.
If you have animals on board, the Veterinary Officer of Montserrat and port of entry must be notified at least 48 hours before your arrival time.
ARRIVAL FORMALITIES
Advance Notification:
On arrival in Montserrat territorial waters, contact the Port Authority on VHF Channel 16 to communicate intentions and number of people on board. VHF Ch:16 is monitored 24/7 by the Port Authority.
Ports of Entry:
Little Bay is now the island’s only Port of Entry.
General Process:
On arrival, all crew must go ashore and visit the Customs Office located on the Montserrat Port Authority Compound. Take travel documents and vessel documents. Remember to dress properly with shoes and a shirt.
Customs and Immigration:
- Check in here first. As you come off the jetty you will see a sign over a door at the warehouse.
- Customs and Immigration are open 08:00-16:00 from Monday to Friday. Vessels arriving outside these hours can either wait aboard at anchor until the office re-opens or request an ‘out of hours’ check-in.
- There is no charge for clearance, unless outside of working hours and weekends. In the case of after-hours requests, Port Security will contact Customs Officers to facilitate this process.
- You will need to declare if you have animals on board at Customs and they must remain on board until the Agriculture Department have given permission for them to come ashore.
- Customs clearance can be done for both inward and outward clearance at the same time if staying less than 3 days. Once approved, a Customs clearance is valid for 72 hours (3 days).
Port Authority:
- After visiting the C&I officer, check in with the Port Authority who is also in the warehouse. Clearance from the previous port must be submitted to the Port Authority.
- All fees are paid to the Port Authority (see Fees below).
- To avoid being stopped at the port gates, check in with Port Security.
- Port Authority website: https://mpa.ms
Domestic Cruising:
If a visiting vessel intends to stay a few days in Montserrat, they can request and obtain a Coastal Cruising authorization from Customs and Immigration, which gives them permission to land at any authorized beach outside of the official Exclusion Zone for a period of up to seven days days. There is no cost for this permit.
Even if you intend to dinghy ashore to the beach in Little Bay this authorization is required.
CLEARING OUT
International Clearance:
Yachts can obtain clearance in and out at the same time if staying 72 hours or less. If staying longer, there is no additional charge, but you will have to return to Customs to do the paperwork again. Only Customs needs to be visited for departure. There is no departure tax.
See http://www.visitmontserrat.com/sea/
Last updated: December 2023
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And uf somebody can tell somebody at the Montserrat Volcano Observatory (website mvo.ms) that their website does not work, that would be nice (I forgot).
The MVO is a must see, especially for the movie about the eruption.
Montserrat is a lovely green island with nice inhabitants and a history shattered by the volcanic eruption. .
We visited the outskirts of the buried capital, Plymouth, and other parts of the island, with Cecil Wade, +16644922814, who made the visit very interesting and lively.
There is extensive dredging going on in Montserrat, Little Bay as of August 2023, which unsettles the sea floor. That means your anchor won’t hold well, and in addition you may be in the way of a 80m Ro-Ro cargo ship anchoring stern-to to the crumbling wharf, or facing a dredging barge, both prospects being stressful. In addition, two wrecks marked on the map in front of the beach seem to exist.
All the formerit existing moorings for yachts have been removed, as well as those for the local fishermen.
All this makes anchoring in Rendezvous Bay (north), or maybe Carr’s Bay, just south, the only reasonable option. The Cap’t’n alone must dinghy to the wharf for formalities.
Tying the dinghy to the wharf can be done on the south side. This is a rough place, do not go barefeet (customs won’t let you in without shoes and shirt anyway).
We enjoyed our visit at Montserrat.
Visiting the volcanic-buried town of Plymouth was a special experience of a lifetime.
The Montserrat Tourism Division, phone +1664 491 4703, was very helpful in finding a tour guide. We connected with L&Yve’s Tours, phone +16644935031, visit Plymouth and many more. We enjoyed the tour with highly recommended guides.
Free Wifi in the harbour. Try to go during the week as museums and Volcano Observatory are closed not the weekend.
I can recommend the following Tour Guide – Joe Philips. His knowledge of the island and it’s history is extensive and he complements the tour with pictures and videos of the island both before and after the extensive volcano devastation. At the end of the tour he will email a link to some of the information that he has provided. His tours last 3-5 to 4 hours.Contact details are:
Joe Phillip
Box 432
Brades
Montserrat
West Indies
Phone: 1-(664)-492-1565
Email: joephillip@live.com
Marine VHF Channel 08: Avalon