APA (Advance Provisioning Allowance) on Greek Yacht Charters: Complete Guide

Yes - any portion of APA not spent during the charter is refunded to the charterer within 7-14 days post-charter. The captain provides itemised receipts for all spend.

Yes - the captain is required to provide itemised receipts for all APA expenditure. Charterers typically receive a daily summary or end-of-week consolidated report.

The captain flags it and asks for a top-up via wire transfer or cash. This happens when itinerary changes add unplanned fuel or provisioning costs. Standard practice; not a problem.

APA stands for Advance Provisioning Allowance. It is the operating float paid alongside a yacht charter fee - in practice 20-30% of the base on sailing yachts, 25-35% on catamarans and 30-40% on motor yachts, because the figure tracks fuel burn. The captain holds it in trust and spends it on fuel, food, beverages, mooring and port fees during the charter, then accounts for every Euro with receipts. It is not a fee and not a tip: unspent APA is refunded.

APA in yachting is the boat's housekeeping money for your week: a float you pay up front, held by the captain, that buys the fuel, the food and drink, the berths and the port fees as the week actually unfolds. You see receipts for all of it, and whatever the boat does not spend comes back to you after the charter. Think of it as the running costs deposit, distinct from the charter fee itself.

On the final day the captain presents an itemised APA statement: every expense during the week, backed by receipts, deducted from the float you paid before boarding. If spend came in under the APA, the balance is refunded to you, normally within 7-14 days by bank transfer. If the week ran over - longer distances, more fuel, late provisioning additions - the captain will have flagged it during the charter and the difference is settled before disembarkation.

No. APA is a trust-held float for actual purchases, not a fee. Greek VAT applies to the charter base, not to APA. Individual purchases made from APA are charged VAT by their suppliers (restaurant meals, fuel, etc.) at those suppliers' rates.

Because variable yacht costs are genuinely large: fuel on a 30m motor yacht is €10-15K per week, premium food and beverages for 8 guests for 7 days is €8-12K, port fees and marina dockage add €3-5K. There is no standard percentage to point at, which is the honest answer: the band simply has to cover these without leaving the captain short mid-week, and a motor yacht crossing the Cyclades needs a larger float than a sailing yacht at anchor in the Ionian.

Marginally - for simple itineraries (one anchorage, no marina dockage, light provisioning) the captain may accept 25-28%. But ask honestly: if the spend exceeds the APA mid-week, the captain has to ask you for more. Better to fund adequately.

Yes. The APA mechanism is fixed by the MYBA Charter Agreement and does not change with the season: the percentage is agreed in your contract, the captain holds the float in trust, receipts account for every euro and the unspent balance is refunded. For 2027 bookings the practical bands are the same 20 to 30% of base on sailing yachts and catamarans and 30 to 40% on motor yachts, and the exact figure is written into the contract you sign, not adjusted later.

APA is the Advance Provisioning Allowance, and it is calculated as a percentage of the base charter fee rather than as a fixed sum. The MYBA Charter Agreement fixes the mechanism and never states a percentage: the amount is agreed between the parties and written into your contract. In practice, on the yachts in our Greek Charter Index, it is calculated at 20 to 30% of base on sailing yachts and catamarans and 30 to 40% on motor yachts, because the figure tracks fuel burn more than anything else. The arithmetic is simple: a EUR 34,000 catamaran week at 25% carries an APA of EUR 8,500, and a EUR 60,000 motor yacht week at 30% carries EUR 18,000. Itinerary moves it too: a week of marina berths across the Cyclades carries a larger float than a week at anchor in the Ionian, on the same yacht.

On a Greek charter, 30 to 40% of the base fee, the same convention as for any motor yacht, because fuel dominates the float at that size. The two yachts of 50 metres and above on the Greek Charter Index run EUR 162,500 to 235,000 a week net base, so the APA falls roughly between EUR 49,000 and 94,000, paid before boarding and returned against receipts if unspent. On LA PELLEGRINA 1, 50 metres, from EUR 180,000 a week, that is EUR 54,000 to 72,000. A week of long passages between island groups sits at the top of the range, a week mostly at anchor at the bottom, on the same yacht.

It works as a float rather than a fee, and the sequence is the same on every MYBA charter. You pay the APA before boarding, usually with the balance of the charter fee. The captain holds it and spends it as the week actually unfolds, on fuel, provisioning, berthing, port charges and harbour dues, keeping a receipt for every euro. You can ask for the running account at any point during the week. On the final morning the captain presents an itemised statement, and whatever the yacht did not spend is refunded to you, normally within 7 to 14 days. If the week runs heavier than budgeted the captain flags it during the charter, not after.

It is the same thing as the Advance Provisioning Allowance, which is the correct name; advanced provisioning allowance is how most people say it and the meaning is identical. It is the running float you pay up front on a crewed charter, held by the captain and spent against receipts on the yacht's operating costs during your week, with the unspent balance returned. It is not a fee, it is not a deposit against damage, and it is not a tip. On a Greek crewed week it runs from about 20% of the base fee on a sailing yacht to about 40% on a motor yacht.