Typical port of call
When it comes to cruising sailboats and living aboard most folks are familiar with the typical “port of call” which is sometimes about tax and which flag you want to fly and is often where you start your journey from. But there is more than just the city on the back of your boat and the flag you fly to consider.
Taxation Port of Call
Much of the port of call discussion is about taxes, where will you register your dinghy, where will you pay your sales tax, excise tax, and where will you mostly be sailing?
In many ways boat wise this is determined by where you spend the most calendar time. Stay long enough in one spot and you’ll get a visit from the tax man.
Another aspect of a Taxation Port of call is where you choose to establish your residency, where will your drivers license be out of and which area will be the place the income tax folks will look for your taxes to be paid. In the USA most folks end up choosing Florida for simplicity and the lack of state income tax doesn’t hurt.
Medical port of call
Another port of call that isn’t tax related is the unofficial “medical port of call” this is essentially the spot your primary care physician is. It can be precarious if you don’t have a primary care as you get older.
This is particularly important for those with chronic health conditions. I have Type 2 Diabetes for example, and Ryan has a seizure disorder.
I’ve tried a few different approaches. The first is to ask yourself the question of “If something really bad happened and I was going to be in the hospital for 6-months where would I want to be?” For us that is either Portland Maine or Boston Mass. Good medical care and easy access to family if were that bad.
But after my parents pass I’ll probably swept that out for Halifax so I don’t bankrupt myself trying to afford care in the USA.
But what about the day to day, the routine maintenance care? We’d been using Portland but it’s been less than convenient since we’re not there as long each year as we’d like to be.
We’ve been experimenting with Fernandina Beach Florida, close to Jacksonville Florida, and it’s a port of entry in the USA so if we were coming in from the outside we could get in, take care of business, and keep moving.
Plus, having prescriptions prescribed by a Florida doctor and sent to a Florida address (SBI) reduces a huge obstacle.
Dental port of call
Similar to a medical port of call is the dental port of call. Again we’d been using Portland Maine but have started to move that to Provincetown Mass for convenience since we’re there all summer.
Veterinarian port of call
Finally you’ll need a Veterinarian Port of call if your boat is run by a dog or a cat. Now I don’t mean a vet for that last minute medical certificate for getting into the Bahamas or another country but the place you return to each year to keep your pet’s “primary care vet” who’ll watch over them as they get older. For us this was another move from Portland Maine to Provincetown Mass.
Since we’re roaming essentially as snowbirds and have US health insurance we’ve chosen to split our care up with a place up north and a place down south where they are used to “snowbirds” who are seasonal. And if needed we can coordinate care between them.
Another aspect though is what about those without health insurance. This is Ryan’s last year on our health insurance and the question of if he should establish Canadian residency to get Canadian health insurance for his regular care certainly complicates things, especially with the residency requirements for provincial medicare.
What about you?
How are you coordinating your health care as you roam?
And what other categories of “port of call” should I also consider?
From The Galley 
