HQ 112827: Coastwise Trade; Cruise Itinerary; TROPICALE

Native CBP ruling rendition. Applicability is fact-specific; modification/revocation relationships and original publisher date are retained. Publisher sentinel year0001 means unknown date, not a historical legal adoption.

                              HQ 112827

                           August 17, 1993

VES-3-06-CO:R:IT:C  112827 DEC

CATEGORY:  Carriers

Mr. Brendan Corrigan
Carnival Cruise Lines
3655 NW 87 Avenue
Miami, Florida  33134

RE:  Coastwise Trade; Cruise Itinerary; TROPICALE

Dear Mr. Corrigan:

     This ruling is in response to your inquiry of July 1, 1993, in
which you seek clarification of whether the anticipated itinerary of
your non-coastwise qualified vessel (TROPICALE) constitutes a
violation of Customs regulations.


FACTS:

     You state that the TROPICALE will embark approximately six
hundred passengers in both New Orleans, Louisiana and Tampa Bay,
Florida, respectively, with no debarkation and will return, after
stops at Grand Cayman and Cozumel, to New Orleans and Tampa Bay for
debarkation.  While in Tampa, the vessel operator, Carnival Cruise
Lines, plans to allow passengers who boarded the TROPICALE in New
Orleans to go ashore temporarily for sightseeing and reboard the
vessel on sailing from Tampa.  The proposed itinerary which is the
subject of this ruling is set out below.

                Sunday          Tampa Bay
                Monday          at sea
                Tuesday         Grand Cayman
                Wednesday       Playa del Carmen/Cozumel
                Thursday        at sea
                Friday          New Orleans
                Saturday        at sea
                Sunday          Tampa Bay


ISSUE:

     Whether a non-coastwise qualified vessel may complete the
itinerary described above without violating 19 U.S.C. app.  289 and
19 C.F.R.  4.80a.


                                 -2-


LAW AND ANALYSIS:

     Generally, the coastwise laws prohibit the transportation of
merchandise or passengers between points in the United States
embraced within the coastwise laws in any vessel other than a vessel
built in, documented under the laws of, and owned by citizens of the
United States.  The coastwise law applicable to the carriage of
passengers is found in Title 46, United States Code, Appendix,
section 289 (46 U.S.C. app.  289) and provides that:

           No foreign vessel shall transport passengers
           between ports or places in the United States
           either directly or by way of a foreign port,
           under a penalty of $200 for each passenger
           so transported and landed.

46 U.S.C. app.  289 (1992).

     Title 19, Code of Federal Regulations, Section 4.80a(b)
provides that:

           The applicability of the coastwise law (46 U.S.C.
           289) to a vessel not qualified to engage in the
           coastwise trade (i.e., either a foreign-flag vessel
           or a U.S.-flag vessel that is foreign-built or at
           one time has been under foreign-flag) which embarks
           a passenger at a coastwise port is as follows:

           . . . 

                (2)  If the passenger is on a voyage to one or
                     more coastwise ports and a nearby foreign
                     port or ports (but at no other foreign port)
                     and the passenger disembarks at a coastwise
                     port other than the port of embarkation,
                     there is a violation of the coastwise law.

19 C.F.R.  4.80a(b)(1993).

     A coastwise port is a "port in the U.S., its territories, or
possessions embraced within the coastwise laws."  19 C.F.R.
 4.80a(a)(1)(1992).  A nearby foreign port is defined as "any port
in North America, Central America, the Bermuda Islands, or the West 
Indies (including the Bahama Islands, but not including the Leeward
Islands of the Netherlands Antilles, i.e. Aruba, Bonaire, and
Curacao)."  19 C.F.R.  4.80a(a)(2)(1993).

     The legality of your proposed itinerary must be analyzed
through an application of the preceding rules and definitions.  You
indicated that the TROPICALE will begin its voyage in New Orleans, a
coastwise port, and pick up passengers at Tampa Bay, also a
coastwise port, prior to sailing to Grand Cayman and Cozumel which 
                                 -3-


are nearby foreign ports.  After a seven day cruise, passengers will
disembark at the ports at which they boarded.  Passengers, who
embarked in New Orleans will be allowed to temporarily leave the
vessel in Tampa Bay, but are required to return to the vessel prior
to departure to Grand Cayman.

     On the surface, it appears that there is a coastwise violation
because passengers are being transported from one coastwise point to
another without traveling to a distant foreign port.  However, no
violation of the passenger coastwise law will occur so long as no
passenger disembarks "at a coastwise port other than the port of
embarkation . . .."  19 C.F.R.  4.80a(b)(2)(1993).  Title 19, Code
of Federal Regulation, section 4.80a(a)(4) states that

           . . . disembark means a passenger leaving a
           vessel at the conclusion of a specific voyage.
           The terms embark and disembark are not applicable
           to a passenger going ashore temporarily at a
           coastwise port who reboards the vessel and departs
           with it on sailing from the port.

19 C.F.R.  4.80a(a)(4)(1993).

Customs is satisfied that passengers who go ashore temporarily in
Tampa Bay and later return to the TROPICALE upon departure to Grand
Cayman do not disembark from the vessel.


HOLDING:

     The proposed itinerary of the TROPICALE is not in violation of
the passenger coastwise law.  Although the TROPICALE's proposed
itinerary includes the transport of passengers between coastwise
points, there is no "disembarkation" at a coastwise port other than
the port of embarkation.  Consequently, this contemplated voyage
does not violate Customs regulation 19 C.F.R.  4.80a(b)(2)(1993).

                                Sincerely,




                                Acting Chief