The Italian Tax Man Targets The Super-Rich And Their Yachts Off The Sardinian Coast

Italy's Tax Hunters Target Super-Rich And Their Yachts Off The Sardinian Coast -- The Guardian 

Austerity and ecology make life a misery for pleasure-seekers as coastguards use helicopters to enforce the law. There used to be a time when Italy's super-rich gravitated to the smartest enclaves of Sardinia for a summer of relaxation and luxury. Not any more. In an increasingly austerity-conscious country, the yacht-owning classes are coming under increasing and unwelcome scrutiny, some of which would not look out of place in a scene from the film Apocalypse Now.

Read more ....  

My Comment: It's hard to hide your wealth when you are on a mega-yacht.

Italy's Super Rich Yachters Sail Away From Taxman

Marina Porto Cervo, Sardinia Photo: Alamy

Italy's Super Rich Yachters Sail Away From Taxman -- The Telegraph

Wealthy Italian sailors are finding that their yachts attract unwanted attention from the taxman, reports Nick Squires.

As Italy swelters in temperatures of up to 40C, the country's marinas should be packed with bronzed sailors in expensive deck shoes tending to their gleaming yachts.

But Italian boat owners are feeling the heat not just from the sun this summer.

Thousands are weighing anchor and fleeing with their gin palaces to quiet corners of the Mediterranean to escape a tax evasion crackdown – part of efforts by the government of Mario Monti, the prime minister, to tackle Italy's €1.9 trillion public debt.

Read more ....

My Comment: It's hard to hide a superyacht .... hence they are an easy target. But they have an option denied to everyone else .... they can sail and move away.