Day two of a charter and the guests have decided on lobster every night, a case of the good champagne and a beach club in Ibiza. The charter agreement funds this through an APA — and somebody must show the charterer, line by line, where their money went.
What the APA is
The Advance Provisioning Allowance (APA) is a sum paid by the charterer in advance of the charter, on top of the charter fee, to cover the running costs consumed during their trip. It is commonly expressed as a percentage of the charter fee, but the figure is set in the charter agreement — do not assume a standard number.
The APA typically funds fuel, food and beverage, berthing and port fees, agent fees, communications, laundry ashore, and guest-requested extras. It is the charterer money held on their behalf — not boat income, and not crew money.
How APA is administered
- The captain (or purser) manages the APA account and is accountable for it.
- Every APA-funded spend needs a receipt and a coded line — the same accounting trail as any other spend, only stricter.
- Guests are usually given an interim statement during the charter so there are no surprises.
- At the end, the charterer receives a final account: opening APA, itemised expenditure, balance. Unspent money is returned; an overspend is invoiced.
- If the APA runs low mid-charter, the captain requests a top-up — early, not on the last day.
Interior cost control on charter
| Practice | Effect |
|---|---|
| Bar count before and after the charter | Beverage consumption is attributable and billable |
| Log every guest-requested purchase, coded and receipted | Nothing is unexplained on the final account |
| Separate owner stock from charter stock | Owner wine is not silently given away |
| Log breakages with cause | Guest-caused damage can be dealt with correctly |
| Flag big-ticket guest requests to the captain first | The captain checks the APA can carry it |
Gratuities
Tips are customary on charter but are never guaranteed and never demanded. The basics:
- The charter agreement and the boat policy govern how a tip is received and distributed — commonly pooled, often by rank or an agreed formula, decided by the captain.
- Tips may have tax and reporting implications depending on your nationality, residence and the yacht arrangements. Take your own advice.
- Never solicit a tip, never discuss its size with guests, and never let tip expectation shape the service.
The charter feedback loop
The trip is not finished when the guests step off:
- Post-departure debrief with the interior team: what worked, what failed, what we would change.
- Update the guest profile with what was actually consumed and preferred.
- Feed the broker report and guest comments back into the manual and the provisioning list.
- Close the loop on stock: count, reorder, reset par levels if consumption told you something new.
Onboard Notes
- APA money belongs to the charterer. Never spend it on boat items that are not charter running costs, and never let a personal purchase touch it.
- Do not quote APA percentages, tip percentages or charter terms to a guest. That is the captain and the broker conversation.
- An interim APA statement that surprises a guest is a service failure. Keep the captain informed of interior spend as it happens.
- Do the post-charter admin before the next guests board. On a back-to-back, deferred paperwork is lost paperwork.