Getting a yacht charter contract explained in plain English is one of the most useful things a first-time charterer can do before signing — and one of the easiest to hand off to your broker. In the Caribbean and Bahamas, the standard agreement is the CYBA Crewed Yacht Charter Agreement, written in 1982 by the same brokers who pioneered escrow protection for charter clients (CYBA, 2026). Your broker reviews every clause on your behalf; this walkthrough exists so you understand what they’re protecting you from while planning a Caribbean charter.
TL;DR — Yacht Charter Contract Walkthrough
- Caribbean & Bahamas standard: The CYBA Crewed Yacht Charter Agreement is the dominant contract for crewed charters in the region.
- MYBA is the alternative: Used for Mediterranean superyachts and most yachts over 80 feet wintering in the Caribbean. Different APA, different VAT treatment.
- The 8 clauses that matter: Charter party, fee & what’s included, APA, payment schedule, delivery/redelivery, cancellation, force majeure, insurance.
- Payment cadence: 50% at signing, 50% balance + APA 30 days before embarkation, gratuity at disembarkation.
- Your broker’s job: Verify the contract is authentic, flag risky language, negotiate clauses where needed, and reconcile the APA at the end of the charter.
What a Yacht Charter Contract Actually Is
A yacht charter contract is a legally binding agreement between you (the charterer), the yacht owner, and the broker who arranged the trip, covering the dates, fee, what’s included, and the rights of both sides if anything goes wrong. It’s not a hotel booking. It’s closer to a short-term vessel lease — you’re taking control of a multi-million-dollar boat for a week, the owner is handing you their captain and crew, and the paperwork exists to make sure both sides know exactly what they signed up for.
Two contract forms dominate the crewed charter market worldwide. The CYBA Crewed Yacht Charter Agreement is the Caribbean and Bahamas standard. The MYBA Charter Agreement is the Mediterranean standard and the default for superyachts everywhere. Both are written by professional broker associations, both are widely accepted, and both protect you in similar ways — but the cost structure inside each is meaningfully different, and that’s the piece most first-time charterers miss.
The Charter Yacht Brokers Association (CYBA) was founded in 1982 in the Virgin Islands and is the oldest professional yacht charter broker association, with more than 100 international members today. CYBA introduced escrow accounts to the charter industry and maintains the standard E-Contract used across Caribbean and Bahamas crewed charters (CYBA, 2026).
CYBA vs. MYBA: The Decision Behind the Document
The CYBA contract is the dominant form for crewed charters in the Caribbean and Bahamas, and MYBA is the dominant form across the Mediterranean and most superyacht charters worldwide. Which one shows up in your inbox depends almost entirely on where you’re cruising and how big the yacht is — not on the broker’s preference.
Here’s the difference in one table:
View data table
| Feature | CYBA (Caribbean & Bahamas) | MYBA (Mediterranean / superyacht) |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing structure | All-inclusive | Base fee + expenses |
| APA (typical) | 0–15% | 25–35% |
| Typical yacht size | 38–80 ft sail/motor | 80 ft+ motor / superyacht |
| Payment cadence | 50% / 50% + APA | 50% / 50% + APA |
| VAT exposure | None in BVI/Bahamas | Applies in EU waters |
| 2025 updates | Stable form | New KYC + sanctions clauses |
| Best for | Predictable all-in budget | Custom provisioning, big crew |
Source: CYBA (2026)
The plain-English version: if you’re chartering a 50-foot catamaran in the BVI, you’ll almost certainly see a CYBA contract, and the price in your quote is very close to the price you’ll actually pay. If you’re chartering a 120-foot motor yacht in St. Maarten that winters down from the Med, you’ll likely see MYBA, and you should plan for 25–35% in additional APA on top of the base fee.
Section 1: The Charter Party — Who’s Actually on the Boat
The charter party clause names every person aboard, and it caps that number at twelve guests sleeping on the yacht. The cap isn’t arbitrary — it comes from the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), which classifies any vessel carrying more than 12 passengers as a passenger ship subject to a separate regulatory regime. Crew don’t count toward the twelve. We cover the nuance in detail in our breakdown of the 12-person yacht rule.
What this means in practice: your contract will list the lead charterer (the person signing) and a guest list with full legal names matching travel documents. Adding a guest after signing requires a written amendment, and if you exceed twelve, the contract is void and the insurance lapses. Brokers won’t let this happen by accident — but it’s the kind of thing clients sometimes try to negotiate around, and the answer is always no.
Under the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), any vessel carrying more than 12 passengers is reclassified as a passenger ship, with crew counted separately. This is why nearly every crewed charter yacht caps the guest list at 12 sleeping aboard.
Section 2: The Charter Fee — What’s Inside the Number
Under the CYBA Crewed Yacht Charter Agreement, the base fee is all-inclusive — it covers the yacht, the professional crew, three meals per day, the standard ship’s bar (soft drinks, local beer, table wines), fuel for roughly four hours of cruising per day, water toys, marine insurance, and ship’s laundry (CYBA, 2026). MYBA flips that. Under MYBA, the base fee covers the yacht and crew only, and everything else flows through the APA. We unpack the inclusions side of this in our guide to what a charter fee actually includes.
The number on your contract is the base fee — not the all-in cost. Even with CYBA’s all-inclusive structure, you’ll add gratuity (15–20% is standard) and any premium upgrades. Don’t compare a CYBA quote and a MYBA quote on base fee alone. They’re not the same number. For a full breakdown of how rates, APA, and add-ons stack up, see our deep dive on charter rates and add-ons.
Section 3: APA — The Most Misunderstood Line in the Contract
Under MYBA terms, the Advance Provisioning Allowance (APA) is typically set at 25–35% of the charter fee and paid into the captain’s operating account before boarding. The crew draws against it for fuel, dockage, premium provisioning, and guest preferences during the charter; any unused funds are refunded at disembarkation.
APA is not a tip and it’s not a deposit — it’s your operating cash for the week, held by the captain. We have a full walkthrough on what APA is and how to budget for it.
On CYBA contracts, you’ll often see no APA at all, or a small one (10–15%) for premium drinks and provisioning beyond the standard ship’s bar. That’s because most of what MYBA’s APA pays for is already inside the CYBA base fee. The reconciliation happens at the end of the charter — the captain hands you an envelope with receipts and either change or a bill for the overage. If you didn’t think to ask about APA before signing, you wouldn’t be the first. It’s also the source of most surprise charter expenses for first-timers.
Section 4: The Payment Schedule
The standard CYBA payment schedule splits the fee 50/50: 50% deposit at signing, and 50% balance plus APA due 60 days before embarkation (CYBA E-Contract, 2026). MYBA follows the same cadence. The deposit goes into the broker’s escrow account, not the owner’s pocket — that’s the protection CYBA pioneered in 1982 and the reason a reputable broker association matters.
View data table
| Stage | When | What you pay |
|---|---|---|
| Signing | Day 0 | 50% deposit to broker escrow |
| Balance due | 30 days before embarkation | 50% balance + APA + delivery fees |
| Embarkation | Charter start day | APA cash placed in captain’s safe |
| Disembarkation | Charter end day | APA reconciliation + 15–20% crew gratuity |
Source: CYBA E-Contract overview (2026); industry standard for both CYBA and MYBA contracts.
Section 5: Delivery and Redelivery
The delivery clause names the port and time the yacht will be ready for you, and the redelivery clause names the port and time you must return it. These aren’t always the same — a one-way charter from St. Thomas to Tortola is common, and the contract spells out who pays the repositioning fee. Pay attention to the time. A 5:00 PM embarkation in Tortola means you cannot fly into Beef Island after 3:30 PM and make the boat that day comfortably.
Delivery and redelivery also trigger the insurance clock. If your flight is delayed and you arrive the next morning, you’ve still paid for that first day under the contract. Trip insurance covers some of that; your broker will tell you what’s worth buying.
Section 6: Cancellation Terms
Most contracts retain the deposit if you cancel more than 90 days out and forfeit the full fee inside 30 days. The MYBA 2025 update preserves the same general structure but tightened documentation requirements — you have 48 hours to notify the owner of a force majeure cancellation and seven days to submit documentary proof, or you forfeit the cancellation protection. The key source of refunds is for the yacht to be rebooked during the original charter dates. The broker and owner will work to get the yacht rebooked.
We generally recommend travel insurance due to the rigidity of the language in these charter contracts. We also provide every client with a thorough explanation of the cancellation terms and travel insurance quote.
Section 7: Force Majeure (the Hurricane Clause)
The force majeure clause is the one Caribbean charterers should read first. It defines the events — hurricanes, named storms, government closures, security threats — that release both parties from the contract without penalty. The CYBA version is well-worn from forty years of Caribbean weather and tends to favor the charterer. The MYBA 2025 update added explicit cyber-risk and geopolitical event language, plus the 48-hour notice window (Superyacht News, 2025).
What this means for you: if a named storm is forecast to hit your destination during your charter window, you and the owner can reschedule or refund without anyone losing money. You don’t have to know the deadlines — but you should know the clause exists, because it changes how you think about chartering in August through October.
MYBA released its 2025 Charter Agreement in April 2025, retiring the 2017 version on September 1, 2025. The revision adds Clause 26 (KYC), Clause 27 (Data Protection), Clause 28 (Confidentiality), and Clause 29 (Sanctions), plus expanded force majeure covering cyber-risk and geopolitical events with a 48-hour notification window (Superyacht News, 2025).
Section 8: Insurance, Damage, and Liability
The yacht’s marine hull and machinery insurance is the owner’s responsibility and is included in the charter fee under both CYBA and MYBA — that policy covers the boat itself if something goes structurally wrong (Boat International, 2024). Your responsibility is a refundable security deposit, typically $5,000 to $25,000 depending on yacht size, that covers minor damage and missing inventory. The captain inspects on embarkation and disembarkation; if nothing’s broken, the deposit is released within a few days of the charter ending.
Personal liability — guests hurting themselves jumping off the bow, lost personal items, anything that happens ashore — sits with you, not the owner. Health emergencies are also yours to manage, though the captain coordinates the response. This is why most brokers recommend a travel insurance policy that includes charter-specific coverage: medical evacuation, trip interruption, and cancellation are the three coverages that matter most on a Caribbean week. We can introduce you to two or three insurers who underwrite charter trips specifically.
What Your Broker Actually Does With This Document
If reading this article felt like a lot, that’s the point. You don’t have to learn it cold — the broker does. We verify the contract is the authentic CYBA or MYBA form (counterfeit contracts exist, especially online), we flag any clauses the owner has tried to modify, we negotiate cancellation and pricing on your behalf, we explain the APA so you’re not surprised at the dock, and we reconcile it at the end of the charter. A good broker also knows the yacht and the captain — which means we know which contracts are tight and which owners are flexible. For more on how that relationship works in practice, see our guide to how a charter broker works.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the APA a deposit?
No. The APA is operating cash held by the captain for fuel, dockage, premium provisioning, and guest extras during the charter. Unused funds are refunded at disembarkation. A deposit (the security deposit) is separate and covers potential damage — that’s the refundable hold on your card or wire.
Can I negotiate the cancellation terms?
Sometimes. On peak weeks (Christmas, New Year’s, Presidents’ Week) cancellation terms are essentially fixed. On shoulder weeks or hurricane-season dates, owners are often willing to soften the schedule. Your broker negotiates this before you sign — once the contract is executed, the terms hold.
What happens if a hurricane cancels my charter?
The force majeure clause releases both parties without penalty. Your broker triggers the clause, you reschedule and the owner doesn’t lose the booking — they get to rebook the yacht for a future week. The broker handles the paperwork. This is one of the strongest charterer protections in the CYBA contract.
Should I sign a contract that isn’t CYBA or MYBA?
Be cautious. Both forms have decades of legal testing behind them and protect charterers in standard, predictable ways. A “custom” contract from an owner who isn’t using a recognized form often shifts risk to the charterer in ways that aren’t obvious. If you see a non-CYBA, non-MYBA contract in the Caribbean, ask your broker why.
Why is CYBA the standard in the Caribbean and Bahamas?
CYBA was founded in 1982 in the Virgin Islands by brokers who needed an all-inclusive, charterer-friendly contract suited to weeklong Caribbean charters on smaller yachts. MYBA was designed three years later in Monaco for Mediterranean superyachts on a “plus expenses” model. The Caribbean fleet grew up around CYBA. The contract fits the boats and the trip type.
Do I need a lawyer to review the contract?
Almost never. A reputable broker reviews every contract on your behalf, flags anything unusual, and negotiates fixes before you see it. Standard CYBA and MYBA forms are heavily tested and well understood by every working charter broker. If you’re chartering a $5M+ week with custom terms, a maritime attorney can be worth it — for a standard weekly charter, the broker is your protection.
Quick Reference: The 8 Clauses That Matter
- Charter Party — names, guest count (max 12 under SOLAS)
- Charter Fee — what’s included; CYBA all-inclusive vs MYBA base + expenses
- APA — 0–15% on CYBA, 25–35% on MYBA
- Payment Schedule — 50% deposit, 50% balance + APA 30 days out
- Delivery / Redelivery — ports, times, who pays repositioning
- Cancellation — negotiable pre-signing, but rarely
- Force Majeure — hurricanes, named storms, security events
- Insurance & Damage Deposit — owner’s hull insurance + your security deposit
The Bottom Line
A yacht charter contract isn’t designed to trip you up — it’s designed to make sure the week you booked is the week you get. In the Caribbean and Bahamas, the CYBA Crewed Yacht Charter Agreement is the contract you’ll see in nearly every quote, and it’s written to favor predictability: all-inclusive pricing, escrow-protected deposits, and a force majeure clause that handles weather risk. MYBA shows up on the bigger boats and works differently — but the same broker can walk you through either one. Vital Charters is a Caribbean and Bahamas crewed yacht charter brokerage; start a yacht search at Vital Charters and we’ll handle the paperwork, explain every clause, and tell you exactly what you’ll spend before you sign. If this is your first time, you may also want to read our first-time charterer’s guide next.
Jason Acosta is the co-founder and principal broker of Vital Charters. He is an avid sailor and yacht charterer. Jason is also a Master Diver and certified ASA 104 sailor.
