BIOT (Chagos) - Facts
ALERT: The UK Government has agreed to return the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, following years of negotiations and international pressure. However, the incoming Mauritius Prime Minister had indicated he has reservations about the deal. See this news item for the latest information.
British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos) FAQs:
Pre-Arrival Boat: Yachts wishing to visit BIOT/Chagos MUST apply for a permit at least six weeks prior to the intended arrival date as the application process can take several weeks and space is limited. See Formalities for all the details.
Pre-Arrival Crew: All crew details must be included in the initial permit application. No Visas are needed. See Immigration for more details.
Where can I enter? Ile Roddam and Ile Fouquet/Takamaka in the Salomon Islands are the only anchorages permitted for visiting yachts.
Are there any fees payable to visit by yacht? There is a set rate per week charged for each permit granted. See the Fees section for more information.
What security concerns should I know about? There are no known security concerns here.
BIOT/Chagos Facts for Sailors:
- The Chagos Archipelago is constituted as a British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), which is one of 14 UK Overseas Territories.
- The archipelago consists of 58 islands covering approximately 640,000 sq kms of ocean located in the Indian Ocean halfway between East Africa and Indonesia.
- The Territory is administered from London, England and it is not a tourist destination.
- Access is restricted and a permit is required in advance of travel. There are no commercial flights and mooring permits are only issued to yachts in transit.
- BIOT/Chagos is extremely remote. There are no banks, electricity, Wi-Fi, stores, diesel mechanics, sail lofts, cafes, stores, or health clinics. When you visit Chagos you should plan on being 100% self-sufficient.
- Access to Diego Garcia is only permitted to those on pre-authorised official duty. However, cruisers report that it MAY be possible to stop here in emergency situations but it is advisable to contact British Police on the atoll in advance.
- The islands are uninhabited except for Diego Garcia which has about 3,000 military and civilian personnel stationed there. A brief history of the Territory can be found at http://biot.gov.io/about/history/
- BIOT Customs and Immigration officials visit the approved mooring sites on their patrols to check permits and passports (and spotter planes are also used). The passports of all passengers/crew will be checked against the permit issued. You will be asked to explain any discrepancies. People on visiting yachts are not allowed to spend the night ashore.
- BIOT hosts the world’s largest contiguous Marine Protected Area and the largest expanse of undisturbed coral reefs in the Indian Ocean, as well as globally significant populations of endangered species of birds and other wildlife. There are strict conservation rules, which must be observed in order to preserve this unique sanctuary in its present state (see Restrictions).
- It is not recommended to enter BIOT at night, there are simply too many interior reefs and coral heads to avoid (charted and uncharted). Good light and eyeball navigation are required within the lagoon.
- WARNING: Legal action will be taken for anyone found vandalising BIOT’s natural resources.
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What is the vessel name responsible for the vandalism?
Reported by Kara Sewell, Assistant Administrator, British Indian Ocean Territory Administration:A member of the public applied for a mooring permit. I had assessed their application form and insurance documents and was satisfied with these. I had then provided a mooring permit to the individual. The individual was accompanied by his family. During their stay in British Indian Ocean Territory, they had carved the name of their yacht into one of the pine trees. This vandalism was later discovered by one of my colleagues who is located in the Territory. By the time my colleague discovered this, the individual and his family had departed the territory so we were unfortunately unable to prosecute them. I had confronted him about the vandalism via email but he refused to respond.
We wish to remind vessels that moor in BIOT, that vandalism is unacceptable and legal action will be taken for anyone found vandalising BIOT’s natural resources.[Editor’s Note: See https://www.noonsite.com/place/biot-chagos/formalities#restrictions-section
for what is and isn’t permitted in BIOT].
This infuriates me! It would be nice if the next country to see this boat was to deny them entry. Unbelievable!
Posted on behalf of SY Adina – currently in BIOT:
Really beautiful in BIOT/Chagos. They are now using spotter planes to check on us! The pilot called us up on VHF16 and I read all the boat names to him – clearly had a list and he quickly recalled them. Very polite and wished us well.
Posted on behalf of Katja Verheul:
At the moment I am doing research for a 20-min documentary about the Chagos Archipelago, which will be finished in July 2016 as part of my research as a Master at Goldsmiths University in London. A part of the documentary will be based on stories of sailors who visited the island, preferably in the ’80s and the ’90s.
I was hoping that through noonsite I could get in touch with some cruisers who have been here and ask them some questions about their stay and experience of the islands. Please e-mail me at va301kv(at)gold.ac.uk if you are able to assist.