New Upgraded Crew Appreciation

[cruzsnooze]

 

Crew Appreciation

What does one category get over another to warrant a tiered approach? I've googled and researched who really gets this money and the cruiseline uses a lot of it for their own bottom line and calls it adm fees and account fees.  I'm reading that crew are gty'd a certain salary and the gratuity only serves to bring it up to that salary and does not increase or decrease their salary. I'm not sure how to interpret this paragraph but it seems that Princess is using a service fee model and calling it tipping so they determine how much to distribute but I'd like to hear from someone who knows more.

 

The IRS explained that in order for a charge to be qualified as a tip, it must be determined by the customer, who decides who receives the tip and how much to pay. A tip must also be made free from compulsion and should not be the subject of negotiations or dictated by employer policy. On the other hand, service charges include automatic gratuity placed on large dining parties, banquet event fees, cruise trip packages, hotel room service charges and bottle service charges.

 

What is “Crew Appreciation”?
A crew appreciation is a daily amount added to your onboard account, which is shared among the many members of our crew in hotel, dining and entertainment throughout the fleet who help make your cruise experience special. The daily amount of the Crew Appreciation is based on stateroom category.

Stateroom Category	Daily amount per guest
Interior, Oceanview and Balcony	$16
Mini-Suite and Reserve Collection	$17
Suites	$18

Edited July 31, 2023 by cruzsnooze

[rideev]

Not sure the cruise lines fall under IRS jurisdiction.

[CharlieTravels]

1 minute ago, rideev said:

Not sure the cruise lines fall under IRS jurisdiction.

 

Edited July 31, 2023 by CharlieTravels

[rideev]

Just now, CharlieTravels said:

Why would the ships fall under IRS jurisdiction when they are registered in other countries?

That's why I made to comment.

[CharlieTravels]

17 minutes ago, cruzsnooze said:

 

Crew Appreciation

What does one category get over another to warrant a tiered approach? I've googled and researched who really gets this money and the cruiseline uses a lot of it for their own bottom line and calls it adm fees and account fees.  I'm reading that crew are gty'd a certain salary and the gratuity only serves to bring it up to that salary and does not increase or decrease their salary. I'm not sure how to interpret this paragraph but it seems that Princess is using a service fee model and calling it tipping so they determine how much to distribute but I'd like to hear from someone who knows more.

 

The IRS explained that in order for a charge to be qualified as a tip, it must be determined by the customer, who decides who receives the tip and how much to pay. A tip must also be made free from compulsion and should not be the subject of negotiations or dictated by employer policy. On the other hand, service charges include automatic gratuity placed on large dining parties, banquet event fees, cruise trip packages, hotel room service charges and bottle service charges.

 

What is “Crew Appreciation”?
A crew appreciation is a daily amount added to your onboard account, which is shared among the many members of our crew in hotel, dining and entertainment throughout the fleet who help make your cruise experience special. The daily amount of the Crew Appreciation is based on stateroom category.

Stateroom Category	Daily amount per guest
Interior, Oceanview and Balcony	$16
Mini-Suite and Reserve Collection	$17
Suites	$18

The ships are registered in other countries.  Why do you think the United States Internal Revenue Service has jurisdiction?

[CharlieTravels]

Just now, rideev said:

That's why I made to comment.

Gotcha.  It took me a moment to figure that out!  Good call!

[cruzsnooze]

The IRS does not have jurisdiction but the cruise caterers to US  and is head quartered in SoCal and relies on US VALUES. I was pointing out what we consider a tip is not what we anticipate with the cruise.

[SCX22]

The cruise lines don’t pay taxes to the IRS.  That’s the whole reason why there was an uproar against bailing out cruise lines during the pandemic.  The airlines got it because they paid their dues to the IRS.

[skynight]

I can read what you posted, but don't see how it applies to Princess customers. Princess charges what they charge. The amounts that they pay to their employees and the source of those funds are a company decision. My understanding is that distribution of crew appreciation funds is partially based on their reviews. When you purchase a plus or premier fare the crew portion is included and can not be removed. This is similar to the Australia/NZ model where crew appreciation is included in all fares.

As far as the IRS  I'm fairly certain that Princess and their corporate owner, Carnival Corp., have a staff of tax lawyers that are experts in U.S. and other countries' tax laws. Cruise lines, in this case Carnival Corp., would pay U.S. and local taxes on U.S. net income, collected by Princess in the U.S. or repatriated to the corporation from their non-U.S. subsidiaries. 

[gah_cruise]

50 minutes ago, skynight said:

 When you purchase a plus or premier fare the crew portion is included and can not be removed.

Do you know why I am able to reduce/remove crew appreciation on a standard fare but cannot on a plus/premier fare.?

[cruzsnooze]

I was merely pointing out that Americans perceive tips differently then Princess as per IRS definition. The operative word being Perception. Since we do not have any say in who gets our gratuity or in what amount it is really not a gratuity.

  My perception is the crew appreciation is a fare increase with less transparency.

Edited July 31, 2023 by cruzsnooze

[voljeep]

33 minutes ago, gah_cruise said:

Do you know why I am able to reduce/remove crew appreciation on a standard fare but cannot on a plus/premier fare.?

CA is 'billed' separately from the standard fare

[gah_cruise]

6 minutes ago, voljeep said:

CA is 'billed' separately from the standard fare

not entirely sure I understand what you mean by "billed" .
CA is clearly detailed as a separate tine on my travel summary.....so why wont Princess allow reduction removal....it could be in the form of refundable OBC.

 

[voljeep]

12 minutes ago, gah_cruise said:

not entirely sure I understand what you mean by "billed" .
CA is clearly detailed as a separate tine on my travel summary.....so why wont Princess allow reduction removal....it could be in the form of refundable OBC.

 

not sure then unless you want to copy and paste part of your travel summary here.

[Cruise Raider]

12 minutes ago, gah_cruise said:

not entirely sure I understand what you mean by "billed" .
CA is clearly detailed as a separate tine on my travel summary.....so why wont Princess allow reduction removal....it could be in the form of refundable OBC.

 

Because the package prices are discounted .. you can’t pick and choose the items you want from the bundle.  If you do, you have to purchase the standard fare.  

[gah_cruise]

1 minute ago, voljeep said:

not sure then unless you want to copy and paste part of your travel summary here.....see below 14 days (Plus 60)...in GBP

Edited July 31, 2023 by gah_cruise

[voljeep]

1 minute ago, gah_cruise said:

easy - you don't have 'standard' fare - you have a PLUS package

[gah_cruise]

2 minutes ago, voljeep said:

easy - you don't have 'standard' fare - you have a PLUS package

I know I have standard....never mind CruiseRaider explains above

 

[gah_cruise]

5 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

Because the package prices are discounted .. you can’t pick and choose the items you want from the bundle.  If you do, you have to purchase the standard fare.  

Okay thanks.......decision made 🙂