Transportation which leaves and re-enters the northern portion of the Western Hemisphere. For purposes of the regulations in this subpart, transportation, any part of which is outside the northern portion of the Western Hemisphere (as defined in paragraph (c) of this section) shall, if the route of the transportation leaves and re-enters the northern portion of the Western Hemisphere, be considered to consist of transportation to the point outside such northern portion and of separate transportation thereafter. The amount paid for such transportation will be considered to be a payment made for two trips and the taxability of the payment will be determined accordingly. Thus, an amount paid for transportation from New York to San Francisco with a stop at Caracas, Venezuela, will be considered an amount paid for a trip from New York to Caracas and for a separate trip from Caracas to San Francisco, neither of which is taxable transportation.

Transportation beginning before November 16, 1962, by water on a vessel—(1) Special rule. Section 4264(f)(2) prior to its amendment by section 5(b) of the Tax Rate Extension Act of 1962 provided a special rule in the case of transportation which begins before November 16, 1962, any part of which is outside the northern portion of the Western Hemisphere, by water on a vessel which makes one or more intermediate stops at ports within the United States on a voyage which (i) begins or ends in the United States, and (ii) ends or begins outside the northern portion of the Western Hemisphere. In such a case, a stop at an intermediate port within the United States at which such vessel is not authorized both to discharge and to take on passengers shall not be considered to be a stop at a port within the United States. A vessel is considered to be authorized both to discharge and to take on passengers at an intermediate port unless there is a legal or other authoritative prohibition of such traffic. For purposes of the preceding sentence, an order issued by the owner or operator of a vessel prohibiting such vessel from either discharging or taking on passengers at the intermediate port is not a legal or other authoritative prohibition of such traffic.

Illustrations. The provisions of this paragraph may be illustrated by the following examples:

A purchases a steamship ticket in New York for transportation from New York to Southampton, England. The vessel on which A sails makes an intermediate stop during the course of such voyage at Boston to take on passengers. The vessel is not, however, authorized to discharge passengers at such port. No tax applies to the portion of the transportation between New York and Boston since under section 4264(f)(2) the vessel is not considered to have made a stop at Boston.

B purchases a steamship ticket in San Francisco for a voyage from San Francisco to Tokyo, Japan. The vessel on which B travels makes a stop at Honolulu, Hawaii, to discharge passengers. The vessel is also permitted to take on passengers in Honolulu. Since the vessel is permitted both to discharge and take on passengers at the stop in Honolulu, the portion of the transportation between San Francisco and Hawaii not excluded under section 4262(b) (i.e., the portion of such transportation between the pier in San Francisco and the three-mile limit off the coast of California and between the three-mile limit off the coast of Hawaii and the pier in Honolulu) is taxable under section 4262(a)(2) as transportation from one port in the United States to another port in the United States.

Northern portion of the Western Hemisphere. For purposes of the regulations in this subpart, the term “northern portion of the Western Hemisphere” means the area lying west of the 30th meridian west of Greenwich, east of the International Date Line, and north of the equator, but not including any country of South America.