USCG Documented vs State Titled Boats Explained

What Coast Guard documentation is

Documentation is a national form of registration run by the National Vessel Documentation Center (NVDC). Under 46 CFR 67.5, any vessel of at least five net tons that is wholly owned by U.S. citizens can be documented, and that includes boats used only for pleasure. Anything under five net tons is excluded outright.

Net tonnage trips people up because it has nothing to do with weight. The NVDC defines it as a measure of the useful volume inside the hull. The American Vessel Documentation Association, a trade group for documentation agents, says most vessels over 25 feet will measure five net tons or more.

For a pleasure boat, documenting is optional. Federal rules only require it for boats of five net tons or more working in the fisheries or in coastwise trade. A recreational endorsement, under 46 CFR 67.23, limits the boat to pleasure use.

What a state title does

A state title is the ownership record for everything else, and its registration is why most boats wear bow numbers. In Florida, all motorized vessels on public waters have to be titled and registered, and the title itself is cheap: $5.25 for an electronic title or $7.75 for paper, plus $1 for each lien recorded.

The two systems do not overlap on ownership. Federal numbering rules in 33 CFR 173 do not apply to a vessel that has or is required to have a valid marine document, and the owner has to remove the state number and sticker once the boat is documented. Florida exempts federally documented vessels from its title, and the Sarasota County Tax Collector puts it simply: a vessel may be documented or titled, but not both.

Documented does not mean the state leaves you alone

Some states still want a registration, decal or tax from a documented boat kept in their waters. In Florida, a documented boat used on Florida waters for more than 90 days has to be registered with the county tax collector. The registration number is the boat's official federal number, and the decal can go on a port side window or windshield instead of the hull. Fees follow the length classes: $78.25 for a boat 26 to under 40 feet and $127.75 for 40 to under 65 feet, plus a $2.25 service fee and a 50 cent FRVIS fee. The tax collector will want proof that sales tax was paid or that the boat is exempt. Looking at Florida boats for sale? Budget for this even on a documented yacht.

Maryland handles it with stickers. A documented pleasure boat principally operated in Maryland has to display Maryland documented use decals, which cost $70 for two years and expire December 31 of the year after they are issued. The state's 5% vessel excise tax still applies, subject to the state's tax cap, and the DNR wants it paid within 30 days of purchase along with form B-240 and a copy of the Certificate of Documentation. Browse Maryland boats for sale with that in mind.

Documentation also covers the big boat only. The NVDC says a tender or dinghy falls under the numbering laws of the state where it is mainly used. For tax credits and deadlines when the boat crosses state lines, see buying a boat out of state.

How a documented boat has to be marked

A Certificate of Documentation is not valid for operation until the boat is marked. For a boat documented only for recreation, 46 CFR 67.123 requires the name and hailing port together on some clearly visible exterior part of the hull, in letters at least four inches high. The hailing port has to include the state.

The official number goes inside. It must be marked as "NO." followed by the number, in block numerals at least three inches high, on a clearly visible interior structural part of the hull, and fixed so that removing or altering it would be obvious. Changing the boat's name needs NVDC approval first, and a new name or hailing port means a new certificate.

What documentation costs

The federal fee table in 46 CFR 67.550 sets these recreational fees:

• Initial Certificate of Documentation: $133 for one year, plus $26 for each extra year up to five
• Exchange of certificate, such as after a sale: $84
• Approval of an exchange that needs mortgagee consent: $24
• Renewal: $26 a year, or $130 for five years
• Filing a bill of sale: $8 per page; filing a mortgage: $4 per page
• Abstract of Title: $25
• Evidence of deletion from documentation: $15

Recreational certificates can run one to five years, while commercial ones must be renewed every year. NVDC application fees are non-refundable. The NVDC also warns that private companies offering to handle renewals for a fee do not work for the Coast Guard; its own eStorefront handles applications, exchanges, renewals, abstracts and filings.

Buying a documented boat

The sale itself kills the certificate. Under 46 CFR 67.167, a Certificate of Documentation becomes invalid as soon as ownership changes, in whole or in part, so the buyer has to apply for an exchange. The bill of sale has to be dated, carry an acknowledgment, be signed by every seller, and list the names, addresses and ownership interests of both seller and buyer.

Mortgages work differently too. The NVDC explains that a preferred mortgage has the status of a maritime lien, and while it is on record the Coast Guard cannot change the owner, name or hailing port without the lender's consent. That consent goes on form CG-4593. Before you pay, order an Abstract of Title. It shows the chain of ownership and every recorded encumbrance. You can also search the Coast Guard's PSIX database by vessel name, vessel number or HIN.

Shopping bigger sportfishermen, like the listings on our Hatteras and Viking pages? Ask the seller early whether the boat is documented, and get the abstract either way. For the state side of a sale, see how to transfer a boat title and registration.

Switching from documentation to a state title

An owner can drop documentation by telling the NVDC they no longer want it, and the NVDC will issue a certificate showing the boat was deleted. Florida tax collectors ask for the Evidence of Deletion letter, plus a bill of sale if ownership is changing. Maryland asks for a copy of the last certificate, an original certified bill of sale, the Coast Guard abstract of title and proof that any ship mortgage has been satisfied.

Check that last item carefully. Maryland's DNR notes that a ship mortgage recorded with the Coast Guard does not show up on its state record.

Which is better?

If your boat measures under five net tons, the choice is made for you. Above that, documentation gives you a federal ownership record, a place to record a ship mortgage, and, according to the State Department, conclusive evidence of the boat's nationality for international purposes. The tradeoffs are more paperwork, an acknowledged bill of sale, renewals, marking rules and often a state registration or decal on top. For a boat that stays in home waters, a state title does the job.