Regulations, fees, & rules for small boats and dingies?

[Solace]

I understand about having your vessel registered to proceed to foreign ports. What about dinghies? Is there any sort of requirements for them?

John

[CapnK]

Not that I've ever read of, but it's been suggested in several books that you make the name on the dinghy prominent and unremoveable. :)

[CharlieJ]

There are pros and cons to having the mother ships name on the dink. One pro is that if it gets lost, like comes untied and drifts, you might have a chance of recovering it.

One con is that if you are ashore and the dink has the boats name on it, that tells would be thieves that the boat is unattended.

Some areas like having the name on the dink, some don't require it.

I had the name on the dink when we cruised on the trimaran, I don't now.

[s/v Faith]

In the state I currently reside in, you are required to have your dink registered (unless all you do is row).

  The Wildlife & fisheries folks (who handle the registration) will tell you (only when pressed) that it is also acceptable for a tender to be marked with T/T and the host vessel's name. T/T 'Faith'.

  I have spoken to a couple people about this, and the deal is that if you do it you are asking for a ticket if you are ever caught anywhere other then going back and forth from your boat to the shore (ie sight seeing, or fishing).

  My (ugly) dink is registered, and does not have the boats name on it.  As Charlie said, I don't want to advertise when I am ashore, and my boat is out on the hook somewhere unattended.

 

[CharlieJ]

I think that depends on which state you are in. In Texas no dinghy is required to be registered so long as it's UNDER 14 feet  and only has oars or sails. If it has ANY kind of motor then it must be registered and numbered. Sailing vessels 14 feet and over must be registered whether they have motors or not, rowboats or canoes do not.

So for the dinghies sized for the boats we sail, in Texas there is no registration requirement.  I never was asked for any registration or proof of ownership on our rowing dinghy in any state from Maryland around to Texas. I WAS ordered to have my registration numbers showing when I put a motor on our inflatable, but that was only in Annapolis Maryland. No place else even questioned them, but I did leave them showing at all times after that.l

[CapnK]

SC is about the same - anything with a motor has to have numbers. If the motor is 5hp or more, it has to have its own numbers, too. I don't think there is any requirement that the dink have a name on it.

But Sol's original question was about in other countries, so that's what I thought about when I made my original response.

[ScotiaSailor]

I searched around but got a few different  answers to my questions.

Is there different regulations and fees when cruising around the united states and carribean in a smaller boat.

I know in canada our local boating act for the size of my boat/motor size i dont have to have to register it. (do'nt have to put numbers on it.. no paperwork)

i read about these "fees" people get charged when entering foreign waters,(something related to tonnage) is there a point where you are too small for them to bother?

I read on some coast guard site about boats under 30' didnt need certain ammount of equipment.

Does my question make sense?

[Bill NH]

I'm not familiar with how your Canadian registration system works, but from the US perspective I do know that federal documentation makes clearing customs in foreign countries MUCH easier than doing so with a state registration.  I used to run a research vessel that was over a hundred feet long but was state registered, and clearing in and out was often a long, drawn-out process.  The main reason for this was just familiarity - a US vessel document is an impressive piece of paper that customs inspectors around the world are familiar with, while the little 4x4 inch handwritten form that New Hampshire issues, for example, does little to inspire confidence in its authenticity or credibility.  As to fees in different Caribbean and Central American countries, well, they're all different.  Often you don't even know how they are calculated, and they can even vary with the quantity of cigarettes or liquor shared with the inspectors in some places.  You just pay what they say if you want to stay and play!   ;)

[Lynx]

In Fl if it has a motor on it is must be registered. Safety equipment is a minimum list that your local marine store can give you. You should have more.

To gain entry into the Bahamas you need registration or title and passport. That is all. You will be charged for any help that is not life threatened as that is the way it is in the USA as well unless somebody gives you a hand. Check some of the tow boat insurances. Your $ 700 may be well spent.

Fair winds and a good skipper.