Registration, insurance and inspections
1The lesson in plain words
Carry your boat papers, insurance proof and skipper card. List 7 boats of 6 m or more also need an in-date inspection.
Registration
A recreational boat is registered on list 7 (private use) or list 6 (commercial use, such as charter). A registered boat receives the Certificado de Registro Español–Permiso de Navegación, which you renew every five years. If it expires, the boat may not sail. The registration mark goes on both bows, light on a dark hull and dark on a light hull.
CE boats up to 12 m
A CE-marked boat up to 12 m (except high-speed craft) need not be flagged and registered in full. It gets a certificado de inscripción instead, with its number on both bows. Such a boat may sail only in the Spanish territorial sea and within its design category. The owner can still choose full registration.
Inspections
The certificado de navegabilidad (seaworthiness certificate) records the boat's inspections. List 7 boats of 6 m or more are inspected at least every five years by an authorised inspection body. Boats under 6 m on list 7 are exempt from periodic inspection; their certificate reads «sin caducidad» (no expiry). For boats using simplified inscription, the certificado de inscripción replaces this certificate and records the inspections.
Compulsory insurance
Real Decreto 607/1999 requires third-party insurance for every motor boat, jet skis included, and for unpowered craft over 6 m. Minimum cover for injury is €120,202.42 per victim and €240,404.84 per accident. Property damage is covered to €96,161.94. Keep the proof on board. If you cannot show it, you have five working days to prove the cover. Foreign boats entering a Spanish port need the same cover.
Other papers
In zones 1–3 a boat with a radio needs a ship station licence (LEB). In zones 4–7 the licence is not needed, but a fixed DSC radio or an EPIRB still needs an MMSI (the boat's radio identity number). The skipper carries the licence card at sea. For foreign-flag documents, see Foreign waters.
2Key data
- Registration certificate
- Renew every 5 years; expired means no sailing
- CE boats ≤ 12 m
- Certificado de inscripción; Spanish territorial sea only
- Periodic inspection
- List 7 boats ≥ 6 m: at least every 5 years
- Insurance (injury)
- €120,202.42 per victim; €240,404.84 per accident
- Insurance (property)
- €96,161.94 per accident
- Who must insure
- All motor craft incl. jet skis; unpowered craft over 6 m
3Key points
- 1
List 7 is private use, list 6 commercial use; renew the registration certificate every 5 years.
- 2
CE boats up to 12 m may use a simpler certificado de inscripción, valid in Spanish territorial waters only.
- 3
List 7 boats of 6 m or more need a periodic inspection at least every 5 years.
- 4
Motor boats, including jet skis, and unpowered boats over 6 m need third-party insurance.
4Frequent mistakes
Wrong: An unpowered sailing dinghy of 5 m needs compulsory insurance.
Right: Unpowered craft need it only above 6 m. Fit an outboard, though, and the dinghy becomes a motor boat that must be insured.
Wrong: A CE boat with a certificado de inscripción can cross to Portugal or France.
Right: That simplified regime allows only the Spanish territorial sea. Full registration is needed to go abroad.
5Practice case & exam keys
Before departure, your 7 m list 7 motorboat has a periodic inspection six years old. Insurance is valid, but its receipt is at home. A friend says the five-working-day allowance lets you resolve both later. Should you leave?
Show the answer
No. The five-working-day allowance concerns proving insurance already in force; it does not extend an overdue inspection. Arrange the inspection before sailing and bring the insurance proof aboard. Buying insurance after a check would not prove cover existed when checked.
Exam keys
- Registration lists: 7 = private recreation, 6 = commercial; certificate renewed every 5 years.
- CE boats ≤ 12 m: certificado de inscripción, Spanish territorial sea only.
- Periodic inspection every 5 years max for list 7 boats ≥ 6 m; under 6 m «sin caducidad».
- Compulsory insurance: motor craft incl. jet skis, and unpowered craft over 6 m (RD 607/1999).
Finish this unit
When you've read it, answer three questions. Get all three right to finish the unit; opening the page alone doesn't count.
My notes for this unit
No notes