Boating: Your Safe Boater Certificate and Boat Registration

Who needs New Hampshire's safe boater education certificate, how to get it, and how to register a boat each year.

Checked against its sources October 25, 2026.

On this page

Cite this page

This guide is written by Granite Record from the official pages it links to. Where a citation allows only one source, cite the official page for the part you rely on. The date below is the day the page was read.

MLA: “Boating: Your Safe Boater Certificate and Boat Registration.” Granite Record, https://graniterecord.org/guides/boating. Accessed 2 Nov. 2026.
APA: Granite Record. (n.d.). Boating: Your Safe Boater Certificate and Boat Registration. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://graniterecord.org/guides/boating
Chicago: Granite Record. “Boating: Your Safe Boater Certificate and Boat Registration.” Accessed November 2, 2026. https://graniterecord.org/guides/boating.
BibTeX: @misc{guides-boating, title = {Boating: Your Safe Boater Certificate and Boat Registration}, howpublished = {Granite Record}, url = {https://graniterecord.org/guides/boating}, note = {Accessed 2 Nov. 2026} }

At a Glance

To run a boat with a motor of more than 25 horsepower you need a safe boater education certificate, which lasts for life; the state’s fee for it is $10, and all fees together, the course included, may not exceed $50. A boat with a motor, and a sailboat 12 feet or longer, must also be registered every year, at the DMV or a boat agent; every registration ends on December 31.

Does your boat have a motor of more than 25 horsepower?
- YesYou need a safe boater education certificate to run it.
- NoNo certificate is needed.
Does it need registering?
- A boat with any motor, or a sailboat 12 feet or longerYes, every year.
- A rowboat or canoe with no motor, or a sailboat under 12 feetNo.

Step by Step

Boater education

Get your safe boater education certificate
You need the certificate to operate a boat with a motor of more than 25 horsepower on New Hampshire’s public waters. To get it, pass a safe boater education course approved by the state, or an equivalency exam. Adults may take the exam online; anyone under 18 takes a supervised exam.
It is issued from age 16, and if you pass at 15 you receive it when you turn 16. It lasts for life. The state charges $10 for it, and all the fees you can be charged for it, the course included, may not exceed $50.
Carry it, or a copy or a photo of the front and back on your phone, while you operate, and show it to a Marine Patrol officer who asks.
Boating education
The law: RSA 270-D:10, RSA 270-D:13, RSA 270-D:15, RSA 270-D:17, RSA 270-D:11
Visiting or renting: a temporary certificate
If you are 16 or older and do not have a certificate, a boat dealer or rental business approved by the state can give you a short exam and a temporary certificate, good for up to 14 days and for New Hampshire’s waters only. Bring a photo ID to the exam. It costs $10, and you can get no more than one in a calendar year; it is meant as a short-term answer, not a substitute for the course.
The temporary certificate
The law: RSA 270-D:14, RSA 270-D:17
Young boaters
A person under 16 may operate a boat with a motor of more than 25 horsepower only with a person 18 or older aboard who holds a safe boater certificate. A personal watercraft (the law calls it a ski craft) may be operated only by someone 16 or older.
The law: RSA 270:30, RSA 270:74, RSA 270:30-a

Your boat

Register your boat every year
Every boat on New Hampshire’s waters must be registered and display a boat fee decal, except a sailboat under 12 feet, a rowboat or canoe moved by oars, paddles or sail with no motor, and a boat registered elsewhere that is here for not more than 30 consecutive days.
Register through the DMV’s drop box service, with an authorized boat agent, or by mail to the DMV in Concord. Bring the registration application, proof you own the boat (a bill of sale signed by you and the seller), your driver’s license and the fees.
The registration fee, by the boat’s length (RSA 270-E:5)
Length Registration fee
Up to 16 feet $24
Over 16, up to 21 feet $34
Over 21, up to 30 feet $52
Over 30, up to 45 feet $72
Over 45 feet $92
An agent who is not a DMV employee adds $5 to the registration fee. The boat fee decal and the boat fee, which depends on the kind of boat, its length and its age, are paid with it; the DMV’s boat registration office, (603) 227-4030, can tell you the total for your boat. The DMV mails a renewal notice before the registration ends.
Keep the registration certificate aboard. Every registration ends on December 31.
Boat registration (DMV)The boat fee table, RSA 72-A:3
The law: RSA 270-E:3, RSA 270-E:4, RSA 270-E:5, RSA 270-E:5-a, RSA 72-A:3, RSA 270-E:8, RSA 270-E:10

Common Questions

Does a boating certificate from another state count?

A certificate from another state whose course meets New Hampshire’s standard, or one from the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, the U.S. Power Squadron, or an approved Canadian card, counts instead.

Must children wear a life jacket?

A child 12 or under must wear a Coast Guard approved life jacket on the deck of a boat that is underway, unless the boat has the side rails the law describes.

How do I display my registration number?

Display the number on each side of the front half of the boat, in block letters at least 3 inches high in a contrasting color.

What if I sell my boat?

If you sell the boat, or it is destroyed or abandoned, tell the DMV in writing within 15 days.