F.A.Q.

Vessel owners can submit a Change of Address form through our site. The form can be found here.

Additionally, vessel owners can update their Change of Address when renewing their Certificate of Documentation. The new address can be updated in the renewal application. That application can be found here. Per Cornell Law, “whenever the managing owner changes, the managing owner shall notify (the authorities) within 10 days.”

Priority handling can be selected for vessel documentation by selecting “Priority Request/Rush Processing.”

A coastwise waiver for a small passenger vessel, also known as a MARAD waiver (or “MARAD Small Vessel Waiver”) can be found on our site here.

Yes. 

Requests for faxing of Certificates of Documentation, Letters of Deletion, Certificates of Ownership and recorded instruments such as Preferred Mortgages, Bills of Sale, Notices of Claim of Lien, and Satisfactions of Mortgage in combination to mailing will require an additional Certified Copy fee of $34.00 for each item.

Yes. A Certificate of Documentation may be endorsed for fishery, coastwise, registry, or recreation. Any documented vessel may be used for recreational purposes, regardless of its endorsement, but a vessel documented with a recreational endorsement only may not be used for any other purpose. Registry endorsements are generally used for foreign trade.

Yes, it does. According to the Michigan Department of State, “the U.S. Coast Guard Certification of Documentation (CG-1270) serves as proof of ownership. However, documented watercraft must obtain a Michigan watercraft registration at the regular fee.” That said, “the registration (MC) number does not have to be displayed on the vessel.”

Yes, it does. Any USCG documented vessels in the state of Oklahoma must be registered with the State. Always, the current registration has to be on the vessel and a current boat sticker must be displayed as well.

You can complete a Coast Guard database at our site or you can request an Abstract of Title. For a NVDC vessel search at our site, simply click on “Documented Vessel Search at Maritime Documentation Center.” Then, enter a vessel’s official number and/or HIN number.

At our site, you can search the Coast Guard database of documented vessels. Simply type in a vessel’s Official Number or Hull Identification Number (HIN). This will reveal the vessel’s name/number/HIN/flag, as well as its tonnage information, service information, particulars/dimensions, and more (such as the status of its current Certificate of Documentation).

Typically, a boat Hull Identification Number is issued by the vessel’s manufacturer or importer. However, if your vessel is home-built, then they can be issued by your respective State Registrars/DMVs.

Coast Guard documentation requirements for eligibility state that a vessel has to measure at least five net tons. This “net tonnage” is not a measurement of weight. Rather, it’s a measurement of volume.

USCG documented vessels require a fishery endorsement to land its catch, wherever it is caught, in the United States. This is the endorsement to engage in fishing activities on the navigable waters of the United States or in the EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone).