Do i need to have my boat Documemted

Hi Trawler Team. I have my 34" mainship and it just have the NY state Registration paper work . I would like to plan a trip to the Bahamas someday. Will they except the boat registration or not . Is this Documemtation thing for out of the USA so the Coast Guard know how you are. thanks Captian BILL

The Bahamas will definitely accept state registration. There used to be an advantage to federal documentation because once done, renewals were free unlike state registration. No more and it is now about a wash.


David

Thanks that will make things much better thanks BILL

I am not sure of the details as it didn't really worry me much at the time (and I'm sure I can Google it) but I also believe documenting your vessel makes it a lot harder for anyone (especially overseas) to put encumbrances on your boat. Think of it as a boat passport that asks foreign states to give you protection that an otherwise undocumented boat would not have.

My understanding is that the whole point of documentation for a recreational boat is to protect you outside the US.

djmarchand said:

The Bahamas will definitely accept state registration. There used to be an advantage to federal documentation because once done, renewals were free unlike state registration. No more and it is now about a wash.


David

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If in NY and documented they also requires NYS registration and issue a 3 yr decal. They do not issue state #s for display.
Its almost about collecting sales tax and annual or trip annual fees.

Mischief Managed said:

My understanding is that the whole point of documentation for a recreational boat is to protect you outside the US.

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Perhaps. But USCG documentation also eliminates those ugly (toy-boat) state-registration numbers on the hull.

Bill The kid said:

Thanks that will make things much better thanks BILL

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For the purpose of this discussion, don't think of the Bahamas or Canada as being outside the US. They're use to state registrations.

However, if you go back and forth often some have said they had problems using ROAM with FL registrations rather than documented boats. I haven't checked to see if I could understand why as I haven't been out of the country since told.

For marine financing, the Ship Mortgage Act, also from 1920, enhanced the availability of preferred mortgages on documented vessels. This Act provides certain protections for lenders. As such, most lenders in the U.S. will require a yacht to be documented through the USCG in order to secure the mortgage.
Federal documentation also provides for recording the title history of a vessel. This enables a buyer or seller to discover a listing of mortgages, liens, and other notes attached to the vessel. Most state registrations do not maintain records for title history.


nice not to have state reg numbers on the bow