Key info
- The licence fee depends on your age and the type of licence. No concessions apply.
- Anyone over 17 can apply for a full licence. You can apply for a provisional boat licence if you are 12 to 16 years old.
- You must complete a BoatSafe Practical Course with an accredited provider.
- You must re-apply for your boat licence if your existing licence expired over 12 months ago.
| Find a Service Centre | link | Apply for a boat licence at your nearest Service Tasmania service centre |  |
About applying for a boat licence
You must have a licence to operate a recreational boat with power of 4 hp or more in Tasmania.
All boat licences expire on the same date. This expiry date happens at 3 year intervals so the length of your licence depends on when your licence starts.
A boat licence is for recreational boating only. You need a Certificate of Competency to operate a commercial vessel.
Provisional licence
The Provisional Licence is gained the same way as a full licence. You must complete the BoatSafe Licence Course. The following restrictions apply to provisional licence holders:
- must be accompanied by a responsible adult
- must not take charge of a motor boat at night
- must not at any time exceed a speed of 20 knots
- must not tow a skier.
A provisional licence will apply until you turn 17. When you turn 17 a renewal notice will be sent. When you pay the renewal fee you will be issued with a full licence.
Expired licence over 12 months
You need to re-apply for your boat licence if your existing licence expired over 12 months ago. There are different application options depending on how long your licence has been expired. If your licence is expired:
- over 12 months but less than 6 years, you must complete an application for recognition of your boat licence
- between 6 and 9 years, you must contact Marine and Safety Tasmania at admin@mast.tas.gov.au
- over 9 years, you must complete the BoatSafe course.
How to apply
| Service Centre |
|---|
| Find your nearest Service Centre |
What you need to apply
New licence or existing licence expired over 9 years
You must complete a BoatSafe Practical Course with an accredited provider. After successfully completing the course visit a service centre to:
- provide proof of identity
- pay the application fee.
Licence expired between 12 months and 6 years
You can apply for recognition of your expired boat licence at a service centre.
You must:
- show proof of identity
- complete the application for recognition (PDF, 225KB)
- pay the fee.
Licence expired between 6 and 9 years
You must contact Marine and Safety Tasmania if your boat licence is expired between 6 and 9 years at admin@mast.tas.gov.au. You must tell them about your boating experience and may need to take an oral exam.
You can attend a service centre to apply for your licence if you are approved. You must:
- show proof of identity
- provide your approval letter
- pay the fee.
Can I apply?
You can apply if you are over 17.
If you are aged 12 to 16 you can apply for a provisional boat licence through this same process.
Proving your identity
There are 2 ways to prove your identity:
1. your Tasmanian driver licence
You can show your driver licence, even if it expired up to 2 years ago
2. provide identity documents
If you don't have a Tasmanian driver licence, you must show at least:
- One Category A document and two Category B documents, or
- Two Category A documents and one Category B document.
- Australian birth certificate (not an extract or commemorative certificate)
- Australian photo driver licence (can be expired up to 2 years)
- Australian passport (can be expired up to 2 years)
- Overseas passport/visa (can be expired up to 2 years)
- Australian firearms licence
- Tasmanian Government personal information card (displaying full name)
- Australian citizenship papers
- Department of Home Affairs travel documents or Australian Government issued Immicard
- Department of Home Affairs certificate of evidence of resident status.
- Medicare card
- Bank or credit card with signature
- Student identity card with photo (issued by an Australian educational institution)
- Concession card (Veteran's Affairs/Centrelink/other current entitlement issued by the Australian Government)
- Births, Deaths and Marriages change of name/marriage certificate/deed poll (not a church or celebrant issued document)
- High risk work licence (issued by WorkSafe Tasmania)
- Working with vulnerable people card (issued by the Australian Government).
At least one document must confirm your current Tasmanian residential address
Additional evidentiary documentation may be required from the Evidence of Residential Address section below.
Documents must be less than 6 months old.
- Financial institution statement
- Utility account (power, water, telephone)
- Council rate notice
- Lease or rent agreement
- Land tax valuation notice
- Australian Taxation Office assessment (current or last financial year)
- Certificate of title.
If you are a provisional applicant, and you are unable to provide any of the above documentation to confirm a current Tasmanian residential address, you may provide one of the following:
- Copy of driver licence of either parent (as sighted on birth certificate to confirm the relationship)
- Letter from current school confirming enrolment and address
- Concession card - provisional applicant as a listed dependent
- Adoption paper issued by court
- Divorce paper issued by court, indicating the name being reverted to
- Change of name registration issued by Births, Deaths and Marriages or deed poll
- Guardianship order
- Marriage certificate issued by Births, Deaths and Marriages (not a church or celebrant issued document).
How much it costs
The licence fee depends on your age and the type of licence you are applying for.
Marine and Safety Tasmania provide a handy fee calculator to help you work out the cost.
Payment options
| Service Centre |      |
|---|
More Information
- A plastic licence card is available for an extra fee. The card is usually sent to you within 2 weeks.
- If you operate a Personal Watercraft (PWC) you must have an endorsed Motorboat Licence. Applicants are required to complete a PWC Course which can be done in conjunction with the Boatsafe course.
Please visit Marine and Safety Tasmania for more information on applying for a boat licence.