US Boater Safety Study Guide 2026

Boater education: federal and state rules

The United States has no single national boating license. Federal law, enforced by the U.S. Coast Guard, sets minimum equipment rules and the Navigation Rules that apply on all U.S. waters. Each state decides who must take a boater education course, and many states add their own rules on age, life jackets and alcohol.

Many state-approved courses are also approved by NASBLA, the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators. A boat that meets the rules of the state where it is registered may not meet the rules of another state, so check local rules when you travel.

Education rules in some states

Each state also lists exemptions. Common ones are renting from a business (often with a dockside safety checklist), being supervised on board by an adult who holds a card, holding a Coast Guard license, and visiting from another state for a short time. The details differ from state to state:

• Florida: new owners are exempt for 90 days with the bill of sale on board, and visitors with a NASBLA-approved card from another state are exempt.
• California: visitors from another state are exempt for under 60 days, and visitors from another country for under 90 days, if they meet their home rules.
• Washington: renters 12 or older who complete a safety checklist are exempt, as are non-residents for up to 60 consecutive days and new owners for 60 days.
• New York: people 18 or older may rent from a livery without a certificate after basic instruction. You must carry your original certificate.
• Oregon: renters 16 or older who complete a dockside checklist, and non-residents with a NASBLA-approved card, are exempt.

Registration and numbering

Most motorboats must be registered with the state. Once numbered, the registration number must be shown correctly:

• On each side of the forward half of the boat, reading left to right.
• In plain block characters at least 3 inches high, in a color that contrasts with the hull.
• With a space or hyphen the width of one letter between the letter and number groups.
• The state validation decal goes within 6 inches of the number.

Keep the registration certificate on board whenever you operate. Coast Guard documented vessels show their name and hailing port in letters at least 4 inches high. Some states require registration for all boats, including paddle craft.

Coast Guard required equipment

Life jackets

• Carry one Coast Guard-approved wearable life jacket for each person on board. It must be the right size, in good condition and easy to reach.
• Boats 16 feet and longer, except canoes and kayaks, must also carry one throwable device.
• Under the federal rule, children under 13 must wear a life jacket while the boat is underway, unless they are below deck or in an enclosed cabin. If a state sets a different age, the state rule applies on its waters.
• Inflatable life jackets are approved only for people 16 and older. For PWC riding, water skiing and whitewater, wear an inherently buoyant life jacket made for that activity.

Several states set their own age for children's life jackets. On those states' waters, the state rule replaces the federal rule:

Fire extinguishers

Fire extinguishers are required on boats with features such as inboard engines, permanently installed fuel tanks, closed compartments where portable tanks may be stored, or closed living spaces. Since April 20, 2022, extinguishers rated 5-B or larger (for example 5-B:C or 10-B:C) meet the rule on all boats. Older B-I and B-II extinguishers are accepted only on boats built in model year 2017 or earlier.

• One 20-B extinguisher can replace two 5-B extinguishers.
• Disposable extinguishers must be removed from service 12 years after the date of manufacture.
• Inspect monthly: the gauge is in the operable range, the lock pin is in place, the nozzle is clear, and there is no serious corrosion or damage.

The letter on an extinguisher tells you the kind of fire it is made for. B means flammable liquids such as gasoline and oil. C means electrical fires. Mount extinguishers where you can reach them quickly, away from the most likely fire area.

Ventilation and backfire flame arresters

Gasoline vapors can explode. Compartments with a gasoline engine that has a remote-start cranking motor need a powered exhaust blower. Run it for at least 4 minutes and check the bilge for gasoline vapors before starting. Gasoline engines installed after April 25, 1940, except outboards, need a Coast Guard-approved backfire flame arrester.

Compartments with gasoline engines or fuel tanks also need natural ventilation, with intake and exhaust ducts. Owners must keep ventilation systems clear and working. Never cover or block the vents.

Sound-producing devices

Visual distress signals

Visual distress signals are required on coastal waters, the Great Lakes and the territorial seas, and on connected waters until they become less than 2 nautical miles wide. If you carry pyrotechnics, you need at least three day and three night signals; combination flares count for both. Expired pyrotechnics do not count.

• An orange distress flag (at least 3 by 3 feet) counts for day use only.
• An electric distress light counts for night use only.
• Boats under 16 feet, manually propelled boats and open sailboats under 26 feet without an engine need only night signals, when out between sunset and sunrise.

Store distress signals in a dry place that everyone on board knows about, and check the expiration dates before each season. Learn how to use them before you need them.

Engine cut-off switch

Since April 1, 2021, operators of recreational boats under 26 feet with engines of about 3 hp or more must use the engine cut-off switch link when running on plane or above displacement speed. The lanyard (or an approved wireless fob) stops the engine if you are thrown from the helm. It is not required when the main helm is inside an enclosed cabin.

Boat builders had to install engine cut-off switches on covered boats starting in December 2019, and owners of those boats must keep the switch in working order. Common times when the link is not needed include docking, trailering, trolling and operating in no-wake zones.

Navigation Rules: who gives way

The Navigation Rules are the rules of the road on the water. The Inland Rules apply on most U.S. lakes, rivers and harbors, and the International Rules apply offshore, beyond the demarcation lines shown on charts. They are very similar, but some sound signals differ. Every operator must keep a proper lookout by sight and hearing, go at a safe speed for the conditions, and watch the compass bearing of other boats. If the bearing hardly changes as a boat gets closer, you are on a collision course.

When two boats meet, one is the give-way vessel and the other is the stand-on vessel. The give-way vessel acts early with a large, obvious change of course or speed. The stand-on vessel keeps its course and speed, but must act if a collision is about to happen anyway.

More rules to know

• A power-driven vessel keeps clear of vessels not under command, vessels restricted in their ability to maneuver, vessels engaged in fishing and sailing vessels.
• A sailboat using its engine is a power-driven vessel.
• When two sailboats meet with the wind on different sides, the one with the wind on its port side keeps clear.
• In a narrow channel, keep to the starboard side. Boats under 20 meters and sailboats must not get in the way of vessels that can only navigate inside the channel.
• Boats 12 meters (39.4 feet) or longer must carry a copy of the Navigation Rules on inland waters.

A vessel not under command is one that cannot maneuver as the rules require because of an unusual problem, such as a steering or engine failure. A vessel restricted in its ability to maneuver is limited by the work it is doing, such as dredging or supporting divers. Both may be unable to get out of your way, so you must keep clear of them.

Safe speed has no single number. Think about visibility, how much traffic there is, wind, waves and current, how close you are to hazards, and how quickly your boat can stop and turn. At night and in fog, slow down: you must be able to stop within the distance you can see.

Sound signals

A short blast lasts about 1 second. A prolonged blast lasts 4 to 6 seconds. On inland waters, power-driven vessels in sight of each other and within half a mile use these signals to state their intentions. The other vessel answers with the same signal if it agrees.

• Approaching a blind bend: one prolonged blast. A vessel around the bend answers with one prolonged blast.
• Leaving a dock or berth: one prolonged blast.
• If vessels agree by VHF radio how they will pass, whistle signals are not required.

If you do not understand what another vessel is doing, or you doubt that it is doing enough to avoid a collision, sound at least five short, rapid blasts. This doubt or danger signal may also be given with five short, rapid flashes of light. When you hear it, slow down and make your own intentions clear.

Fog and poor visibility

Navigation lights

Show navigation lights from sunset to sunrise and in restricted visibility.

• A power-driven boat under 12 meters may show one all-round white light with sidelights. The white light must be at least 3.3 feet higher than the sidelights.
• A sailboat under sail shows sidelights and a sternlight. Under power, it shows power-driven lights, and by day a cone, point down.
• At anchor: an all-round white light at night, a black ball by day.
• Rowboats and paddle craft must have a white flashlight or lantern ready to show.

Reading lights at night

• Red and green together ahead: a boat is coming straight at you.
• Red on your starboard side: the boat is crossing from your right. You give way.
• Only a white light you are catching up to: you are overtaking.

Buoys and markers

U.S. waters use a lateral system with the rule "red, right, returning". When you return from sea or go upstream, keep red markers on your right and green markers on your left. Heading out to sea, reverse it.

Lateral markers are numbered. Green markers carry odd numbers and red markers carry even numbers, and the numbers get larger as you head in from sea. Use them with your chart to check your position.

Regulatory and information markers

These are white with orange bands at the top and bottom. The orange shape gives the meaning: a diamond warns of danger, a diamond with a cross means boats keep out, a circle marks a controlled area, and a square gives information.

Never tie up to a navigation buoy or marker. It is dangerous and illegal, and it hides the aid from other boaters.

Diving flags

Slow down and keep well away from both flags. Many states set exact distances; for example, Florida requires 300 feet in open water and 100 feet in rivers, inlets and channels.

Safe operation: alcohol, carbon monoxide, PWCs and cold water

Boating under the influence

Under federal law, operating a boat with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 or higher is a violation. Penalties include a civil fine of up to $1,000, or a criminal penalty of up to $5,000, one year in prison, or both. States have their own BUI laws too, and some set lower limits for operators under 21 (for example, 0.02 in Florida and Ohio).

Carbon monoxide

Carbon monoxide (CO) from engines and generators has no color or smell. It can build up near the stern and swim platform. Never swim or sit there while engines or generators are running.

Personal watercraft and towing

A PWC is a motorboat, so the Navigation Rules apply to it like any other boat. Riders should wear a non-inflatable life jacket rated for PWC use and attach the engine cut-off lanyard. Many states set minimum ages and prohibit PWC riding at night.

When towing a skier or tuber, keep a second person on board as an observer who watches the person being towed at all times. Many states require an observer and ban towing after dark.

Cold water

Water colder than 68°F can be deadly, even on a warm day. In water around 40°F, an adult in normal clothing may stay conscious for only about 30 minutes, and some strong swimmers have died before swimming 100 feet.

Sudden immersion in cold water causes cold shock: you gasp and breathe fast, and you can inhale water. Within minutes, your hands, arms and legs go numb, so swimming fails long before hypothermia sets in. A life jacket keeps you afloat through all of this.

• Try to get back into or onto your boat right away.
• If you cannot, fold your arms, cross your legs and float still in the HELP position (Heat Escape Lessening Posture).
• With two or more people, huddle together.
• Swim only if safety is very close.

Accidents, emergencies and pollution

Reporting an accident

The operator must file a boating accident report with the state when there is:

• A death, or a disappearance that suggests death or injury.
• An injury that needs medical treatment beyond first aid.
• Damage to boats and other property of $2,000 or more, or the complete loss of a boat.

For a death or a missing person, notify the nearest state boating authority immediately. Federal law also requires an operator involved in an accident to give help to others as far as possible without serious danger, and to give their name, address and boat identification.

After an accident, follow these steps:

1. Stop and check everyone on board. Make sure everyone has a life jacket on.
2. Give help to people in the water or on the other boat if you can do it without serious danger to your own boat and passengers.
3. Exchange names, addresses and boat identification with the other people involved.
4. Notify authorities right away if someone died or is missing.
5. File a written accident report with the state within the deadline.

Calling for help

In an emergency, call on VHF channel 16, the distress and calling channel. Say "Mayday" three times, then give your boat name, position, the problem and how many people are on board. Other recognized distress signals include red flares, orange smoke, an orange distress flag, an electric distress light flashing SOS, a continuous sound from a horn, and slowly raising and lowering your outstretched arms.

Pollution

• Boats with toilets need a marine sanitation device. Boats over 65 feet must use Type II or Type III.
• In a No Discharge Zone, secure the device so it cannot discharge, for example with a padlocked valve.
• Plastic may never be thrown overboard.
• Boats 26 feet and longer must post an oil discharge placard (at least 5 by 8 inches) and a garbage placard (at least 4 by 9 inches).