Do I need a license? To operate a motorboat of ten (10) horsepower or greater requires anyone who was born on or after Jan. 1, 1988, to successfully complete an approved boating safety course and obtain a Boating Safety Education Identification Card issued by the FWC.
While Florida does not have a boating license, anyone born on or after January 1, 1988 is required to either have successfully completed a National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) approved boating education course or have passed an equivalent course or temporary certificate examination.
Step 3: Obtain your Florida boat license Your official Identification Card will then arrive by mail in 3-4 weeks. You're ready to go boating on Florida waters!
For those wishing to rent a boat in Florida, Florida law requires anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 1988 to successfully complete an approved boating safety course and obtain a Boating Safety Education Identification Card issued by the FWC. Other questions about obtaining a boating card can be found here.
Florida's Laws on Boating Safety Equipment Personal Flotation Devices (PFDs): Visual Distress Signals: Sound-Producing Devices: Fire Extinguishers: Navigation Lights: Anchor and Anchor Lines: Additional Boating Safety Considerations:
In some cases, you can also operate a boat under the supervision of a qualified person, and you won't need a license, either. However, the safest thing you can do to make sure you can rent a boat when you want to is get your Boating Safety Education Identification Card.
You are exempt from this rule if you are: A person licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard as a master of a vessel. A person operating on a private lake or pond. A non-resident who has in his or her possession proof that he or she has completed a NASBLA-approved boater safety course or equivalency examination from another ...
—Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced the Boater Freedom Initiative, a legislative proposal that protects Floridians' right to boat by preventing local bans on vessels based on fuel type, repealing the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC)'s authority to conduct random vessel safety inspections ...
You are exempt from this rule if you are: A person licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard as a master of a vessel. A person operating on a private lake or pond. A non-resident who has in his or her possession proof that he or she has completed a NASBLA-approved boater safety course or equivalency examination from another ...