It’s the Law!

Boating safety education certificates are required of the following operators:

• Persons born on or after January 1, 1982, may not operate boats powered by a motor greater than 25 hp unless they have in their possession a boating safety education certificate.
• Anyone operating a PWC on Pennsylvania public waters must have in their possession a boating safety education certificate.

Even if not required by law to get the Pennsylvania boating license, many boaters take the boat safety course in order to save on their PWC or boat insurance.

Exemptions

Residents of other states who were born on or after January 1, 1982, and operate on Pennsylvania waters for 60 days or less are exempt if they hold a boating safety certificate issued by their home state.

You Must Carry the Card

Vessel operators who are required to have a Boater Education Card must carry the card on board the vessel and have it available for inspection by an enforcement officer.

Reciprocity

All states that have mandatory boater education requirements will accept the Pennsylvania Boater Education Card. Likewise, Pennsylvania will accept boating education cards that are issued by states that meet NASBLA requirements.

Quick Links

Complete the Course

Step One: Register for the course, study the free online course material, and pass the Pennsylvania boating license final exam. (If you don’t pass on the first try, don’t worry. Keep taking the exam for free until you pass.)

Print Temporary Certificate

Step Two: After passing and paying the $34.50 course fee, you’ll instantly print out a temporary certificate, which is your temporary operating permit to operate legally on Pennsylvania waters while you wait for your permanent card to arrive.

Get on the Water!

Step Three: Your Pennsylvania Boater Education Card will arrive in the mail in 4-6 weeks. While waiting, your temporary certificate (the Boater Education Certificate) you printed in Step Two will serve as your proof to legally operate on Pennsylvania waters.

For a replacement Pennsylvania Boater Education Certificate, print, fill out, and mail in the Application for a Permanent Boating Safety Education Certificate Card (PDF download) from the http://www.fish.state.pa.us website.