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Can my car tow the boat trailer in Germany?
Before the boat goes on the trailer, check the papers: can my car tow the weight, does my licence cover it, and may the rig do 100 km/h on the motorway? Enter the figures from your registration certificate and the calculator checks them against German rules. Nothing leaves your browser.
The calculator does not replace your papers or advice from a testing station. It uses the trailer's maximum permissible mass, as if it were fully loaded.
Which licence for a boat trailer in Germany?
Category B covers a car up to 3,500 kg with a trailer up to 750 kg, or a heavier trailer as long as car and trailer together stay within 3,500 kg maximum permissible mass.[1]
Code 96 raises the limit for the whole rig to 4,250 kg. It takes a training course but no test.[2]
With BE the trailer itself may weigh up to 3,500 kg. EU licences use the same categories, so these limits apply to them too.[1]
Towing capacity and nose weight
Your car's towing capacity is in the registration certificate: field O.1 for braked, field O.2 for unbraked trailers. An unbraked trailer may never exceed 750 kg.[3][4]
At least 4 percent of the trailer weight must rest on the hitch, though no more than 25 kg is required. The maximum is in field 13 and on the hitch, whichever is lower.[5]
100 km/h with a boat trailer
Without special approval a car and trailer may do 80 km/h outside towns and on the motorway.[6][7]
The 9th exemption ordinance allows 100 km/h on motorways and expressways if the car has ABS, the trailer tyres are under six years old and rated for 120 km/h, and the trailer is light enough: 0.3 times the car's unladen mass without shock absorbers, 1.1 times with hydraulic shock absorbers, 1.2 times with a stabiliser hitch.[8]
An inspector confirms the conditions, the registration office enters 100 km/h and issues the sticker.[8]
Overhang, width and mirrors
If the boat or outboard sticks out more than 1 m beyond the end, it must be marked. 1.50 m is allowed, up to 3 m on trips of up to 100 km.[9]
The rig including its load may be no wider than 2.55 m.[9][10]
You must be able to see behind and to the side with the boat on. With a wide boat that means extension mirrors.[11]
Questions
Is a category B licence enough to tow a boat trailer in Germany?
Yes, if the trailer is rated at 750 kg or less, or car and trailer together stay within 3,500 kg. Above that you need B96 (up to 4,250 kg) or BE.
Where do I find my car's towing capacity?
In the registration certificate: field O.1 gives the braked towing capacity, field O.2 the unbraked one.
Can I drive at 100 km/h with a boat trailer in Germany?
Only with 100 km/h approval: ABS on the car, trailer tyres under six years old and the right weight ratio. Without it the limit is 80 km/h.
How do I mark an overhanging boat?
From 1 m of overhang with a light red flag or a sign of at least 30 x 30 cm, plus a red light and reflector when visibility requires it.
More for your trip
Boating abroad Plan your trailer route Boating licence academy
Sources
Legal position 11 Oct 2026, German federal law at gesetze-im-internet.de. What counts are the entries in your own papers.
- § 6 FeV, Fahrerlaubnisklassen
- § 6a FeV, Schlüsselzahl 96
- Anlage 6 FZV, Felder der Zulassungsbescheinigung
- § 42 StVZO, Anhängelast
- § 44 StVZO, Stützlast
- § 3 StVO, Geschwindigkeit
- § 18 StVO, Autobahnen
- 9. Ausnahmeverordnung zur StVO (Tempo 100)
- § 22 StVO, Ladung und Überhang
- § 32 StVZO, Abmessungen
- § 56 StVZO, Spiegel
