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Boating fines in Germany

If you go boating in Germany, there is no separate fines list for leisure craft. On federal waterways, one official catalogue, the BVKatBin-See, covers every vessel from cargo ships to dinghies. Below are the amounts most likely to matter on a pleasure boat, each with its legal source, plus the statutory maximums and the point where criminal law takes over.

  • Operating a pleasure craft without the required licence, inland €150 to €500 standard fineNo warning fine option [1]
  • Operating a pleasure craft without the required licence, at sea €150 to €500 standard fineNo warning fine option [1]
  • Owner allows someone without a licence to operate the boat €250 to €750 standard fineInland and at sea [1]
  • Operating while the licence is suspended by order €300 to €1,500 standard fine [1]
  • Licence not carried on board €35 warning fine, €75 fine standard fineInland and at sea [1]
  • Small craft without a valid registration mark, inland €55 warning fine, €125 to €200 fine standard fineMark not legible: €35 or €75 [1]
  • Owner allows use without a registration mark, inland €150 to €225 standard fine [1]
  • 0.5 per mille or 0.25 mg/l breath alcohol and above, maritime waterways €750 to €2,500 standard fineAlso applies to jet skis, kiteboards and windsurfers [1][5]
  • Noticeably impaired below 0.5 per mille, at sea €750 to €2,500 standard fine [1]
  • 0.5 per mille or 0.25 mg/l breath alcohol and above, inland waterways €350 to €2,500 standard fineIncluding the Rhine, Moselle and Danube [1][6]
  • Operating a vessel when no longer able to do so safely (alcohol, drugs) Up to 5 years in prison or a criminal fine criminal offenceCriminal offence, even without an accident [7]
  • Gross breach of safety rules that endangers others Up to 5 years in prison or a criminal fine criminal offenceDanger to people or to other people's property of significant value [7]
  • Speed limit exceeded by more than 6 km/h, at sea €175 to €500 standard fineUp to 3 km/h: €35 or €100; over 3 km/h: €55 or €150 [1]
  • Speed limit exceeded by more than 6 km/h, inland €225 standard fineUp to 3 km/h: €35 or €100; 3 to 6 km/h: €55 or €150 [1]
  • Failing to avoid wash and suction, at sea €25 warning fine, €150 fine standard fine [1]
  • Failing to avoid wash and suction, inland €35 warning fine, €100 to €350 fine standard fineIncluding the Rhine, Moselle and Danube [1]
  • Entering a nature reserve or national park where navigation is banned €55 warning fine, €125 to €350 fine standard fineHeligoland rock shelf, Baltic off Schleswig-Holstein, North Sea national parks [1]
  • Anchoring where it is banned off Heligoland €75 standard fine [1]
  • More than 6 km/h over the limit in a North Sea national park €225 to €500 standard fineUp to 3 km/h: €35 or €100; over 3 km/h: €55 or €150 [1]
  • Motorised water sports device or water skiing in a North Sea national park €150 standard fine [1]
  • Breaking the rules for water skiing, kiting or jet skis, at sea €35 warning fine, €100 fine standard fine [1]
  • Jet ski outside the designated stretches, inland €55 warning fine, €150 to €250 fine standard fine [1]
  • Jet ski endangering others while passing through, inland €150 to €300 standard fine [1]
  • Maximum on maritime waterways up to €50,000 maximumOther cases up to €10,000 [2]
  • Maximum on the Rhine up to €25,000 maximumRhine police regulations [4]
  • Maximum on inland waterways up to €10,000 maximum [3]

This overview is not legal advice; the competent authority decides each individual case.

How the German catalogue works

The amounts in the BVKatBin-See are standard rates. They assume negligence and ordinary circumstances. For minor breaches the catalogue also lists a lower warning fine alongside the regular fine.[1]

Endangering or harming others raises the rate by at least 25 or 50 per cent, and acting deliberately raises it by 30 to 100 per cent. The catalogue states that it is not exhaustive; anything it does not list is set by the authority within the statutory range.[1]

That range comes from the statutes: up to €50,000 for breaches of the maritime traffic rules and the pleasure craft licence regulations at sea, up to €10,000 in other cases. Inland the ceiling is €10,000, on the Rhine €25,000.[2][3][4]

Alcohol, drugs and criminal law

The limit is the same at sea and inland: 0.5 per mille blood alcohol or 0.25 mg/l breath alcohol, and 3.5 ng/ml THC for cannabis. Above these values the catalogue sets €750 to €2,500 at sea and €350 to €2,500 inland. At sea this also covers jet skis, kiteboards and windsurfers.[1][5][6]

Below the limit, a skipper who is noticeably impaired can still be fined €750 to €2,500 at sea. Unlike road traffic, the catalogue has no separate tier at 1.1 per mille.[1]

Anyone in charge of a vessel who cannot operate it safely because of alcohol or other drugs commits a criminal offence under section 315a of the German Criminal Code, even if nothing happens. No statute sets a value at which this applies without visible signs of impairment. The penalty reaches up to five years in prison; section 316 is only a fallback.[7][8]

Where these rules apply

The catalogue covers Germany's federal waterways, on the coast and inland. Many lakes are not federal waterways: there, state law applies, sometimes with its own fines lists, which are not included here.[1]

For coastal protected areas the catalogue sets its own amounts, for example around the Heligoland rock shelf, parts of the Baltic off Schleswig-Holstein and the North Sea national parks. Inland nature conservation rules of the German states are not covered on this page.[1]

The catalogue is dated 1 June 2023. Whether later changes have been worked in, such as the THC limit, has not been checked; a newer version may apply on the water.[1]

What is the fine for boating without a licence in Germany?

The catalogue sets €150 to €500, inland and at sea alike. An owner who lets an unlicensed person take the helm faces €250 to €750. Operating while a licence is suspended by order costs €300 to €1,500 under the catalogue.

What is the alcohol limit on a boat in Germany?

The limit is 0.5 per mille, or 0.25 mg/l breath alcohol. At sea, a noticeably impaired skipper can be fined even below that. Anyone who can no longer operate the boat safely commits a criminal offence.

Do I need to carry my licence on board?

Yes. Not carrying it means a €35 warning fine or a €75 fine under the catalogue, inland and at sea.

Does the catalogue apply on every German lake?

Only on lakes that are federal waterways. Elsewhere, the law of the German state applies, with its own rules and in some cases its own amounts.

Boating licence academy Boating abroad

Amounts from the BVKatBin-See as of 1 June 2023, statutes retrieved on 11 October 2026; a newer version may apply on the water.

  1. German fines catalogue BVKatBin-See, WSV/ELWIS, as of 1 June 2023 (in German)
  2. Maritime Tasks Act (Seeaufgabengesetz), section 15
  3. Inland Navigation Tasks Act (Binnenschiffahrtsaufgabengesetz), section 7
  4. CCNR, Additional Protocol No. 6 to the Revised Convention for Rhine Navigation
  5. Maritime Waterways Regulations (SeeSchStrO), sections 3 and 61
  6. Inland Waterways Introductory Regulation (BinSchStrEV), section 6
  7. German Criminal Code (StGB), section 315a
  8. German Criminal Code (StGB), section 316
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