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The German boating licence, explained for English speakers
Germany has its own boating licence, the Sportbootführerschein, usually shortened to SBF. If you live here and want to drive a boat with more than 15 hp, you will need one. Our academy has all 513 official exam questions with an explanation for each, plus a trainer and a mock exam. The questions are in German, just like the exam; everything around them is explained here for English speakers.
Choose your licence
For the coast and maritime waterways: North Sea, Baltic, and the sea when you charter abroad.
213 questions plus core
For rivers, canals and lakes that are federal waterways, under engine.
181 questions plus core
What the German licence looks like
The Sportbootführerschein is a credit card sized licence. It also serves as the International Certificate for Operators of Pleasure Craft under UNECE Resolution 40, which is why the card carries English, French and Spanish as well as German.
Official specimens from the German boating licence regulation (SpFV), Annex 1. gesetze-im-internet.de
How the trainer works
- Practise
Twenty mixed questions per round, each followed by an explanation. - Repeat mistakes
Anything you got wrong comes back until you get it right. - Mock exam
Seven core and twenty three specific questions, marked to the official key.
Who needs a licence in Germany
On federal waterways and at sea, a licence is required once the engine exceeds 11.03 kW, which is 15 hp. On the Rhine the threshold is lower, at 3.68 kW or 5 hp.
The SBF See covers maritime waterways, the SBF Binnen inland waterways. Many lakes follow state rules of their own, and Lake Constance requires its own Bodensee licence.
Visitors who hold a licence from their home country should check before setting out whether it is accepted for the waters they plan to use. Rental companies on lakes often offer boats up to 15 hp that need no licence at all.
Looking for a boating school for the practical test? Find a boating school
Your first boat
Passed the exam and found a boat? Our boat value calculator shows what a used boat is worth today, and a quick quote shows what insurance would cost.
Questions about the academy
Can I take the German boating exam in English?
The official question catalogue is published in German, and the exam is set from it. Ask the examination board in advance whether an interpreter is allowed.
Is the trainer free?
Yes. No sign up and no subscription. Your progress is stored in your own browser.
Do I need the chart exercise for the SBF See?
Yes. The coastal exam includes a chart task, which this trainer does not cover. A course or chart workbook is the way to prepare for it.
Questions and answers from the official German catalogues (August 2023), published on ELWIS. Explanations are our own and do not replace a course.
