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Chartering in Portugal: will your certificate do for the Algarve and the Atlantic?
Short answer
Portugal recognises boating certificates from other EU countries and ranks them against its own
levels, each with a limit on how far offshore you may go.
Certificates from outside the EU need checking.
Settle with the base in writing which certificate it accepts.
The Algarve, Lisbon and the Atlantic islands are proper ocean cruising grounds: long swell, strong winds, tidal streams, and harbours that can be a long way apart. Paperwork is split the usual way. Registration, safety equipment and the boat's own insurance are the base's business. You bring your certificate of competence, a VHF licence, passports and crew details. Under Portuguese rules, a base may only hand a bareboat to someone holding a suitable certificate, so the question of which certificate counts matters more here than in some other countries.
Portugal's maritime authority, the DGRM, publishes a list that ranks foreign certificates against the Portuguese levels. Certificates issued in other EU countries are recognised and treated as one of those levels, and each level carries a limit on distance from the coast, from a few miles out to unlimited. Since Brexit a British certificate is no longer an EU one, so British skippers in particular should look up how their RYA certificate or ICC is treated and ask the base directly. A certificate that covers coastal passages at home may come with a mileage limit in Portugal.
Before you book, get written confirmation that the base accepts your certificate for the boat you are chartering and the trip you have in mind, and ask how it handles the distance limit. Treat the Atlantic with respect: read the forecast for swell as well as wind, avoid harbour entrances with an onshore swell running and keep something in reserve. If you are checked at sea, you will be asked for the boat's papers, your certificate and the crew list. Damage you do to others with a chartered boat is your personal liability, so skipper liability insurance belongs in the folder.
Worth remembering
Recognition
EU certificates count, as a Portuguese level
Distance limit
the level sets how far offshore you may go
Check where your certificate ranks before you plan the passage.
Questions
What owners ask us about this
Is my RYA certificate valid in Portugal?
Portugal recognises certificates from EU countries and ranks them against its own levels. A British certificate is no longer an EU one, so check how the DGRM treats it and get the base to confirm in writing that it accepts it for your boat.
Why does distance from the coast matter?
Each Portuguese level carries a limit on how far offshore you may go. A certificate can be fine for day sails along the coast and still not cover a passage further out.
Do I need a VHF licence?
Whoever uses the VHF normally needs an operator's certificate such as the SRC, and many bases ask for at least one person on board to hold one.
Related
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