What is the minimum age for a boating license?
Learning to sail is not only fun for adults, but also for children. Besides, everyone knows the saying "young learned is old done. The sooner you learn to sail, the longer you can enjoy it. Before you can take your (motor) boat out on the water, you must obtain a boating license. A distinction is made between Sailing License 1 and Sailing License 2. Often you start with permit 1 and get permit 2 later. Many children or young people want to experience what it is like to drive a boat, but what is the minimum age for a license? You can read it on Alpina.nl.
Minimum age sailing license exam
When taking the driver's license test, there is a minimum age requirement. For the boating license, this is different. There is no minimum age for taking the Small Boating License exam. So you do not have to be 18 years old to take the exam. You can also take the exam for the license at age 12. However, you do not receive your license until you are 18, and you may only drive a boat that requires a license from then on. If you pass the small boat license exam before the age of 18, you will receive a result letter. This does not yet allow you to drive a boat, because the result letter is not yet the actual license. At age 18 you can exchange this letter for a boating license. Until then, you may not drive a boat or sail in an area where a license is required.
What is the minimum age to sail?
What the minimum age is for boating depends on the type of boat you want to sail. Before the age of 18 you are not allowed to drive a boat that requires a license. Whether a boat requires a license depends on its maximum speed and length. In determining which boats you may sail, your age also plays a role. For sailing and rowing boats, shorter than 7 meters, there is no minimum age requirement. For motorboats, sailboats and large boats, however, there is a minimum age limit.
Frequently Asked Questions
What boat can you sail when you are 12?
If you are 12 years old, you may also sail an open motorboat, shorter than 7 meters, max. 13 km/h. You do not need a license for this.
What boat can you sail when you are 16?
If you are 16 years old, you may also sail a motorboat, large ship or sailboat longer than 7 meters, max. 20 km/h. You do not need a license for this.
Which boats may I sail on if I am under 18?
If you are under 18 years of age you may sail with:
- Sailing and rowing boats, shorter than 7 meters (no minimum age)
- An open motorboat, shorter than 7 meters, max. 13 km/h (minimum age 12 years)
- A motorboat, large vessel or sailboat longer than 7 meters, max. 20 km/h (minimum age 16 years(
Getting your boating license already
Are you younger than 18? Even though you may not be allowed to sail after getting your boating license, it may be wise to take the exam anyway. There are a number of advantages to taking the boating license exam early. For example, you only need to take a theory exam now, not a practical exam. If you change in the future, this won't matter to you. In fact, a boating license is valid for your whole life and does not need to be renewed. So you have no chance of always having to take a practical exam later. Also, the theory exam gets more extensive every year, which also makes the questions more difficult. If you get your boating license now, you won't have to worry about this later. Moreover, at a young age you often have more time to study.
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