French boat registration for non-residents: requirements, benefits and obligations

Who can register a boat in France without living there?

France does not require you to live there. What counts is the owners’ nationality, the boat’s origin and having an address in France for formalities.

• Ownership. At least 50% of the boat must belong to nationals of an EU or EEA state (art. L5112-1-3 of the Code des transports) In force.
• Address. If you do not live in France, or live there for less than 6 months a year, you make an “élection de domicile” with form Cerfa 14501 (opens in a new tab) for the boat’s administrative and legal matters (art. L5112-1-5) In force.
• Companies. A Spanish company can only register a boat in France if the boat is managed and controlled from a permanent establishment located in France (art. L5112-1-6) In force.
• Boat’s origin. France only registers boats built in the EU or on which import duties and taxes have been paid (art. L5112-1-2) In force. If the boat comes from another EU state and is longer than 7.50 m, the Var DDTM also asks for the quitus fiscal.

The certificat d’enregistrement replaced francisation in 2022

Since 1 January 2022, the Douane no longer handles the francisation of pleasure craft: you apply to the maritime services (DDTM or DML) and the document that proves the flag is the certificat d’enregistrement In force.

For pleasure craft for personal use, the certificate also includes the navigation document (arts. L5112-1-11 and L5112-1-13 of the Code des transports) In force. The Var DDTM sends it as an electronically signed PDF, and it must be kept on board (art. L5112-1-14) In force.

Twelve benefits of the French flag, with their caveats

• You do not have to live in France: if at least 50% of the boat belongs to EU or EEA nationals, an élection de domicile is enough (arts. L5112-1-3 and L5112-1-5) In force.
• Registration is free. The Ministry of the Sea puts it plainly: “Les démarches sont gratuites” (opens in a new tab) (“the procedures are free”). We have found no registration fee; this is a conclusion drawn from absence, not an express rule In force.
• A single document, which also serves as the navigation document (arts. L5112-1-11 and L5112-1-13) In force.
• No periodic administrative inspection of private pleasure craft for personal use: the chef de bord (skipper) is responsible (Division 240 (opens in a new tab), art. 240-1.03) In force. There are checks, though: a safety check before registration, in practice satisfied with the DEC (art. L5112-1-12), and checks by officers at sea (arts. L5112-1-22 and L5112-1-23) In force.
• No tonnage measurement for pleasure craft for personal use under 24 m (art. L5112-3) In force.
• Ship mortgages are available (arts. L5114-6-1 et seq.) In force.
• A stable register. We have found no reform under way in France to tighten the pleasure craft register. Poland is processing one that would require a prior inspection of boats that are not Polish-owned and confirmation of the registration every 5 years Proposed. This is our own comparison based on sources from both countries; details in the Polish reform.
• An annual tax that falls for sailing boats. In 2026, only boats of 7 m or more, or of 22 CV or more, pay the TAEMUP (art. L423-6 of the CIBS) In force. From 2027, the engine component is not charged below 120 kW (Law 2026-103) Approved, not yet in force: according to the French government (opens in a new tab), the share of sailing boats over 7 m that pay for their engine will fall from 58% to 1%. The PLF 2027 could still change this Proposed.
• Age reductions. In 2026, −80% (built before 1993), −55% (1993–1997) and −33% (1998–2007); above 100 CV, only on the hull component (art. L423-19 of the CIBS) In force.
• Your EU licence is valid for skippering a French motor boat, within its limits, if you are an EU national (arrêté of 6 July 2011) In force. Spanish waters have their own rule (see below).
• If you live in France, it is the natural choice: under a foreign flag you already pay the TAEMUP (art. L423-11 of the CIBS) In force.
• No flag-of-convenience label. The ITF list (opens in a new tab) includes the French International Register (RIF), which is for merchant ships, not the pleasure craft register. Poland is not on it either: there is no difference between the two on this point.

What obligations come with a French-flagged boat?

With no periodic inspections, responsibility rests with you and with the skipper (the chef de bord).

How much TAEMUP you will pay, with a calculator, is covered in the French boat tax guide; the definitive figure comes from the official simulator (opens in a new tab).

Which licence do you need to skipper a French boat?

French licensing rules apply on board a French boat, including in foreign waters. An EU national may skipper a French motor boat with a valid licence issued in an EU country, within the limits of that licence (arrêté of 6 July 2011) In force.

In Spanish waters, the fifth additional provision of RD 875/2014 (opens in a new tab) also applies In force: if your nationality matches the flag, your own country’s licence is valid; if it does not, you need the licence of the country where you live or, failing that, that of your nationality.

Can you mortgage a French-flagged boat?

Yes. Ship mortgages have been governed by arts. L5114-6-1 et seq. of the Code des transports since 1 May 2026 and are registered with the greffe (registry) of the commercial court In force. There is one exception: they are not available if the boat is francised under a bareboat charter.

If you live in France it is the natural choice; if you live in Spain, do the sums

If you live in France and own a foreign-flagged boat, you already pay the TAEMUP (art. L423-11 of the CIBS) and need a “passeport” (arts. L5112-1-18 to L5112-1-20 of the Code des transports) In force. The Polish flag does not save you the tax.

If you live in Spain, the sums are different. Moving to the French flag:

• Adds the TAEMUP. Under the Polish flag you do not pay it; under the French flag it is due if the boat exceeds the thresholds (art. L423-10 of the CIBS) In force.
• Does not avoid Spain’s registration tax (IEDMT). It depends on your living in Spain, using the boat there and the boat being over 8 m, not on the flag (art. 65.1.d and first additional provision of Ley 38/1992 (opens in a new tab)) In force. The rate is 12% on the mainland and in the Balearic Islands, Catalonia included, and 11% in the Canary Islands.
• Does not change the safety equipment required in Spain. RD 339/2021 (opens in a new tab) applies to boats under any flag whose owner or user lives in Spain when they sail in Spanish inland waters or territorial sea In force.

If you live and regularly sail in Spain, Spanish registration may be the most consistent choice, because the IEDMT is due anyway: we look at this in the flag comparison.

How do you move a boat from the Polish to the French flag?

1. 1

   Check that you can and that it is worth it

   Owner, residence, DEC (mandatory for boats built after 16 June 1998, according to the Var DDTM) and VAT, before giving up the Polish flag.

2. 2

   Deregister in Poland

   Free, with the original document, on paper or through REJA24 In force. The boat loses Polish nationality.

3. 3

   Address and file in France

   Élection de domicile if you do not live there, and a file lodged with the DDTM or DML: first registration is not done through demarches-plaisance.gouv.fr In force.

4. 4

   After registration

   Hull markings, ANFR licence for the VHF and TAEMUP within the following 2 months In force.

No official processing times are published for registration in France. The documents and official costs of each step are in the guide to moving from the Polish to the French flag.