Have you been wondering exactly which is the right status of documentation for your vessel? Are you concerned that your documentation might expire or change and you won’t be able to restore it? Those are just some of the reasons that vessel owners from all walks of life come to our National Documentation Portal. Here, we can help you to make sure that your documentation is exactly what you want it to be. Below are some of the different statutes that documentation can be in.
Documenting Your Vessel for the First Time
If your vessel isn’t documented, you can do so through our site. Your vessel is eligible for this if it measures at least five net tons and is owned wholly by a citizen of the United States (such as yourself). You can choose to document your vessel if it meets those criteria. However, if you plan on using your vessel for commercial fishing operations and/or transporting people and goods on the navigable waters of the US, then you do have to document it.
Maintaining Your Documentation
Documentation lasts for exactly one year. It has to be renewed every single year. If it isn’t, then you’ll lose your documentation status. You can renew your documentation through our site – indeed, that might be the most common reason that folks use our site. However, you can also document your vessel for up to five years in advance through our site now. So, to save you plenty of time as well as peace of mind, you can document your vessel for one, two, three, four, and up to five years all at once.
Reinstating Your Documentation
Many of the vessel owners we know are incredibly busy, with so much to do. It’s far, far easier than many think to lose track of your documentation and let it expire. When that happens, it does not mean that you are out of luck for good. If your documentation has expired for more than 30 days, you cannot “renew” it anymore. But, our site can still help you. Instead, you’re going to want to “reinstate” your documentation.
Deleting Your Documentation
In time, perhaps your vessel is no longer usable. Maybe it has crashed, and you either do not want to repair it or are unable to. Alternatively, maybe the owner of the vessel passed away, or it was sold to a foreign citizen. In those circumstances, you’re going to want to delete your vessel from registration. We offer an easier way to do that as well.
The Right Status of Documentation for Your Needs
While the above are different statuses of documentation, we offer far more help than just that. For example, if you’re researching a vessel, we offer access to both a vessel documentation search as well as an easy way to apply for an Abstract of Title so that you can learn more from a source you can trust. Visit our site to see all of the forms we offer.