{"id":792,"date":"2015-04-30T11:25:02","date_gmt":"2015-04-30T15:25:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.boatsmartexam.com\/?post_type=article&#038;p=792"},"modified":"2020-03-26T17:40:04","modified_gmt":"2020-03-26T17:40:04","slug":"boat-registration-in-iowa","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.boatsmartexam.com\/knowledge-base\/article\/boat-registration-in-iowa\/","title":{"rendered":"Boat Registration in Iowa"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Iowa&#8217;s Boat Registration and Titling Requirements<\/h2>\n<p>Iowa&#8217;s boat registration regulations state that to operate a boat in the state of Iowa, you must obtain a Certificate of Number and validation decals.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Exemptions:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Boats that have been registered in another state, and are temporarily using Iowa&#8217;s waters for 60 days or less (within one calendar year).<\/li>\n<li>Inflatable boats under 7 feet in length.<\/li>\n<li>Canoes and kayaks that have no motor or sail and are 13 feet in length or less.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Registration certificates must be carried on board the boat at all times while the boat is being operated and must be available for inspection by law enforcement at all times. A registration certificate and registration decals can be obtained through the County Recorder. Boat owners must submit an application and a fee to the Country Recorder in their county of residence, or the county where the boat is primarily used.<\/p>\n<p>Boat registration certificates are valid for 3 years and expire on April 30th of the year indicated.<\/p>\n<h2>Boat Registration Number and Decal Placement:<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The number must be applied as a decal, painted or permanently affixed to the boat\u2019s bow (boat owners are not permitted to display any other numbers in this area).<\/li>\n<li>The number must be affixed where they can easily be seen.<\/li>\n<li>The number must be read from left to right on each side of the boat.<\/li>\n<li>The number must be in bold block letters that are at least 3 inches high, and in a color that contrasts with the color of the boat.<\/li>\n<li>The numbers in the registration number must be separated from the letters by a hyphen or by an equivalent space.<\/li>\n<li>Validation Decals must be affixed to each side of the boat, behind the registration number (towards the stern)and must be within 4 inches, and in line with the registration number.<\/li>\n<li>These placement requirements also apply to personal watercraft (PWCs).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Sailboats<\/b><\/p>\n<p>On boats powered by sail, registration numbers can be placed in a position where they provide maximum visibility (including placing the number of the mast of the boat, if required).<\/p>\n<p><b>Sailboards<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Sailboards are not required to display registration numbers, however the decal must be affixed to the bottom surface of the bow.<\/p>\n<h2>Other Registration Info<\/h2>\n<p>If the registration certificate or registration decals are lost or destroyed, boat owners must pay administrative fees in order to obtain a replacement.<\/p>\n<p>If a registered boat is abandoned or destroyed, or if a boat owner changes their address, or changes their name, the boat owner is required to notify the County Recorder within 10 days of the change.<\/p>\n<p>Owners of boats that require registration must apply for registration within 30 days of purchasing their boat, or within 30 days of a transfer of ownership.<\/p>\n<h2>Iowa\u2019s Boat Titling Requirements<\/h2>\n<p>Boats that are 17 feet in length or longer must have a title when they are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Newly purchased, or;<\/li>\n<li>Transferred, or;<\/li>\n<li>A lien exists against the boat.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Inflatables, kayaks, and canoes are exempt from Iowa\u2019s boat titling requirements<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","article-category":[7],"article-tag":[32,35,247,266],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v14.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Iowa&#039;s Boat Registration, Numbering &amp; Titling Requirements<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Iowa&#039;s boat registration requirements. includes which boats require registration, registration exemptions, and how to get your boat registered and titled.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow\" \/>\n<meta name=\"googlebot\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"bingbot\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boatsmartexam.com\/knowledge-base\/article\/boat-registration-in-iowa\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Iowa&#039;s Boat Registration, Numbering &amp; Titling Requirements\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Iowa&#039;s boat registration requirements. includes which boats require registration, registration exemptions, and how to get your boat registered and titled.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.boatsmartexam.com\/knowledge-base\/article\/boat-registration-in-iowa\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"BOATsmart! 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