Exemptions

Rule text#

Any vessel or class of vessels, the keel of which was laid or which was at a corresponding stage of construction before December 24, 1980, provided that she complies with the requirements of—

(a)The Act of June 7, 1897 (30 Stat. 96), as amended (33 U.S.C. 154-232) for vessels navigating the waters subject to that statute;

(b)Section 4233 of the Revised Statutes (33 U.S.C. 301-356) for vessels navigating the waters subject to that statute;

(c)The Act of February 8, 1895 (28 Stat. 645), as amended (33 U.S.C. 241-295) for vessels navigating the waters subject to that statute; or

(d)Sections 3, 4, and 5 of the Act of April 25, 1940 (54 Stat. 163), as amended (46 U.S.C. 526b, c, and d) for motorboats navigating the waters subject to that statute, shall be exempted from compliance with the technical Annexes to these Rules (33 CFR parts 84 through 88) as follows:

(i)The installation of lights with ranges prescribed in Rule 22 (§ 83.22), vessels of less than 20 meters in length are permanently exempt.

(ii)The installation of lights with color specifications as prescribed in Annex I to these Rules (33 CFR part 84), vessels of less than 20 meters in length are permanently exempt.

(iii)The repositioning of lights as a result of conversion to metric units and rounding off measurement figures are permanently exempt.

(iv)The horizontal repositioning of masthead lights prescribed by Annex I to these Rules (33 CFR part 84), vessels of less than 150 meters in length are permanently exempt; and

(v)Power-driven vessels of 12 meters or more but less than 20 meters in length are permanently exempt from the provisions of Rule 23(a)(i) and (iv) (§ 83.23(a)(i) and (iv)) provided that, in place of these lights, the vessel exhibits a white light aft visible all-round the horizon.

(a)The Act of June 7, 1897 (30 Stat. 96), as amended (33 U.S.C. 154-232) for vessels navigating the waters subject to that statute;

(b)Section 4233 of the Revised Statutes (33 U.S.C. 301-356) for vessels navigating the waters subject to that statute;

(c)The Act of February 8, 1895 (28 Stat. 645), as amended (33 U.S.C. 241-295) for vessels navigating the waters subject to that statute; or

(d)Sections 3, 4, and 5 of the Act of April 25, 1940 (54 Stat. 163), as amended (46 U.S.C. 526b, c, and d) for motorboats navigating the waters subject to that statute, shall be exempted from compliance with the technical Annexes to these Rules (33 CFR parts 84 through 88) as follows:

(i)The installation of lights with ranges prescribed in Rule 22 (§ 83.22), vessels of less than 20 meters in length are permanently exempt.

(ii)The installation of lights with color specifications as prescribed in Annex I to these Rules (33 CFR part 84), vessels of less than 20 meters in length are permanently exempt.

(iii)The repositioning of lights as a result of conversion to metric units and rounding off measurement figures are permanently exempt.

(iv)The horizontal repositioning of masthead lights prescribed by Annex I to these Rules (33 CFR part 84), vessels of less than 150 meters in length are permanently exempt; and

(v)Power-driven vessels of 12 meters or more but less than 20 meters in length are permanently exempt from the provisions of Rule 23(a)(i) and (iv) (§ 83.23(a)(i) and (iv)) provided that, in place of these lights, the vessel exhibits a white light aft visible all-round the horizon.

Why it shows up on the exam#

Two things worth knowing. First, Rule 38 never exempts a vessel from the conduct rules — only from technical positioning, range and colour requirements in the Annexes. Second, the two rulebooks are lettered DIFFERENTLY: International Rule 38 runs (a) through (h), while Inland 33 CFR §83.38 stops at (d) and lists its own historical statutes. Someone reading about “Rule 38(h)” in the CFR will not find it, because Inland has no paragraph (h).

Exam checkpoints#

1. 1.

   What it exempts

   Technical requirements only

   Positioning, visibility range and colour specifications drawn from the Annexes — never the steering and sailing rules. A grandfathered vessel still owes every duty in Parts A and B.

2. 2.

   Who qualifies

   Keel laid before the cut-off

   Internationally, a vessel whose keel was laid or which was at a corresponding stage of construction before the Regulations entered into force, provided she complied with the 1960 Collision Regulations. Under Inland, before 24 December 1980, provided she complied with the named earlier statutes.

3. 3.

   Permanent vs time-limited

   The clocks have all run out

   Several international exemptions ran “until 4 years” or “until 9 years after the date of entry into force”. The Regulations entered into force 15 July 1977, so those windows closed in 1981 and 1986. Only the permanent exemptions have present-day effect.

4. 4.

   Rule 38(h)

   All-round lights — permanent

   International Rule 38(h) grants a permanent exemption from the repositioning of all-round lights resulting from the prescription of §9(b) of Annex I. It is one of the exemptions that never expired — and it exists only in the international rulebook.

5. 5.

   Rule 38(d)(i)

   Masthead lights under 150 m

   Internationally, 38(d)(i) permanently exempts vessels of less than 150 metres from repositioning masthead lights under §3(a) of Annex I; 38(d)(ii) gave vessels of 150 metres or more the same relief only until 9 years after entry into force. Note that Inland numbers its (d) sub-items differently — see the Inland note.

Where Inland differs#

This is the rule where the two rulebooks diverge most in structure. Inland 33 CFR §83.38 has paragraphs (a) through (d) only: (a)–(c) name the historical statutes a vessel may have complied with (the Acts of 7 June 1897, §4233 of the Revised Statutes, and the Act of 8 February 1895), and (d) covers motorboats under the Act of 25 April 1940, listing exemptions (i)–(v) from the technical Annexes — including permanent exemption for vessels under 20 metres from the Rule 22 light ranges, permanent exemption from repositioning after the metric conversion, permanent exemption for vessels under 150 metres from horizontal repositioning of masthead lights, and a permanent exemption for power-driven vessels of 12 to under 20 metres from Rule 23(a)(i) and (iv) provided they show a white all-round light aft. There is no Inland (e), (f), (g) or (h).

Rule 38 — common exam questions#

What is the purpose of Rule 38 exemptions?

To avoid forcing existing vessels into expensive physical refits when the 1972 Regulations changed technical requirements for lights and sound appliances. A vessel already built and already compliant with the earlier rules could keep her existing arrangement — permanently in some cases, for a stated number of years in others — without becoming illegal overnight. It is a transitional provision, not a relaxation of how a vessel must be navigated.

What is Rule 38(h) of COLREGs?

International Rule 38(h) is a permanent exemption from the repositioning of all-round lights that would otherwise be required by §9(b) of Annex I. If you are reading 33 CFR 83.38 and cannot find paragraph (h), that is because the Inland version of Rule 38 has only paragraphs (a) through (d) — (e) through (h) exist in the international rulebook alone.

Are Rule 38 exemptions still relevant?

Only the permanent ones. The international Regulations entered into force on 15 July 1977, so exemptions written as “until 4 years” or “until 9 years after the date of entry into force” expired in 1981 and 1986. What survives is the permanent relief — for example the metric-conversion repositioning, masthead lights on vessels under 150 metres, and the all-round lights in 38(h). In practice this now affects a shrinking number of old hulls.

Does Rule 38 exempt a vessel from the steering and sailing rules?

No, and this is the point candidates most often miss. Every exemption in Rule 38 is about technical compliance — where lights sit, how far they are visible, their colour, and sound-signal appliances. Nothing in it touches lookout, safe speed, risk of collision, give-way duties, or conduct in restricted visibility.

Why is Inland Rule 38 lettered differently from COLREGs Rule 38?

Because they grandfather different things. The international rule lists exemptions from the 1972 Annexes, paragraph by paragraph through (h). The Inland rule instead names the historical US statutes a vessel may have been built to — the Acts of 1897, 1895 and 1940 and §4233 of the Revised Statutes — and puts its technical exemptions inside paragraph (d) as sub-items (i) through (v). Same purpose, different structure, and the paragraph letters do not correspond.

Authoritative source#

Source links checked against the current public rule corpus on 2026-07-26.

• 33 CFR §83.38 — the section this text comes from, with its neighbours.
• International COLREGs Rule 38 verbatim text is published by the IMO and is authoritative for international waters.

Practice this rule#

One real exam question on this rule, cited to source. No sign-up.