How to register a boat in Maine
Register before you operate on Maine waters
There is no state title and no fixed grace period — a motorboat must be registered before it is operated on Maine waters. Maine residents register in their town of residence; nonresidents and businesses register in the town where the watercraft is principally moored or located. You register in person with a registered agent at the town office (or at the MDIFW headquarters in Augusta), and existing registrations can be renewed online through Maine's InforME rapid-renewal service if your town participates.
Settle the watercraft excise tax with the town first
Before the town issues a registration, the municipality collects an annual watercraft excise tax based on the boat's age, length, and motor horsepower. Residents pay it to their own town; nonresidents pay excise tax to the Maine town where the boat is moored and bring the receipt. This is a municipal tax collected at the counter, separate from the state registration fee.
Bring proof of ownership and sales-tax proof
Because Maine issues no title, ownership is proven with a bill of sale, the dealer's paperwork or manufacturer's statement of origin for a new boat, or your prior year's registration. New registrations require proof that Maine sales/use tax has been paid (or an exemption). Bring the boat's details — make, year, length, motor horsepower, and hull identification number — and a photo ID.
Receive your certificate of number, ME sticker, and milfoil sticker
You leave with a certificate of number and a validation sticker, plus the Lake and River Protection sticker if the boat will be used on inland waters. The ME identification number must be painted or applied to each side of the bow in block letters at least 3 inches high, in a color that contrasts with the hull, reading left to right (e.g., ME-1234-AB). The validation sticker goes about 3 inches behind the last character of the number, and the milfoil sticker sits on each side of the bow above the waterline, roughly 3 inches behind the validation sticker. Keep the certificate of number aboard whenever the boat is operated.
Maine registration fees
Maine sets the annual registration fee by motor horsepower, not by length. The figures below are the inland-water fees, which already include the Lake and River Protection (milfoil) sticker and the $1 agent fee. Boats used in tidal (salt) water only do not need the milfoil sticker and pay roughly $10 less per tier. On top of the state fee, the town collects an annual watercraft excise tax based on the boat's age, length, and horsepower, and agents may add a small transaction fee (about $2 for a new, transfer, or rollover registration).
| Class | Vessel length | Base fee |
|---|---|---|
| 0–10 HP | Motor up to 10 horsepower | $25.00 |
| 11–50 HP | Motor 11 to 50 horsepower | $30.00 |
| 51–115 HP | Motor 51 to 115 horsepower | $36.00 |
| 116+ HP | Motor 116 horsepower and over | $44.00 |
| Personal watercraft | Jet ski / PWC, any horsepower | $44.00 |
Inland fees shown; they include the milfoil sticker and the $1 agent fee. Tidal (salt-water-only) fees are about $10 lower and skip the sticker. The municipal excise tax and any agent transaction fee are additional. Confirm the current amount with your town office or MDIFW before you go.
Titling in Maine
Maine does not title boats. It is a non-title state and has not adopted the Uniform Certificate of Title for Vessels Act, so there is no such thing as a Maine boat title. Instead, ownership is established by the chain of bills of sale, the dealer's paperwork or manufacturer's statement of origin, and your registration and excise-tax receipts — keep those documents; they are your proof of ownership when you sell.
Because there is no state title, the interaction with federal documentation is simpler than in title states: a federally documented vessel is exempt from Maine registration entirely — the U.S. Coast Guard Certificate of Documentation is the ownership and identity record. However, a documented boat operated on Maine's inland waters still must display a Lake and River Protection sticker. This exempt-from-registration treatment is the opposite of what many states do, so it is worth understanding the general framework in state registration vs USCG documentation before you assume a documented boat needs nothing from Maine.
HIN requirements
Maine records a Hull Identification Number (HIN) on the registration. For any boat built after 1972, the HIN is the 12-character code the manufacturer permanently affixed to the hull (usually on the transom's upper starboard corner), and it must match the number written on the registration.
Homemade boats and older or imported hulls that never carried a factory HIN are assigned a state HIN by MDIFW — a Maine state-assigned number is prefixed with the letters "MEZ." The town agent or MDIFW handles the assignment when you register, after which the assigned number is permanently marked on the hull.
If you are bringing in an out-of-state boat, confirm the hull number on the paperwork actually matches the hull before you go to the town office. Decode any existing hull number first with the HIN decoder to check that the manufacturer and model year line up with the seller's documents — a mismatch is far easier to resolve before money changes hands.
Renewal
Maine watercraft registrations run on the calendar year: a registration is valid through December 31 of the year it is issued, regardless of when in the year you register, and must be renewed for the next year. Renew at your town office or online through Maine's InforME rapid-renewal service if your municipality participates. The milfoil sticker is likewise issued annually and renews with the registration for inland boats.
Exemptions
Non-motorized craft — canoes, kayaks, rowboats, and similar human-powered vessels — do not require registration. Note the trigger is the motor, not the hull: put any motor on a canoe, even a small electric trolling motor, and it becomes a "motorized watercraft" that must be registered and, on inland waters, carry a milfoil sticker.
Several other categories are exempt from Maine registration: federally documented vessels, boats currently and properly registered in another state (as long as they are not kept in Maine for more than 60 consecutive days), ship's lifeboats, and public/government and military watercraft. The 60-day reciprocity and the documented-vessel exemption both come with a catch — an out-of-state or documented motorboat operated on Maine inland waters still must display a Lake and River Protection sticker (about $59 for a boat that is not Maine-registered).
Frequently asked questions
Does Maine title boats?
No. Maine is a non-title state — it issues no boat titles at all and has not adopted the Uniform Certificate of Title for Vessels Act. You prove ownership with the bill of sale, dealer paperwork or manufacturer's statement of origin, and your registration and excise-tax receipts, so hold onto those documents.
Do I have to register my boat in Maine if it is USCG documented?
No — a federally documented vessel is exempt from Maine registration, because the Coast Guard Certificate of Documentation is the ownership and identity record. But if you run that documented boat on Maine inland waters, it still needs a Lake and River Protection (milfoil) sticker.
How much does it cost to register a boat in Maine?
The annual state fee is set by motor horsepower: $25 for up to 10 HP, $30 for 11–50 HP, $36 for 51–115 HP, and $44 for 116 HP and over or a personal watercraft. Those inland figures already include the milfoil sticker and the $1 agent fee. Tidal-only boats pay about $10 less and skip the sticker. On top of that, your town charges an annual watercraft excise tax based on the boat's age, length, and horsepower.
What is the milfoil sticker and do I need one?
The "milfoil" sticker is the Lake and River Protection sticker, and its fees fund Maine's fight against invasive aquatic plants like Eurasian milfoil. Any motorized watercraft on Maine inland waters must display it — including a canoe with an electric motor and any personal watercraft. For a Maine-registered boat it is bundled into the inland registration fee; for an out-of-state or documented boat it is bought separately (about $59). Boats used only in tidal salt water do not need one.
Where do I register my boat in Maine?
At your municipal town office, through a registered IF&W agent — not at a DMV. Maine residents register in their town of residence; nonresidents register in the town where the boat is moored. The town also collects the watercraft excise tax at the same counter. Existing registrations can be renewed online through Maine's InforME service if your town participates.
Primary sources
Last verified .
- MDIFW — Boating (registration, fees, exemptions, reciprocity) (retrieved 2026-07-16)
- MDIFW — Lake and River Protection Sticker (retrieved 2026-07-16)
- Maine Revised Statutes Title 12 §13056 — Certificate of number, identification numbers and validation stickers (retrieved 2026-07-16)
- Maine Revised Statutes Title 36, Chapter 112 — Watercraft Excise Tax (retrieved 2026-07-16)
- Town of Pownal, ME — Boat registration fees by horsepower (retrieved 2026-07-16)
- MDIFW — Online watercraft registration renewal (InforME) (retrieved 2026-07-16)
Independent reference tool — not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the U.S. Coast Guard or the National Maritime Center. Vessel data is derived from public USCG sources and may lag official records; always verify with the issuing authority.
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