REGISTRATION, NUMBERING, AND DOCUMENTATION

Vessels Numbering

Every vessel using the waters of South Carolina required to be numbered, must be numbered.

No person shall operate or give permission for the operation of any such vessel on South Carolina waters unless the vessel is numbered in accordance with applicable Federal law or in accordance with a Federally-approved numbering system of another state and unless

• The certificate of number issued to such a vessel is on board and in full force and effect.
• The identifying number set forth in the certificate of number is displayed on each side of the forward half of the vessel.
• The decals issued by the department are attached to each side of the bow of the boat within six inches following the identifying registration number. Such decals, when a certificate of number is issued or renewed, shall be deemed a part of the registration number.

Certain vessels need not be numbered

A vessel is not required to be numbered in South Carolina if:

• covered by a certificate of number in effect which has been issued to it pursuant to federal law or a federally approved numbering system of another state. However, this vessel must not be used on the waters of this State for more than sixty consecutive days;
• from a country other than the United States and temporarily using the waters of this State;
• a vessel whose owner is the United States except recreational-type vessels;
• a vessel whose owner is the United States, a state, or political subdivision to a state used for governmental purposes and which is clearly identifiable as such;
• a vessel's lifeboat if the boat is used solely for lifesaving purposes;
• a vessel belonging to a class of boats which has been exempted from numbering by the department after the department has found that the federal government has exempted the vessel or class of vessels from their numbering provisions or as otherwise permitted by the federal government;
• documented by the United States Coast Guard or a federal agency successor to it;
• used under authority of a valid temporary certificate of number issued by the department or its agent;
• a sailboat or paddle boat when no propulsion machinery of any description is installed in or attached to the boat.

Nothing prohibits the numbering of an undocumented vessel upon request by the owner even though the vessel is exempt from the numbering requirements of this chapter.

Application for and issuance of number and certificate; fee

Temporary certificate of number, valid for not more than 60-days

• The department may issue temporary certificates of number to permit the use of watercraft while applications for certificates of number are processed. Temporary certificates apply to new watercraft not previously owned or transfers of watercraft with valid certificates of number. A temporary certificate is valid for not more than sixty days from the date of purchase of the watercraft. A temporary certificate is invalid when the certificate of number is issued.
• When using a recently purchased watercraft under authority of a temporary certificate of number the operator shall carry a copy of the bill of sale and temporary certificate on board as temporary proof of ownership.
• The number assigned to a temporary certificate of number must not be displayed on the watercraft.

Manner of displaying number

The owner shall paint on or attach to each side of the forward half of the vessel the identification number in such a manner that it may be clearly visible the number shall be maintained in legible condition.

• Be painted on or permanently attached to each side of the forward half of the vessel;
• Be in plain vertical block characters of not less than 3 inches in height;
• Contrast with the color of the background and be distinctly visible and legible;
• Have spaces or hyphens that are equal to the width of a letter other than "I" or a number other than "1" between the letter and number groupings (Example: SC 5678 EF or SC-5678-EF, and
• Read from left to right.
• On vessels so configured that a number on the hull or superstructure would not be easily visible, the number shall be painted on or attached to a backing plate that is attached to the forward half of the vessel so that the number is visible from each side of the vessel.
• Only one valid number may be displayed at any time.

Renewal of certificates – Every 3-years

• A certificate of number continues in effect for three years.
• A renewal application for a certificate of number, except those from marine dealers, presented after thirty days from its expiration date is subject to a late penalty of fifteen dollars ($15.00).

Transfer of registration upon change of ownership; fee

15-day rule, Notice of change of address

Hull identification number shall be displayed and affixed

No vessel constructed after November 1, 1972, shall be offered for sale in this State unless the hull identification number is permanently displayed and affixed in accordance with United States Coast Guard rules and regulations.

Vessel Registration – 30-day rule

• In order to operate on waters of this state a vessel shall be registered and numbered in the owner's name within thirty (30) days from the date it was purchased.
• In order to operate a vessel on the waters of this State during such thirty (30) day period the operator shall have in his possession the Bill of Sale or the Certificate of Title for the vessel.

Display of Decals Bearing Title Number

• Outboard Motor - A decal issued by the SCDNR, Boat Titling and Registration, when the outboard motor is titled, bearing the title number of the outboard motor, shall be affixed to the starboard side of the outboard motor cover.
• Titled watercraft - A decal issued by the SCDNR, when the watercraft is titled, bearing the title number of the unregistered watercraft, shall be affixed to the starboard outboard side of the transom within six inches of the top of the transom right above the waterline, or if there is no transom then affixed to the starboard outboard side of hull, aft, within one foot of the stern and within six inches of the top of the hull side, gunwale or hull/deck joint, whichever is lowest. On catamarans and pontoon boats with replaceable hulls, to the aft crossbeam, within eighteen (18) inches of the starboard hull attachment. Decal must not cover the hull identification number.

Reports of stolen or converted watercraft or outboard motors – immediate notification required

• Every peace officer of this State, having knowledge of a stolen or converted watercraft or outboard motor, shall immediately furnish the department with full information concerning such theft or conversion.
• The department, whenever it receives a report of the theft or conversion of a watercraft or outboard motor, shall make a record thereof, including the make of the stolen or converted watercraft or outboard motor and its manufacturer's or assigned serial number, and shall file the same in the numerical order of the manufacturer's or assigned serial number with the index records of the watercraft or outboard motors of such make.
• In the event of the recovery of a stolen or converted watercraft or outboard motor, the owner shall immediately notify the department, who shall remove the record of the theft or conversion from its file.

Unlawful acts; possession, operation or transfer without certificate; failure to surrender certificate; improper disposal of rejected or defective hull or motor

No person may:

• be in possession of or operate on the waters of this State a watercraft or an outboard motor for which a certificate of title is required unless a certificate of title has been issued to the owner;
• be in possession of or operate on the waters of this State a watercraft or an outboard motor for which a certificate of title is required upon which the certificate of title has been canceled;
• sell, transfer, or otherwise dispose of a watercraft or an outboard motor without delivering to the purchaser or transferee a certificate of title or a manufacturer's or importer's certificate assigned to the purchaser or transferee as required by this chapter;
• fail to surrender to the department a certificate of title upon cancellation of the title by the department for a valid reason set forth in this chapter or regulations adopted pursuant to it;
• dispose of a rejected or defective watercraft hull or outboard motor in the manufacturing process except by upgrading the hull to meet United States Coast Guard requirements or destroying the hull or outboard motor.

Unlawful acts; forged or altered certificate or assignment; stolen property; altered, removed, etc. number

• alter, forge, or counterfeit a certificate of title or manufacturer's or importer's certificate to a watercraft or to an outboard motor;
• alter or falsify an assignment of a certificate of title, or an assignment or cancellation of a security interest on a certificate of title to a watercraft or to an outboard motor;
• hold or use a certificate of title to a watercraft or to an outboard motor nor hold or use an assignment or cancellation of a security interest on a certificate of title to a watercraft or to an outboard motor knowing it to have been altered, forged, counterfeited, or falsified;
• have possession of, buy, receive, sell or offer for sale, or otherwise dispose of a watercraft or an outboard motor knowing or having reason to believe the watercraft or outboard motor has been stolen. No person may procure or attempt to procure a certificate of title to a watercraft or an outboard motor or pass or attempt to pass a certificate of title or an assignment to a watercraft or an outboard motor knowing or having reason to believe the watercraft or the outboard motor has been stolen;
• have possession of, buy, receive, sell or offer for sale, or otherwise dispose of in this State a watercraft or an outboard motor on which a manufacturer's hull identification number or part of it or assigned serial number has been destroyed, removed, covered, altered, or defaced, knowing or having reason to believe of the destruction, removal, covering, alteration, or defacement of the manufacturer's hull identification number or part of it or assigned serial number; or
• destroy, remove, cover, alter, or deface the manufacturer's hull identification number or part of it or assigned serial number on a watercraft or an outboard or inboard motor.

Seizure of certain watercraft; notice of seizure and of time for removal; forfeiture and disposal

• A stolen or abandoned, junked, adrift, destroyed, or salvaged watercraft or outboard motor, a watercraft or outboard motor for which the true owner is not determined, or a watercraft or outboard motor on which the manufacturer's or assigned serial number has been destroyed, removed, covered, altered, or defaced may be seized.
• Upon seizure of the watercraft or outboard motor, the department shall notify a person claiming an interest in it, and the person has the right to prove his interest before the circuit court in the county where the property was seized. If no action is filed within sixty days of notification, the department may retain the property for official use or transfer the property to another public entity for official use, sell the property at public auction, or, if the watercraft or outboard motor is determined to be unsafe, destroy it. The proceeds derived from the sale must be deposited in the Boating Operating Fund of the department for administration of the program.
• When the department determines the owner of a seized watercraft or outboard motor and related marine equipment, it shall notify the owner by certified mail of the procedure, the location, and the fact that he has not less than thirty days from the date of the certified letter to remove the equipment from the department's storage facility. Failure to remove the watercraft or outboard motor by the date designated forfeits the equipment to the department to be used or disposed of according to this section.

Suspension or revocation of certificate

The department shall have the authority to suspend or revoke a certificate of title to a watercraft, or to an outboard motor, upon reasonable notice and hearing, when authorized by any other provision of law or if he finds:

• The certificate of title was fraudulently procured or erroneously issued, or
• The watercraft, or outboard motor, has been scrapped, dismantled, or destroyed, or transferred and registered in another state.
• Suspension or revocation of a certificate of title does not, in itself, affect the validity of a security interest noted on it;
• When the department suspends or revokes a certificate of title, the owner or person in possession of it shall, immediately upon receiving notice of the suspension or revocation, mail or deliver the certificate to the department; or
• The department may seize and impound any certificate of title which has been suspended and revoked.

Applicability of chapter; when title certificates must be obtained; penalty for making false statements in affidavit

• All other owners are required to obtain title certificates when their vessel registration becomes due for renewal or execute an affidavit properly notarized that he is the true owner of the vessel or outboard motor.
• No person may make a false statement in an application or affidavit for registration, new, transfer, or renewal, a hull identification or serial number, a bill of sale, or other document submitted to the department

Watercraft not previously titled

A watercraft not previously required to be titled for which a title is required by this chapter must be titled at the time of renewal of the registration of the watercraft or transfer of the watercraft whichever occurs first. An owner of such a watercraft must secure a title for the watercraft within three years from the effective date of this section.

Conditional titles

If an applicant for a watercraft title or outboard motor title is not able to produce a perfected chain of title from the last owner of record or from the manufacturer, the department may issue to the applicant a conditional title which reflects on the face of it that it is conditional and that it does not warrant ownership against the true owner. The conditional title may not be issued unless the department determines that:

• the watercraft or outboard motor has not been reported as stolen in this State as required by this chapter or in another state;
• no active liens exist on the watercraft or outboard motor or that the existence of liens is unlikely; and
• the last titled owner cannot be found or the probability of finding the owner is remote; or
• the necessary paperwork to perfect the title has been lost, stolen, or destroyed and reasonably cannot be found or duplicated.

Documented Boats

• Official Documentation MUST be carried onboard a documented vessel at all times.
• A Document serves as a certificate of nationality and an authorization for a trade.
• Documented vessels must comply with all state and federal laws.
• Registration fee and display of validation sticker is required in some states.
• Official number must be permanently affixed to an integral structure of the boat. This number is referred to as the “main beam” number.
• The main beam number must match the official number on the document.
• Name and hailing port of the boat must be displayed at least once anywhere on the hull (most boater display this information on the transom) - at least 4” in height, contrasting in color to the hull.
• Name and hailing port must match information on the official document.