CLAUDIA´S
MANGUSTA 92 Claudia’s is a fine example of the famous Mangusta 92 series and is the penultimate yacht built of this series. Claudia’s is a 28.27m Mediterranean sport
THE EYB COUNTRY GUIDES · France
Check the sea-going registration route, eligibility, first-registration file and changes to an existing title.
Boat registration France requires the right file for the vessel and its intended navigation. A first French registration differs from an eligible private transfer of a yacht already recorded, and the owner's residence or legal structure can affect the route. This guide explains the official sea-going procedures and documents, with practical recommendations for checking eligibility, collecting evidence and keeping the registration certificate accurate through a purchase or later alteration.
The guide concerns recreational boats navigating at sea. Confirm case-specific requirements with the relevant DDTM/DML recreational boating service, especially for imported vessels, corporate ownership or missing technical records. A registration review should sit alongside the buyer's separate assessment of condition, ownership authority, tax treatment and any encumbrances. For anything this guide does not cover, email us at info@europeanyachtbrokers.com for the latest information.
Key facts at a glance
That July 2026 guidance requires the registration certificate aboard the vessel.
French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats ·That July 2026 guidance lists a fiscal certificate for boats longer than 7.5 metres purchased in another EU member state.
French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats ·Maritime Ministry guidance updated 17 July 2026 states that personal portal features are not available to companies or associations and directs first French registration to the maritime service.
French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats ·That July 2026 guidance describes the relevant online registration and ownership-change procedures as free.
French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats ·Maritime Ministry guidance updated 17 July 2026 requires a title-amendment request within 1 month for changes to constituent registration particulars including ownership, domicile, motorisation and departure from the recreational fleet.
French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats ·Section 1
The Maritime Ministry identifies compulsory registration for recreational boats from 2.5 metres and personal watercraft navigating at sea. It places the procedure with the DDTM/DML recreational boating service. As practical advice, establish the relevant navigation use and the actual vessel category before assembling a file. A conventional sea-going yacht should not be processed by borrowing instructions for a river boat or a beach craft, and an owner should ask the receiving service about an unusual craft rather than applying a threshold without its stated scope.
The Ministry explains that the registration certificate now combines the former registration and francisation functions, while earlier circulation cards and francisation documents remain valid. The resulting certificate is required aboard the vessel. As practical advice, keep the title available with the vessel records and ask the maritime service to explain an older document before replacing or discarding it. Compare the recorded characteristics and owner information with the boat, and treat a discrepancy as a question to resolve before planning navigation or a sale.
Eligibility needs its own review. The Ministry's conditions include ownership at least half by the specified EU, EEA or qualifying UK citizens, or by qualifying companies, together with the stated French residence or elected-domicile requirements for individuals. It also requires EU construction or payment of the applicable EU duties and taxes, and a safety check. As practical advice, give the service the actual ownership and residence arrangement. This summary does not decide eligibility for every non-resident or corporate structure without that case-specific administrative review.
Broker tip: Practical recommendation: ask the receiving maritime service to confirm eligibility for the actual owner and vessel. Compare the existing title with the yacht and retain it until the service confirms whether a replacement is needed. A related question is answered in our guide on how to transfer boat ownership in France.
Passport and boat registration papers on a chart.
Sea registration scope
Section 2
The official first-registration checklist includes the original and a copy of the invoice or sale deed, a national identity document and domicile evidence. The Ministry identifies an elected-domicile attestation for the stated European residents spending less than 6 months in France. As practical advice, collect the proposed owner's documents early and ask the receiving service to confirm how the rule applies to that person. An agent's previous experience with another buyer should not replace a review of the present owner's residence and supporting file.
For boats longer than 7.5 metres acquired in another EU country, the checklist includes a fiscal certificate. For a boat bought in a third country, it includes an import declaration. The Ministry also lists the original written declaration of conformity for a CE boat. As practical advice, establish the purchase route and ask the service or a qualified adviser to resolve any missing tax or technical evidence before submission. This guide does not assume that an overseas registration certificate supplies every French fiscal or conformity requirement.
Service Public describes the fiche plaisance as the form for registering a recreational vessel or personal watercraft in maritime waters. The Ministry's current instructions say the printed form is used for procedures by post or at the counter. As practical advice, use the receiving service's current file requirements and submission route rather than duplicating an online procedure with paper unnecessarily. A first registration can involve questions outside the personal portal's ordinary ownership-change functions, so clarify the route before organising the collection of originals and signatures.
Broker tip: Practical recommendation: obtain the receiving service's current checklist before submitting. Match the fiscal and technical documents to the purchase route, and ask for case-specific instructions if a conformity declaration or foreign record is missing. See also our guide on whether you need a boat licence in France.
Boat keys and documents handed over on a chart table.
Core ownership identity file
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Section 3
The personal online route uses FranceConnect. The Maritime Ministry says its portal features are unavailable to legal persons such as companies and associations, and directs first French registration and the specified technical or removal procedures to the appropriate service. As practical advice, confirm whether the proposed owner and transaction qualify before making the completion timetable depend on an online operation. A company buying a yacht should arrange the appropriate maritime-service route instead of asking an individual to use a personal account as a substitute.
Service Public lists reissuing the registration certificate among the personal portal's functions. Its service description also covers changes to the vessel name, address, registration port and shore contact. As practical advice, keep access arrangements and contact details current so that routine updates can be handled when needed. The availability of a function does not establish that the record is already accurate; compare the certificate and supporting information after an update and ask the service to resolve discrepancies instead of treating a successful login as confirmation of the vessel's particulars.
For an eligible private ownership transfer, the seller begins the declaration and gives the generated transfer code to the buyer, who finalises acquisition. All co-owners must confirm their agreement where the vessel is co-owned. The Ministry describes the relevant online procedures as free. As practical advice, agree the sequence and responsibilities before handover, while everyone needed can still sign and respond. Keep the completed administrative record with the signed sale documents, and obtain separate quotations for any adviser or agent engaged to assist with the file. This guide does not determine eligibility for every nationality, corporate structure or non-resident ownership arrangement; the receiving service must assess the actual case. No actual processing delay, paid-agent fee or non-CE technical acceptance route is inferred from the general checklist. For these, email us at info@europeanyachtbrokers.com for the latest information.
Broker tip: Practical recommendation: check the owner's eligibility for the portal before setting the timetable. Arrange all required co-owner confirmations and retain the new administrative record; request professional-assistance charges separately from the free online procedure. Readers often go on to our guide on whether you pay VAT on a boat in France.
Boat registration at a marina office.
FranceConnect personal access
Service Public's online-service description verified 24 August 2023 says users must connect through FranceConnect for the stated personal sea-going boat procedures.
Source: Service Public, recreational boat online proceduresMaritime Ministry guidance updated 17 July 2026 states that personal portal features are not available to companies or associations and directs first French registration to the maritime service.
Source: French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boatsService Public's online-service description verified 24 August 2023 lists registration-certificate reissue and name, address, port and shore-contact updates among portal functions.
Source: Service Public, recreational boat online proceduresMaritime Ministry guidance updated 17 July 2026 says the seller starts the eligible private online transfer, the buyer finalises using the transfer code, and all co-owners must confirm consent.
Source: French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boatsThat July 2026 guidance describes the relevant online registration and ownership-change procedures as free.
Source: French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boatsSection 4
The Ministry requires changes to the constituent registration particulars, including ownership, domicile, motorisation and departure from the recreational fleet, to be notified through a request to amend the title within 1 month. As practical advice, make the administrative update part of the work or handover plan rather than leaving it as a later recollection. The stated deadline is not a verified estimate of processing time. Ask the receiving service about an unresolved change before navigating on the assumption that the old record still describes the yacht correctly.
A yacht's name can be changed at any time, with a new registration certificate issued without charge. The Ministry describes an online route for eligible individuals and a service route at the counter, by post or by email. As practical advice, check that the desired administrative change is made to the title as well as to the vessel's presentation. Buying new lettering or changing an advertisement does not itself provide the administrative record, so retain the resulting certificate with the yacht documents and inform the people handling the sale file.
Technical changes require a declaration by the owner or manager to the maritime service. For an engine change, the Ministry lists an engine invoice or sale document including the engine's technical characteristics, with the fiche plaisance for procedures outside the portal. As practical advice, retain the removed and replacement engine information and ask how the change should be recorded before commissioning the yacht for use. The Ministry also provides a way to request a change of registration port; obtain any special-case instructions directly rather than inferring unrestricted eligibility from the availability of that function.
Broker tip: Practical recommendation: link an ownership or engine change to a dated administrative task and retain the supporting documents. Ask the service to confirm the amended record before assuming that the earlier certificate remains accurate. Our guide on what boat insurance you need in France covers a related point. Buyers focused on one area can read our guide on buying a boat in Brittany.
Signing a boat purchase agreement.
Changes notification deadline
Practical support
Peter Mattey is a yacht broker at European Yacht Brokers with a BA in Law. He is not a French lawyer: for French law and tax we refer you to a locally qualified adviser. What we can do is help you plan the transaction, put the right questions to the other side and spot gaps in the paperwork before you commit.
If you are buying or selling a boat in France, tell us about the boat and the area through the enquiry form on this page and a broker will reply. For anything this guide does not cover, email us at info@europeanyachtbrokers.com for the latest information.
The handover of a boat at the dock.
Your questions
The Maritime Ministry places the stated recreational sea-going registration procedure with DDTM/DML recreational boating services. As practical advice, contact the service with the yacht's particulars, proposed owner and purchase route before collecting a file based on another person's transaction. Ask it to confirm whether the case is a first registration, an eligible ownership change or a technical update requiring direct handling. (French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats)
Yes, the Maritime Ministry says the registration certificate is compulsory aboard. It also states that older circulation cards and francisation documents remain valid following the merged system. As practical advice, compare the current title with the boat and owner information, ask the service about any older document and retain the resulting confirmation rather than discarding a valid title because its format differs. (French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats)
No, the Ministry says the personal portal's features are unavailable to legal persons such as companies and associations. As practical advice, arrange the appropriate service route for the corporate owner before relying on an online handover. Give the receiving service the proposed ownership structure and supporting documents, and have any representative's authority reviewed as part of the actual transaction file. (French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats)
The Ministry lists a fiscal certificate for boats longer than 7.5 metres acquired in another EU country among the registration documents. As practical advice, establish the boat's tax classification and the competent tax-office requirements before submitting the registration file. This checklist requirement does not itself decide every VAT question, so retain the invoice and supporting history and obtain qualified advice on the actual purchase. (French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats)
The Ministry lists the engine invoice or sale document with technical characteristics, and the fiche plaisance for procedures outside the portal. It also requires technical changes to be declared to the maritime service. As practical advice, obtain the evidence when the replacement is arranged, confirm how the change will be recorded and keep the amended title together with the relevant engine documents. (French Maritime Ministry, buying and registering sea-going boats)
This guide only includes facts checked against official sources. For anything it does not cover, email us at info@europeanyachtbrokers.com for the latest information, and ask a locally qualified adviser to confirm the position for your own boat.
Ready when you are
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Check it yourself
Official guidance updated 17 July 2026: registration, ownership changes, documents and online services.
Official form description verified 20 January 2022; opened 3 October 2026, for sea-going boat and personal-watercraft registration.
Official service description checked 24 August 2023 and opened 3 October 2026: online sea-going personal boat procedures.
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