Texas boating laws · checked Oct 2026

Texas boating laws: life jackets, boater education and jet skis

What Texas law requires on the water, pulled from official sources and linked line by line: life jackets, boater education, jet skis, paddle craft and registration.

Kids must wear a life jacket: Under 13
Boater education card: Required (see who)
Jet ski / PWC minimum age: 13 to operate alone with boater education …
Emergency: 911 · VHF Channel 16

Emergency on the water in Texas

911

Life in danger, on any water: call 911 from a cell phone.

VHF 16

Channel 16 is the primary VHF-FM marine radio calling and distress channel. Carry a VHF radio on the coast and the Great Lakes.

Emergency and non-emergency contacts in Texas

911 for emergencies; VHF channel 16 on the Gulf and bays. Texas Game Wardens Operation Game Thief 1-800-792-GAME (4263), 24/7, to report boating violations.

Coast Guard sectors covering Texas

Each sector runs a 24-hour command center. Its line is useful for reporting an overdue boat or reaching the Coast Guard by phone, but in a distress use VHF Channel 16 or call 911 first.

Sector Houston-Galveston	(206) 815-7738 24-hour Coast Guard sector line · checked Oct 2026 · atlanticarea.uscg.mil
Sector Corpus Christi	(866) 302-0587 24-hour Coast Guard sector line · checked Oct 2026 · atlanticarea.uscg.mil

Toll-free 8xx numbers may not connect from a foreign SIM or a satellite phone.

How to call the Coast Guard: VHF 16 or 911 · Coast Guard phone numbers by region

Texas life jacket laws (and kids)

Children

Children under 13 must wear a USCG-approved life jacket while underway on any vessel under 26 ft, including canoes, kayaks and other paddlecraft.

Source: assets.kalkomey.com

The federal baseline

Federal default: children under 13 must wear a USCG-approved life jacket on a recreational vessel that is underway, unless they’re below decks or in an enclosed cabin. Where a state has its own child-wear rule, the state rule applies on its waters (33 CFR 175.15(c), 175.25). Coast Guard required safety equipment →

Boater education card (the “Texas boating license”)

Most states don’t issue a boating license. What they require is a boater education card: proof you passed an approved boating safety course.

Who needs it

Anyone born on or after September 1, 1993 operating a PWC, a motorboat over 15 hp, or a windblown vessel over 14 ft; under 13 may operate these only with a supervisor 18+ aboard. Carry photo ID with the card.

The card

Texas Boater Education Certificate (TPWD)

Source: tpwd.texas.gov

Texas jet ski (PWC) laws

Minimum age

13 to operate alone with boater education; under 13 only with a qualified supervisor 18+ aboard

Rules on the water

Everyone aboard or towed wears a USCG-approved life jacket; attach the cut-off lanyard; no operation between sunset and sunrise; stay over 50 ft from other boats, people, platforms and shoreline unless at headway speed; no last-second swerving, reckless wake-jumping or chasing wildlife; do not exceed rated capacity.

Source: assets.kalkomey.com

Kayak, canoe, paddle board and kite rules

All vessels including canoes, kayaks and other paddlecraft must carry a wearable life jacket per person, and children under 13 must wear one on paddlecraft. No Texas-specific SUP/kiteboarding rule found.

Boat registration in Texas

All vessels need a Texas Certificate of Number and decals except non-motorized sailboats under 14 ft and non-motorized canoes, kayaks, rowboats and rafts; out-of-state boats may stay 90 consecutive days.

Popular boating waters in Texas

Lake Travis
Lake Texoma
Galveston Bay
Lake Conroe
Sam Rayburn Reservoir
Toledo Bend Reservoir
Laguna Madre
Corpus Christi Bay

Some of the waters Texas boaters know best. This is our list, not an official one, and it isn’t complete.

WHAT VESSELSOS DOES HERE

VesselSOS on Texas waters

Life in danger? One tap dials 911. The screen shows your GPS position and a word-for-word script: say “Boat emergency, I’m on the water” and the name of the lake, river or bay you’re on.
On the coast and the Great Lakes it also shows which Coast Guard sector covers your position, with that sector’s 24-hour line as a second Call button, and a VHF Channel 16 MAYDAY script filled with your boat’s details for you to read on your own radio.
A live link for family ashore (Plus, free during the beta): your position, speed, course and phone battery in any browser, no app needed on their end. You send it by text yourself.
Not an emergency? The tow screen has Call buttons for the TowBoatUS and Sea Tow 24-hour dispatch lines, or your own member number.

What it doesn’t do: it doesn’t call the Coast Guard for you and isn’t connected to 911 or any rescue system. Nobody is alerted automatically if you’re late. The return-time check only asks “Are you OK?” on your own phone. It doesn’t replace a VHF radio, a PLB or EPIRB, or the life jackets the law requires.

iPhone only, in invite-only TestFlight beta. Not in the App Store yet, no Android. US support (911 routing, American English) is in beta version 1.4 and later.

Quick answers

What is the Texas life jacket law for kids?

Children under 13 must wear a USCG-approved life jacket while underway on any vessel under 26 ft, including canoes, kayaks and other paddlecraft.

Do you need a boating license in Texas?

How old do you have to be to drive a jet ski in Texas?

13 to operate alone with boater education; under 13 only with a qualified supervisor 18+ aboard.

Do you have to register a boat in Texas?

Sources

State boating agency: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD)

CHECKED OCT 2026

Checked October 2026. Laws change; confirm with TPWD before you go.

This page summarizes the law for planning; it isn’t legal advice. Where this page and the official text differ, the official text wins. Spotted an error? Email support@vesselsos.com.