U.S. Virgin Islands boating laws · checked Oct 2026

U.S. Virgin Islands boating laws: life jackets, boater education and jet skis

What U.S. Virgin Islands 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 17
Boater education card: Required (see who)
Jet ski / PWC minimum age: 18 to operate …
Emergency: 911 · VHF Channel 16

Emergency on the water in U.S. Virgin Islands

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 U.S. Virgin Islands

911 for emergencies. U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Juan 24-hour operations center: 833-453-1267; VHF Channel 16. DPNR Division of Environmental Enforcement: St. Thomas/St. John (340) 774-3320, St. Croix (340) 773-1082 (registration and enforcement, not emergencies).

Coast Guard sectors covering U.S. Virgin Islands

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 San Juan	(833) 453-1267 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

U.S. Virgin Islands life jacket laws (and kids)

Children

No one may operate a recreational vessel with any child under 17 aboard unless each child wears an appropriate Type I or Type II life jacket (25 V.I.C. § 328, added 2006).

Source: law.justia.com

Everyone else, towing and seasonal rules

Federal carriage rules apply: one USCG-approved life jacket per person aboard. No cold-water or seasonal rule.

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 “U.S. Virgin Islands 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 18 or younger operating a motorboat must carry photo ID and a DPNR boater safety identification card showing completion of a DPNR-approved, NASBLA-standard course, a course-equivalency exam, or a temporary certificate exam (25 V.I.C. § 322). No education requirement was found for adults.

The card

Boater Safety Identification Card (DPNR); lifetime for course/equivalency, 60 days for temporary certificate

Source: law.justia.com

U.S. Virgin Islands jet ski (PWC) laws

Minimum age

18 to operate; 14-17 only with a DPNR-approved safe boating course and written parental approval and liability acknowledgment; under 14 may not operate (may ride as a passenger with parental consent)

Rules on the water

Everyone riding or being towed must wear a USCG-approved Type I, II, III or V life jacket; attach the engine cut-off lanyard. No operation from 1/2 hour after sunset to 1/2 hour before sunrise unless the craft has USCG-approved running lights. Outside harbors, PWC and thrill craft must operate in 'operations areas': St. Thomas/St. John at least 200 ft seaward of any reef and never closer than 500 ft to shore (incl. cays); St. Croix 200 ft from reefs and at least 400 ft from shore; and 500 ft from designated swim, snorkel, dive, surf and windsurf areas. Go straight in and out by the most direct route. No PWC in designated swim areas; slow/no-wake and no interference with swimmers in the dozens of listed 'restricted' bays and harbors (e.g. Charlotte Amalie/St. Thomas Harbor, Magens Bay, Red Hook, Cruz Bay, Coral Bay, Christiansted Harbor). Closed to motorboats: Mangrove Lagoon/Jersey Bay (STT), Altona Lagoon, Great Pond and West End Salt Pond (STX). No running over seagrass or coral in less than 4 ft of water, no beaching, no 'doughnuts' outside operations areas, no wake jumping within 100 ft, max 6 mph within 100 ft of another PWC, idle within 10 ft of anchored boats, no loud or modified exhaust. Only PWC designed for towing may pull a skier, with a rear-facing passenger. Anyone renting out motorized craft or water sports gear needs a DPNR operator permit.

Source: dlsilverman.com

Kayak, canoe, paddle board and kite rules

Kayaks and paddleboards must be registered with DPNR. Windsurfing and surfing areas are protected: on St. Croix several bays (e.g. Cane Bay/La Vallee, Grapetree Bay, Jack Bay, Shoy Bay, Sprat Hole, Salt River entrance) are designated non-motorized surf/windsurf areas where motorboats are prohibited while surfers or windsurfers are present, and PWC must stay 500 ft from designated sailboarding areas. Towed boards of any kind count as 'thrill craft'. No kiteboarding-specific rule was found.

Boat registration in U.S. Virgin Islands

All vessels must be registered with DPNR and display a number decal, including sailboats, Hobie Cats, dinghies, tenders, jet skis, kayaks and paddleboards (USCG-documented vessels are not issued a registration number). Registration renews every year by June 30; first-time registration needs a notarized bill of sale or affidavit of ownership; operating unregistered can bring a $50 penalty.

Popular boating waters in U.S. Virgin Islands

Charlotte Amalie / St. Thomas Harbor
Red Hook and Pillsbury Sound (St. Thomas-St. John)
Cruz Bay and Coral Bay (St. John)
Magens Bay (St. Thomas)
Christiansted Harbor and Buck Island (St. Croix)
Salt River Bay (St. Croix)
Frederiksted (St. Croix)

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

WHAT VESSELSOS DOES HERE

VesselSOS on U.S. Virgin Islands 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 U.S. Virgin Islands life jacket law for kids?