Washington boating laws · checked Oct 2026

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

What Washington 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: 14 to operate …
Emergency: 911 · VHF Channel 16

Emergency on the water in Washington

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 Washington

911 for emergencies on all waters; on Puget Sound, the coast and the Columbia River, also call the U.S. Coast Guard on VHF-FM Channel 16.

Coast Guard sectors covering Washington

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 Puget Sound	(833) 449-0369 24-hour Coast Guard sector line · checked Oct 2026 · pacificarea.uscg.mil
Sector Columbia River	(833) 769-8724 24-hour Coast Guard sector line · checked Oct 2026 · pacificarea.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

Washington life jacket laws (and kids)

Children

Children 12 and younger must wear a USCG-approved life jacket at all times when underway in a vessel under 19 ft, unless in a fully enclosed area.

Source: parks.wa.gov

Everyone else, towing and seasonal rules

Everyone being towed must wear a USCG-approved life jacket. Kayaks, canoes and stand-up paddleboards must carry a USCG-approved life jacket for each person. No statewide cold-water or seasonal wear 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 “Washington 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 aged 12+ born after 1 Jan 1955 operating a vessel with a motor of 15 hp or more. Exempt: born before 1 Jan 1955, commercial fishing license holders, USCG marine operator license holders.

The card

Washington State Boater Education Card

Source: parks.wa.gov

Washington jet ski (PWC) laws

Minimum age

14 to operate; PWC may not be rented to anyone under 16

Rules on the water

Everyone aboard must wear a life jacket; attach the engine cut-off lanyard to your person, clothing or life jacket; no operation during darkness; no reckless wake jumping close to other boats, weaving through traffic or last-second swerving.

Source: app.leg.wa.gov

Kayak, canoe, paddle board and kite rules

Stand-up paddleboards and kayaks must carry a USCG-approved life jacket per person (Parks runs an annual Paddle Safe Week). No statewide kiteboarding rule found.

Boat registration in Washington

Register with the Department of Licensing: motorized boats and sailboats. Exempt: human-powered canoes, kayaks and similar boats without motor or sail; vessels under 16 ft with no propulsion machinery; boats under 16 ft with 10 hp or less used only on non-federal waters; electric motors of 250 W or less (max 10 mph). Out-of-state registered boats are exempt for their first 60 days.

Popular boating waters in Washington

Puget Sound
San Juan Islands
Lake Washington and Lake Union
Hood Canal
Columbia River
Lake Chelan
Lake Roosevelt
Strait of Juan de Fuca

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

WHAT VESSELSOS DOES HERE

VesselSOS on Washington 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 Washington life jacket law for kids?

Children 12 and younger must wear a USCG-approved life jacket at all times when underway in a vessel under 19 ft, unless in a fully enclosed area.

Do you need a boating license in Washington?