Missouri Boat Titles, Outboard Motors and Documented Vessel Registration

Identify every unit in the purchase

Start with the hull identification number, the motor's identification and any trailer vehicle identification number. The Missouri watercraft requirements cover motorized boats and sailboats longer than 12 feet, with specified exceptions. A craft propelled only by paddles or oars is treated differently from the same hull equipped with a motor. Trolling motors and electric outboard motors are excluded from the separate outboard titling requirement described by Revenue. Do not assume that a single advertised package price means one state title covers the entire purchase. Record the separate units and prices before the seller completes the ownership papers.

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Use the boat application, not the car application

Form 93 is the application for a boat, vessel or outboard motor. Select the unit type and requested transaction, and supply its identifying characteristics, ownership information and any lien. An outboard's manufacturing and model-year fields have specific instructions, including how to handle manufacturing during the second half of a year when the manufacturer's statement does not give a model or program year. The form also asks where the unit is housed. Check that physical location separately from a mailing address, particularly where the owner lives outside Missouri but keeps the boat at a Missouri marina.

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Build a complete ownership chain

The application must be supported by the ownership evidence accepted for the particular watercraft history, such as an assigned title, manufacturer's statement or other listed documentation. Use the state's assignment instructions where a title is involved. A bill of sale is useful for recording the hull, motor, trailer and amounts, but should not be used to conceal a missing required title. Supply a lien release when applicable. If a document was surrendered to another titling authority, explain that circumstance through the authorized process rather than guessing at a substitute. Resolve ownership uncertainty before paying for unrelated operating credentials.

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Observe the marine title deadline

For an ordinary newly purchased boat, vessel or eligible outboard, the Missouri title deadline is 60 days. The marine late-title penalty begins at $10 on day 61 and increases by $10 for additional 30-day periods, up to $30. These figures were verified October 21, 2026 against the watercraft instructions and Form 93. This is not the same penalty schedule used for an ordinary automobile. An out-of-state resident keeping a unit in Missouri beyond the stated consecutive-day period also has a Missouri application obligation. Track when the boat entered the state and how long it will remain there.

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Calculate hull, motor and registration charges separately

The marine fee table lists boat registration by length: $25 below 16 feet, $55 from 16 feet to under 26, $100 from 26 feet to under 40, and $150 at 40 feet or longer. A $9 processing charge accompanies that registration. A boat title is $7.50 plus $9 processing, while an eligible outboard title is $5 plus $9 and its registration is $2 plus $9. These October 21, 2026 figures should be itemized rather than combined into an unexplained package estimate. Applicable tax, special transactions and separate trailer registration can add other amounts to the purchase's total cost.

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Match sales-tax and property-tax evidence

The state tax calculator estimates the acquisition tax from the correct address and net taxable price, but excludes other title charges and penalties. Missouri also requires appropriate personal-property tax evidence for the boat registration transaction. The State Tax Commission's guidance and local tax-office directory identify the assessor and collector roles. Where the boat is missing from a tax receipt that should show it, obtain the corrected evidence described by Revenue instead of writing it onto the receipt yourself. Nonresident owners must distinguish their residence from the Missouri location where the vessel is housed for assessment purposes.

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A temporary marine permit has limited use

The special-permit application includes temporary watercraft and outboard permits. Ordinary marine permits are nonrenewable, last up to 30 days and must end before the sixtieth day after purchase under Revenue's instructions. They cease to be available or valid once the title-and-registration application has been made. The current individual charges are $14 for a temporary watercraft permit and $11 for an outboard permit, including processing. Carry the issued permit aboard during operation. A temporary permit for a documented vessel has a different maximum period, so do not transfer the ordinary watercraft permit's conditions to that category.

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Coast Guard documentation does not replace Missouri registration

A federally documented vessel is not issued an ordinary Missouri boat title, but it still requires the applicable state registration. Form 4398 calls for the documentation certificate, ownership evidence, tax proof and applicable registration and in-lieu tax charges. A Missouri resident has 30 days after acquiring a documented vessel to apply, unlike the 60-day ordinary boat title deadline. Submit this category through the Motor Vehicle Bureau's central office as directed. The application produces the documented-vessel registration and decals, not an ordinary MO hull number. Separately titled outboards attached to the vessel still need their own applicable treatment.

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Keep renewal and replacement transactions distinct

Boat and documented-vessel registrations run for three years and expire June 30 in the year on the decal; eligible outboard registration decals do not require periodic renewal. Revenue identifies Form 2686 for specified watercraft registration and replacement transactions when the usual notice or credential is unavailable. A lost pocket card or decal calls for the replacement evidence and notarization described by the department, not a new ownership transfer. Check the marine licensing contact information when the record does not match the craft. Retain the registration receipt separately from the equipment so theft or damage does not remove every identifying record. When only a motor is replaced, review that motor's title and decal requirements instead of submitting a hull ownership change that never occurred. The unchanged boat and newly purchased motor remain independently identifiable units.

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Register the road trailer through the vehicle system

A boat trailer uses the motor-vehicle and trailer title application and the vehicle titling process, not the hull's Form 93. Trailer registration options and fees appear in the vehicle schedule, and permanent trailer registration has its own transfer limitation. Verify the trailer serial number against its papers before towing it away. A valid boat decal does not make an unregistered trailer lawful on the road. Conversely, a legally registered trailer does not authorize launching an unregistered boat. Keep trailer, hull and motor receipts organized by identification number, particularly after trading only one part of the package.

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Prepare the operator as well as the craft

The Water Patrol education page covers approved instruction and boating safety cards, while section 306.127 contains a phased expansion. Its 2026 text distinguishes people born after January 1, 1984 and before January 1, 2006 operating on lakes from the January 1, 2027 all-waters provision for those born on or after January 1, 2006. Use the current cohort and effective date, not an old blanket summary. Review the Patrol's equipment guidance before departure and arrange the required life jackets and other equipment. A title, decal or temporary permit establishes neither operator training nor the vessel's complete safety readiness.

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Frequently asked questions

Does Missouri issue one combined title for a boat, outboard and trailer sold together?
Those can be separate titled or registered units, and the hull or motor application is different from the road trailer application.

What is Missouri's ordinary deadline for titling a newly purchased boat or eligible outboard?
Revenue gives 60 days for that marine title transaction, with a different deadline for a resident acquiring a federally documented vessel.

Must a Coast Guard-documented vessel also receive an ordinary Missouri boat title?
It follows Missouri's documented-vessel registration procedure rather than receiving the ordinary state boat title.

Is an outboard motor's Missouri registration decal renewed every three years like the hull decal?
Revenue says the outboard decal does not require renewal, while the boat or documented-vessel registration follows the three-year cycle.

Can a Missouri boat owner repeatedly buy temporary permits instead of completing registration?
The marine temporary permits are nonrenewable and carry the specific purchase-date and application limits stated by the department.

Does paying Missouri marine registration charges prove that the operator completed boating education?
Operator education and the craft's title or registration are separate requirements administered through different parts of state government.

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More Missouri DMV guides

The other Missouri DMV guides, 52 of them:

The records side of the same subject, state by state on SearchSystems: Missouri property records.