Federal waterway; application for a driver's license

If you want to steer a vehicle on a federal waterway as a ship or boat operator, you need a driver's license for the respective class.

Description

If you want to drive a vehicle on federal inland waterways, you generally need a driver's license.

Driving permit on federal waterways

You may only drive a vehicle on federal waterways if you are the holder of a corresponding permit. The permits are divided into different patent classes:

  • Schifferpatent A: for driving all vehicles on inland waterways and maritime waterways up to the limit of maritime navigation
  • Boatmasters' certificate B: for driving all vessels on inland waterways
  • Boatmaster's certificate C1: for driving vessels with a length of less than 35 meters on inland waterways and maritime waterways up to the limit of navigation, except for
    • licensed passenger vessels for the carriage of more than 12 passengers
    • authorized passenger boats for the transport of more than 12 passengers
    • pusher and tug boats with more than 73.6 kW (100 hp) of propulsion power
  • Boatmaster's certificate C2: to navigate vessels with a length of less than 35 meters on inland waterways, except for
    • licensed passenger vessels for the transport of more than 12 passengers
    • licensed passenger boats for the transport of more than 12 passengers
    • pusher and tug boats with more than 73.6 kW (100 hp) propulsion power
  • Fireboat certificate D1: for driving fireboats and civil protection and disaster control vehicles on inland waterways and maritime waterways up to the limit of maritime navigation
  • Fireboat certificate D2: for driving fireboats and civil protection and disaster control vehicles on inland waterways.
  • Sport boat certificate (patent class E): for driving sport boats with a length of not more than 25 meters on inland waterways
  • Ferry driver's license (patent class F): for driving ferries for a specific ferry station

Certain federal and state official vehicles do not require an official vehicle driving permit issued by the GDWS. These include:

  • Service vehicles of the Federal Armed Forces, the Federal Customs Administration, the Federal Police, the Riot Police and the Water Police of the federal states with a length of less than 25 meters.
  • Service vehicles of the civil defense and disaster control, the federal waterways and navigation administration, the state navigation administration and the fire department with a length of less than 20 meters.

Rhine patents

Special regulations apply on the Rhine. You may only drive a vehicle there if you are the holder of a Rhine patent or the holder of a boatmaster's certificate recognized as equivalent by the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine for the respective type and size of vehicle and for the route to be navigated.

To be distinguished are:

  • Large patent: for driving all vehicles on inland waterways and maritime waterways up to the limit of maritime navigation
  • Small patent: for driving a vehicle with a length of less than 35 meters,
    • which is intended for the carriage of not more than 12 passengers
    • provided that it:
      • is not a tug or push boat, or
      • does not move coupled vehicles
  • Sport patent: for driving a sport craft with a length of less than 25 meters
  • Authority patent: for driving authority vehicles and fire-fighting boats.

Special regulations apply to small craft up to 15 meters in length: these may be driven on the Rhine with a permit issued in accordance with national regulations. In Germany, for example, this is the sport boat license.

To obtain a skipper's certificate or Rhine patent, you must pass an examination at the General Directorate for Waterways and Shipping (GDWS).

Further certificates and patents

For vessels over 15 meters in length, a special route knowledge is additionally required on certain inland waterways and the Rhine. You can also obtain proof of special route knowledge by taking an examination at the GDWS.

A patent can also be issued as a Danube captain's patent. You are then allowed to drive vehicles on the Danube in international traffic, i.e. also outside the scope of the Binnenschifferpatentverordnung.

Prerequisites

  • Physical and mental fitness to drive a vehicle
  • Reliability (among other things, no previous convictions for traffic offenses)
  • Passing the relevant test
  • Depending on the type of certificate applied for, a certain minimum age:
    • 21 years for the large and small Rhine patent, the authority patent as well as the inland navigation patent A, B, C, D and F
    • 18 years for the sport patent and the inland navigation patent E
  • From the age of 50, you must regularly submit a current medical certificate to prove your fitness again. The proof is necessary
    • when you reach the age of 50, 55, 60 and 65, and
    • annually from the age of 65

Procedure

You must apply for the boatmaster's certificate or patent in writing to the General Directorate of Waterways and Shipping (GDWS):

  • Download the application form from the Electronic Waterways Information Service (ELWIS). Fill it out completely and print it out.
  • Attach the necessary supporting documents. Most importantly, have a physician licensed for this purpose examine you and provide proof of medical fitness.
  • Submit the application documents to the General Directorate of Waterways and Shipping.
  • Apply to the authority responsible for you for a certificate of good conduct for submission to an authority. Have the certificate of good conduct sent to the General Directorate of Waterways and Shipping.
  • If you meet all the requirements for the respective certificate of good conduct, the General Directorate for Waterways and Shipping will admit you to the examination and arrange a suitable examination date with you.
  • Take the exam. If you have passed the examination, you will receive a provisional boatmaster's certificate directly on site, with which you can drive a vehicle for three months. Within these three months, your personal patent card will be issued by the Bundesdruckerei and sent to you by mail.
  • If you have not passed the exam, you can retake the exam after a certain blocking period. As a rule, the examination board will impose a blocking period of three to six months on you. You will have to pay the examination fee again for the repeat examination. Those parts of the exam that you passed at the first attempt will generally remain recognized, so you will only be retested on the parts that you failed.

Deadlines

Your application and all documents should be submitted to the appropriate field office no later than four weeks before the desired examination date. However, due to the high number of applicants, you will usually have to expect significantly longer waiting times until the examination.

Processing time

Depending on the volume of applications and the location of the exam.
Exams are usually held every two to three months.

Required documents

  • Required Documents

    • medical certificate confirming your physical and mental fitness for navigation on the Rhine or inland waterways (not older than three months)
    • Copy of your identity card or passport
    • certificate of good conduct for submission to an authority (document type "O")
    • Current passport photograph
    • Presentation of the skipper's service book

Forms

  • Form, Bavaria-wide: Antrag auf Zulassung zur Prüfung für ein Schiffsführerzeugnis
    Please note

    This form has to be signed and sent to the responsible authority. You can sign the form manually and send it by email/fax or sign the form electronically with your qualified electronic signature an send it by (secure) email. If the responsible authority has set up a De-Mail account, you can also send the form by De-Mail using an sender-confirmed message.

Fees

  • Depending on the scope of the exam, different fees apply:

    • Admission to the exam: EUR 147 or EUR 158
    • Examination fee: between EUR 390 and EUR 585 (the exact fee depends on whether, for example, a route knowledge test is carried out at the same time or a practical test is included)

Status:25.07.2023

Responsible for editing:Bundesministerium für Digitales und Verkehr

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