NSW bumps up boat and jet ski licence, rego, boat mooring fees

The Australian Boating Industry Association (BIA) – the peak body representing all boating brands including personal watercraft (PWC) manufacturers Sea-Doo, Yamaha and Kawasaki – has expressed “surprise and disappointment” about the astronomical fees about to be applied to jet ski licences in NSW from July 1, 2024.

As reported by Jet Ski website Watercraft Zone, NSW is about to introduce the most expensive licence fees worldwide for personal watercraft, more commonly known as jet skis.

The NSW jet ski licence fees were already the highest in the world – more than $1000 for a 10-year licence – and now they will almost double to close to $2000 over the same period.

Annual, three-year and five-year licences also hit new highs, the latter two also being the highest cost in the world for a jet ski licence.

A summary of fee increasess affecting all boater and jet ski owners is included below.

NSW jet ski riders also face the highest fines in the boating category – double the fines for general boating offences – and the craft can be seized for dangerous riding offences.

Jet ski registration fees are also more expensive than for boats in NSW. Boat licence fees will increase by $8 to $77 for a one-year duration and by $158 to $679 for a 10-year duration.

Boat and jet ski registration fees also have risen, and the cost of transferring the registration of a boat or jet ski will also increase.

Given the harsh penalties – and now the extraordinary licence fees – the NSW Government has been accused of trying to price jet ski users, including families, out of the sport.

The Boating Industry Association said it had requested a meeting with authorities in NSW over the licence fee hikes that were discreetly announced late on Friday afternoon.

It is common practice for governments and big businesses to announce bad news late on a Friday afternoon because there is a better chance of it going unnoticed by media, and therefore not receiving a backlash.

A media statement from BIA spokesman Neil Patchett said: “BIA has supported Transport for NSW over many years to promote safe boating and it is disappointing this announcement was made late on a Friday and without appropriate consultation with industry.  

“We are now seeking a meeting with the [Transport for NSW] department and the minister to hear the justification for increases well beyond CPI (inflation). 

“We will also be asking why now at a time of significant cost-of-living pressures on all Australians, because these government charges will be impacting a significant number of people.” 

The spokesman said all three jet ski brands – Sea-Doo, Yamaha, and Kawasaki – were “blindsided by the increases” and that they also supported calls to meet with NSW authorities.

The jet ski community in NSW was left dumbfounded by the news last weekend and took to social media to immediately accuse policymakers of punishing the wider community for the actions of a small percentage of rogue riders.

The NSW Government said the cost of enforcing jet ski rider behaviour – as well as the higher proportion of jet ski injuries – were the main reasons behind the fee increases.

However, as noted by Watercraft Zone, motorcyclists are over-represented in serious injury and fatal crashes on the road, and yet they are not penalised with extra-ordinary licence fees versus cars.

Young P-plate drivers are also over-represented in serious injury and fatal crashes on the road, and yet they are charged the same licence fees as full licence holders.

Data supplied by the Boating Industry Association estimates almost one in five households has a boat or some form of watercraft, and that more than 2 million people go boating each year. 

“The vast majority are families and everyday Australians," the BIA said.  

The BIA noted that there was a perception among the general community that boating is “reserved for the rich”. 

“However, the reality contradicts this notion,” says the BIA.

“Of the almost 238,600 registered vessels in NSW, approximately 220,000 are small family power craft (mostly runabouts) up to 6.0 metres in length. The number of registered power luxury motor cruisers in NSW is less than 4 per cent of the total.” 

The BIA says the marine industry has a national turnover of $9.64 billion and employs more than 32,000 people in a sector, however, it has yet to disclose how many people are directly employed in the personal watercraft sector.

According to Transport for NSW, the across-the-board fee increases were necessary as "NSW Maritime moves to invest more money into waterway safety measures".

In a media release sent to boatsales after requesting it, Transport for NSW maritime executive director Mark Hutchings said the community would directly benefit from the extra money collected via the increased fees.

“The money from these fees will be re-invested into vital activities carried out by the
NSW Maritime team,” Hutchings said.

“We understand that no one likes a fee increase, but this is a necessary change to
ensure NSW Maritime can continue conducting safety-critical activities on our
waterways.”

“We want to make our waterways safer and more enjoyable for all users, whether you’re
a boater, yachtie, jet ski rider or kayaker.”

In a further slug to NSW boaters, general mooring fees will also roll out their annual CPI-driven price rises from July 1, increasing by $419 at the higher end of the scale.