Boat Bill of Sale — Free Fillable Form.
A one-page boat bill of sale you can type into or print, with separate lines for the boat, the motor and the trailer. Download it free, then see what your state and the Coast Guard ask for.
Download the Free Boat Bill of Sale
One page, fillable fields, a price line each for boat, motor and trailer, and a notary block for the states that need one.
Trailer included? Check the trailer's VIN first
No sign-up · The form never leaves your device
Quick Answer
- What is a boat bill of sale?
- A signed record of a boat changing hands: seller, buyer, the boat by its hull identification number (HIN), the motor and trailer if they go with it, the price and the date. Texas requires one: a signed bill of sale or invoice for every transfer of ownership.
- Can it be handwritten?
- In Texas, yes. Parks and Wildlife accepts a handwritten receipt that shows the date, the price without the trailer, the boat or motor's make, serial number and model year, the buyer's name and the seller's signature. A typed form just makes the details harder to miss.
- What if the boat is documented with the Coast Guard?
- Then the Coast Guard records the transfer. It goes on a bill of sale on form CG-1340 or CG-1356, signed by every seller, with a declaration of citizenship from the new owner. A state bill of sale does not replace it.
Selling or buying a boat, in five steps
The bill of sale sits in the middle. The checks before it protect the buyer; the paperwork after it gets the boat titled and the tax paid.
- 1Find the HINFederal rules put the primary HIN on the starboard side of the transom, within two inches of the top, with a duplicate hidden inside the boat.
- 2Fill in the bill of saleBoat, motor and trailer, each with its own identifier and its own price, plus the date and both parties.
- 3Check for documentationIf the boat is documented with the Coast Guard, the transfer also goes on form CG-1340.
- 4Sign and hand overBoth sign. The seller hands over the title or registration, the bill of sale and the trailer's paperwork.
- 5The buyer titles and pays taxIn Texas, tax is 6.25% of the price, due within 45 working days of the sale.
What a Boat Bill of Sale Is For
Boats are titled and registered by the state, and often not by the agency that handles cars. In Texas it is Parks and Wildlife; in California it is the DMV. Texas is plain about the paperwork: a signed bill of sale or invoice is required for every transfer of ownership.
The price on it matters. Texas collects tax of 6.25% of the sales price on boats up to 115 feet and on outboard motors, due within 45 working days of the sale, with penalties and interest after that. The bill of sale is where that price is written down, which is why the trailer's price has to be kept apart from the boat and motor.
A bill of sale protects the seller too. It is a dated record of when the boat stopped being theirs.
What Texas accepts
Its own form PWD 143/144; a handwritten receipt with the date, price without the trailer, make, serial number and model year, the buyer's name and the seller's signature; or the back of the brown Texas title, filled in and signed.
Texas and California, side by side
Two large boating states, read from their own agencies. Other states run boats through a wildlife, natural resources or motor vehicle agency, so check which one titles boats where you live.
- A signed bill of sale or invoice is required for every transfer
- Tax is 6.25% of the sales price, due within 45 working days
- The trailer's price is kept apart; the trailer goes to the county tax office
- New residents bringing a boat in pay a $15.00 New Resident Tax
- A bill of sale completed by the seller is accepted as proof of ownership
- It can stand in for the seller's signature on line 1 of the title
- Agents compare the HIN with the Certificate of Ownership
- With no proof of ownership, a bond may be required for a boat worth $2,000 or more
What to Put on a Boat Bill of Sale
A boat sale is often three sales in one: hull, motor and trailer. Our free form gives each its own identifier and its own price.
Seller and buyer
Full names, addresses and phone numbers for both sides, exactly as they will appear on the title application.
The boat and its HIN
Year, make, model and type, the 12-character HIN copied from the hull, length and hull material.
Title or documentation
The state title or registration number, or the Coast Guard official number if the boat is documented.
The motor
Make, serial number, horsepower, year and engine hours. Texas describes an outboard by make, serial number and model year.
The trailer
Its VIN, make and plate. A trailer is registered on its own, so it needs its own identity on the paper.
Prices, date and terms
A price each for boat, motor and trailer, the total, the date and what was included. Sold as is, with any lien listed.
Get the Form, Then Check the Boat
Download the free bill of sale and decode the HIN to confirm the builder and model year. If a trailer comes with it, run the trailer's VIN too.
Where to Find the HIN, and How to Read It
Federal rules require every boat a manufacturer builds or imports to carry two identical 12-character hull identification numbers, one where you can see it and one hidden. Copy the visible one onto the bill of sale and check it against the title; California's DMV agents are told to compare the two.
Boats with a transom
The starboard outboard side of the transom, within two inches of the top of the transom, gunwale or hull/deck joint, whichever is lowest.
Boats without one
The starboard side of the hull, aft, within one foot of the stern and within two inches of the top of the hull side.
Pontoons and catamarans
With readily replaceable hulls, the aft crossbeam, within one foot of the starboard hull attachment.
The hidden duplicate
A second, identical HIN in an unexposed place inside the boat or beneath a fitting. It should match the first.
Reading the 12 characters
- 1–3
- Manufacturer identification code
- 4–8
- Serial number (no I, O or Q)
- 9
- Month, as a letter: A is January
- 10
- Last digit of the year built or certified
- 11–12
- Model year, last two digits
A boat someone built for their own use gets its HIN from the state where it is mainly operated. Our free HIN decoder reads the builder code and model year for you.
Boat, Motor and Trailer: Three Items, One Sale
The trailer is a road vehicle with its own VIN, and it is registered separately from the boat. In Texas it goes through the county tax office while the boat and motor go to Parks and Wildlife, so the trailer's price must be separated from the price of the boat and motor.
California handles the same problem from the other side. When a boat and trailer are sold together with no separate prices, its DMV collects $1 of use tax on the trailer and the rest on the boat. Writing a real price for each is the simpler route.
The motor gets its own line because Texas titles and taxes outboard motors too, described by make, serial number and model year. If the trailer is sold on its own later, our trailer bill of sale covers it.
Engine hours, not an odometer
Federal odometer rules cover vehicles made primarily for public roads (49 U.S.C. 32101), so a boat has no odometer statement. Its engine hours tell a buyer more, and our form has a box for them.
Coast Guard Documented Vessels
Some boats are documented with the U.S. Coast Guard rather than titled by a state. California's DMV gives the usual examples: a commercial vessel of five net tons or more, or a yacht documented at its owner's request. For those, the Coast Guard records the change of ownership.
Federal rules say the transfer must be evidenced by a bill of sale on form CG-1340 or CG-1356. It has to be signed by or on behalf of every seller, and it has to state the names and addresses of seller and buyer and the interest in the vessel each one holds. The new owner also files a declaration of citizenship.
Our form can still sit alongside it as your own record of the price, the date and what came with the boat. It does not replace the Coast Guard's form.
How to tell
Ask the seller for the Certificate of Documentation and its official number. Our form has a box for that number next to the state title number.
Does a Boat Bill of Sale Need to Be Notarized?
Usually not. No federal rule requires it for a state-titled boat, and Texas lists a handwritten receipt signed by the seller among the documents it accepts.
Some states do require it. West Virginia's official form DMV-7-TR, a bill of sale for a motor vehicle, trailer or boat, carries “NOTARY IS REQUIRED” in its heading. Where your state publishes its own form, use it for the state filing and keep ours as your signed record.
Our form includes a notary block for the states that ask for one. Everywhere else, leave it blank.
A notary is not a check
A notary confirms who signed, not what was sold. The HIN, the title and the trailer's records are what tell you whether the boat is what the seller says.
Check the Boat Before You Sign
A bill of sale records what both sides say. The boat and its paperwork are how you check it.
Match the HIN to the title
The HIN on the transom, the hidden duplicate and the title should all agree, character for character.
Decode the HIN
The first three characters name the builder and the last two the model year. Check both against the listing.
Run the trailer's VIN
The trailer is a road vehicle. A VIN check shows the title brand and lien records on file for it.
Related Tools and Guides
HIN and trailer lookups, and the bill of sale rules for everything else.
Where These Facts Come From
State rules come from each state's own agency, and the HIN and documentation rules from federal regulation.
Our form is a general template, not legal advice. Boat title, registration, tax and notary rules differ by state and change; check with your state's boating agency before you file.
Always check the VIN before you buy
The free preview shows title brands, theft status and open recalls in seconds, and flags whether accident and odometer records exist. The full history is $14.99 — one-time, no subscription.
Boat Bill of Sale — Frequently Asked Questions
HINs, trailers, the Coast Guard and what each state accepts.
What is a boat bill of sale?+
It is a signed record of a boat changing hands: the seller, the buyer, the boat's hull identification number (HIN), the motor and trailer if they are included, the price and the date. Texas requires a signed bill of sale or invoice for every transfer of ownership, and California accepts a bill of sale completed by the seller as proof of vessel ownership.
Can I handwrite a bill of sale for a boat?+
In Texas, yes. Parks and Wildlife accepts a handwritten receipt or sales invoice that shows the date of sale, the price not including the trailer, a description of the boat or outboard motor with its make, serial number and model year, the purchaser's name and the seller's signature. It also accepts its form PWD 143/144, or the back of the brown Texas title filled in.
Do I need a bill of sale when buying a boat?+
In Texas, always: it is required for every transfer, and the price on it is what the 6.25% tax is figured from, due within 45 working days. In California it is one of the accepted proofs of ownership, and the DMV accepts a bill of sale in place of the seller's signature on line 1 of the title. Elsewhere, check your state's boating agency; a bill of sale is still your record of the price and date.
Where is the HIN on a boat?+
Federal rules put the primary HIN on the starboard outboard side of the transom, within two inches of the top. A boat without a transom carries it on the starboard side of the hull near the stern, and a pontoon or catamaran with replaceable hulls on the aft crossbeam. A duplicate HIN sits in a hidden spot inside the boat. Both should match the title.
How do I sell a boat that is documented with the Coast Guard?+
The transfer goes on a bill of sale the Coast Guard can record, on form CG-1340 or CG-1356. It must be signed by every seller and state the names, addresses and ownership interest of seller and buyer, and the new owner adds a declaration of citizenship. You can still use our form as your own record of the price and what was included.
Should the trailer be on the same bill of sale?+
It can be, but give it its own price. Texas requires the trailer's price to be separate from the boat and motor, because the trailer is registered through the county tax office rather than Parks and Wildlife. California's DMV puts $1 of use tax on the trailer and the rest on the boat when a combination sale has no separate prices.
Does a boat bill of sale need to be notarized?+
No federal rule requires it for a state-titled boat, and Texas lists a handwritten receipt with the seller's signature among its accepted forms. Some states do: West Virginia's official bill of sale for a motor vehicle, trailer or boat says a notary is required. Our free form includes a notary block for those cases.
Can I use this form for a jet ski?+
Yes. The form's type field covers a personal watercraft, and a jet ski carries a HIN like other recreational boats. List the trailer separately if it is part of the sale.
Download Your Boat Bill of Sale
One page, ready to type into or print. Buying the boat with its trailer? Run the trailer's VIN below first.
Download the PDF (free)CarCheckerVIN is an independent vehicle-history service and is not affiliated with any state agency or the U.S. Coast Guard. The boat bill of sale is a general template provided free for convenience and is not legal advice. Our VIN reports cover road vehicles, including boat trailers, not boat hulls.
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