Victorian – Marine (Boat) & Personal Water Craft Licence Course

Types of Victorian Licences

We are able to conduct the course and exam for the following types of Marine Licences:

Marine (Boat) Licence – for people ages over 16 years.

Restricted Marine (Boat) Licence – for people ages between 12 and 16 years.

PWC – enables you to drive a PWC (jet ski).

What To Expect At Our Courses

The Boating Safety Course (BSC), revision and licence test will take between 4 and 5 hours. Once we have completed the course and revision we will conduct the exam.  The exam consists of 30 multiple choice questions.

Upon passing the exam, you will be given a Certificate of Attainment.  You will need to take that certificate, licence application form and appropriate licence fee to a Vic Roads Office where you will be given your boat licence without any further testing. The Certificate we give you is valid for 12 months.  We are not able to issue you with a Marine licence, you must take your Certificate of Attainment to your local Vic Roads Office and pay the appropriate licence fee to them.

Should you fail the exam on the first attempt, you will be given the opportunity of sitting another exam on the day at no additional cost. We will go over the exam you have just attempted, reinforcing anything that you may not have fully grasped during the BSC prior to you making a second attempt.

In the unlikely event that you fail the second exam attempt, you will be able to attend any of our other courses within 12 months from the date of the original course at no cost and make another attempt at passing the exam.

Proof Of Identification

In order for us to complete the necessary paperwork for Vic Roads on the day of the course, it is essential that you bring along approved Evidence Of Identity.   Without the correct Evidence Of Identity you will not be able to take part in the course.  For adults, typically just your driver’s licence is adequate EOI.  For those who don’t have a driver’s licence e.g. kids under 16, you will need to bring along your birth certificate or Australian Passport as well as something like a Medicare card or bank card with your name on it and finally, if your address is not noted on any of those aforementioned documents, you will need to supply something to provide us with proof of your address e.g. utilities bill such as power or phone bill.  The more you bring on the day of the course the better so we can combine all of the documents to gather enough EOI.

About the exam

The boat licence exam consists of 30 multiple choice questions. The exam concentrates heavily on safety.

You must correctly answer at least 26 out of 30 to pass the licence exam.  If you fail the first attempt you will be provided the opportunity to re-sit the exam on the day. No more than 2 attempts can be made on the one day.

The Personal Watercraft (PWC) exam consist of 15 multiple choice questions.  You must correctly answer at least 13 out of 15 to pass the PWC exam.  If you fail the first attempt at the exam you will be provided with the opportunity to re-sit the exam on the day.  no more than 2 attempts can be made on the one day.

Click here for the Victorian Marine (Boat) Licence Trial Exam.

Eligibility To Apply For A Victorian Marine Licence

Pursuant to regulation 30 of the Marine Safety Regulations 2012 (Vic) the following persons are not eligible to apply for a marine licence:

• A person who is disqualified from obtaining a marine licence, during the period of that disqualification
• A person who is the holder of a marine licence that has been suspended, during the period of that suspension
• A person who is disqualified from obtaining a licence or other authority to be the master of or to operate a recreational vessel under
  • (i) the law of another State or Territory, or
  • (ii) the law of another country,

in circumstances which, if they occurred in Victoria, would have resulted in the person being disqualified from obtaining a marine licence in Victoria

• A person who is the holder of a licence or other authority to operate a recreational vessel issued by another State or Territory that has been suspended, during the period of that suspension

• Persons aged under 16 years of age are not eligible to obtain a personal watercraft endorsement (as of 18 December, 2017)

Applicants should also note that they will be required to meet the health requirements for operating a car, motorcycle or boat and this may include further testing where appropriate.

Prospective Students From Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Backgrounds

For those people who might want to join in and enjoy the Australian culture and also get out on our spectacular waterways, we are able to offer some assistance to ease the pressure of obtaining your Victorian Marine Licence.

We do allow friends or family to assist you during the presentation of our Victorian Marine Licence – Boating Safety Course on the proviso that there is no disruption to the course or others attending the course.

For those who would like assistance with the Marine Licence exam, we can offer to assist you with reading and understanding the questions within the exam.  In such a case, the exam will take place after all other students have completed their exam and left the room.  The exam will only be conducted under my Supervision, no family or friends are allowed to assist in this instance.

Another option open to CALD students is to provide your own interpreter.  The interpreter must provide evidence to show us they are a bona fide and accredited interpreter. The interpreter can do this by way of providing a Certificate of Business Incorporation or their accreditation by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI).  Any and all costs to have an interpreter present are the responsibility of the student.

Should a CALD student wish to have a course run specifically for them or a group of people from the same CALD background along with an interpreter, we can arrange for this to happen at a minimum cost which is no less than the combined cost of ten (10) students.  Should there be more than 10 students, the normal costs per student will apply.  Any and all costs to have an interpreter present are the responsibility of the student/s.

We understand that the costs involved to CALD students may be restrictive.  As well as the options mentioned above, CALD students are advised to enquire with Vic Roads who can also arrange to have an interpreter present at a Vic Roads Service Centre.  There is more information about the Vic Roads Interpreter Service here. There is more information about the Victorian Interpreting & Translating Service here.