A Virginia Motorboat Temporary Registration Authorization Number (TAN) is available to boat owners as a means to legally operate a motorboat for 30 days while awaiting the processing of their permanent Registration and Title by the Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR). To receive a Temporary Registration Authorization Number visit Go Outdoors Virginia and complete your registration/title application or renew your existing registration and submit appropriate fees.
Go Outdoors Virginia represents a new online portal, and one-stop shop, for DWR customers to purchase recreational fishing and hunting licenses, check game, register and renew vessels, sign up for quota hunts, and more. Beginning July 1, 2016, you will be required to create a Customer Account in order to obtain a Temporary Registration Authorization Number. You can manage your account online 24/7/365. Once a customer account has been completed you can then proceed to Watercraft Registration & Renewal to renew or start an application for your vessel.
If you register for a Temporary Registration Authorization Number, you are not required to display Virginia Registration Numbers on the motorboat during the 30 day period in which the Temporary Registration Authorization Number is valid. A copy of your Temporary Registration Authorization Number will be emailed to you when completing the Watercraft Registration & Renewal process. You must carry the Temporary Registration Certificate on board the motorboat when in use on state waters, and it must be available for inspection by any law enforcement officer of the Commonwealth.
May Be Purchased By
The Temporary Registration Authorization Number is available for purchase by motorboat owners who have:
- purchased a new motorboat,
- registered the motorboat in their name and allowed the registration to expire,
- acquired a previously Virginia-registered motorboat and the registration numbers are no longer active and cannot be operated with a dated bill of sale and registration of the previous owner, or
- moved to Virginia and do not have a valid boat registration from another state.
Proof of Ownership Required
One of the following proof of ownership is required to purchase the Temporary Registration Certificate:
- A Motorboat Registration
- Issued in the name of the owner, either in Virginia or out-of-state
- Issued in previous owner’s name, accompanied by a bill of sale (receipt) or “change in status form” signed by previous owner
- A Title to a Vessel
- Issued in the name of the owner, either in Virginia or out-of-state
- Issued in previous owner’s name and title signed over to purchaser
- A Manufacturer’s Certificate of Origin
- Issued by dealer for a new motorboat
- A Bill of Sale or a receipt signed by seller than includes a description (make, length, model year and hull identification number) of the motorboat
Additional information on the Temporary Registration Authorization Number may be obtained by calling the Boat Registration and Titling program of the Department of Wildlife Resources at (866) 721-6911, or by sending an e-mail requesting additional information to the Department at [email protected].