FL registration question
 

So for you guys that live in other cold weather states and decide to leave your boat in FL for the winter which would most likely be 6 months of the year or so, are you registering the boat in FL?
According to the rules I have read, if boat is in FL for more than 90 days, its has to be titled and registered there. How do you do this since you cannot have a boat registered or titled in 2 different states?

I would base it on your permanent residency state? Just an idea...

Yeah, I was on Lake Lanier for many years, thats what I did. I didnt change it over till after I lived here 5 years. Just make sure your insurance covers Florida. I think mine covered inland lakes and waterways and up to a mile offshore. The insurance will be A LOT cheaper. I still had my Atlanta address and used it as a primary for a long time. Especially if you still boat in both places. Was pulled over several times at random checks. They knew me and saw me all the time. I kept my Atlanta insurance and address information. It gets a lot harder if you have a Florda ID but then I claimed the 6 month rule. The real way to get around this is Coast Guard registration. I never did it but if you want the "right" answer, I believe that would be the correct way if plan on going back and forth a lot. Somebody else can comment on that...

Boat is registered here in GA now but we have a bunch of friends that live in FL and want to leave it down there for winters from like end of Sept through May without being hassled because its not actually registered down there.
It is also coast guard documented as well.
So when you registered yours down there, is their a use tax or something that has to be paid besides the basic $78 registration fee?

Everything is legal so long as you don't get caught

Don't know FL, but if its cheaper to Reg there, why not do it. In KY its where ever the boat is on Jan 1, so long as boat is not moved to evade taxes

I just take pictures of my boats in every state we visit. Then I can use one if needed at any point in the future. LOL

The boat really doesn't "live" anywhere but can be seen at given times everywhere from Montana to Key West.

The boat and trailer DO have Montana registrations though.

I’m very curious about the Montana registration. When I lived in the Carolinas, most all super high end cars on the road had Montana registration, and I have seen several in Florida with Montana plates as well.

*Disregard, I see no sales tax.

Can you just document it and rid yourself off these headaches.....

If its Coast Guard documented, isnt all of this a moot point?

FWIW your advelorum tax is more expensive but our insurance is more expensive. So do the math...

My boat is registered in NH, no sales tax, and I brought it to FL in November. I store it on the trailer and launch it with a rental truck when I go down. If I was to get caught, I would say I just arrived in FL. I was told you can buy a sticker from the state to extend the 90 days, but I don't know where you would get it or the cost.

from everything I have seen and read, even though it is documented, boats still legally have to be registered in the state its in majority of the time

Depends on the state, as example mine is documented but not registered in KY. Each year I'm required to submit a tangible property form so KY can tax the boat in November. Failure to do so KY will charge a penalty and the tax. Most others with boats at the marina documented in other states do not pay the tax because KY doesn't know there location. There have been a small few which KY found out they are in KY and was hit with the penalty and back taxes

Other states are different

But it has to be in a no excise tax part of Montana, like Flathead county. Some areas of Montana will charge a personal property tax each year. The other bonus with MT is the plates are lifetime plates after the car is 10 years old. So buy a classic car, no sales tax and after the initial tag fee there are no more tag fees as long as you own the car!

Some states like California crack down on the scheme but Florida has so many out of town visitors they really don't care. I have a neighbor with a Suburban and a Range Rover with MT tags.........likely saved 10K in sales tax alone.

Absolutely not true, Documentation does not remove the requirement of state registration. the Federal law says that doccumented vessels must not display state registration numbers, it does not say that we should not or are prevented from registering the boat, (read this as paying sales tax). the state of Florida requires us to register the boat, which means paying sales tax, and displaying the annual Florida sticker with the year date on it, then each year they require us to renew that registration and pay the annual fee. Florida could not care less about the FL registration numbers, all they care about is the sales tax paid and the annual registration fee. Now guess how I became somewhat an expert on this.
we would all like to believe Coast Guard Documentation negates Fl registration and most of all sales tax. nothing further from the accurate facts.

Hey dickhead, read my post. I asked if he COULD document it and avoid the headaches. I'm aware that some states require registration as well. I'm not up to date on every state law, I was just offering an option to explore......