Serviceportal–Baden-Württemberg

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Lake Constance - apply for a holiday or holidaymaker's permit

If you do not have a Lake Constance skipper's licence but have another skipper's licence from a country bordering Lake Constance, you can obtain a temporary holiday or holidaymaker's licence (temporary Lake Constance skipper's licence) to operate a boat on Lake Constance.
It is valid for 30 days at a time within a calendar year and is only issued once a year.

Note: As a rule, you require a Lake Constance skipper's licence to operate a vessel registered on Lake Constance, if

the ship or boat is powered by an engine and the engine power is over 4.4 kilowatts
the sailboat has more than twelve square metres of sail area.

The vessel must have a licence or registration for Lake Constance regardless of the temporary Lake Constance boat licence.

Responsible authority

for the issue of the holidaymaker or holiday patent:

the District Office of Lake Constance in Friedrichshafen
the District Office of Constance
the Lindau District Office

Landratsamt Bodenseekreis

Landratsamt Konstanz

Details

Prerequisite

The requirements for the holiday or holidaymaker's licence are:

You must hold a skipper's licence from one of the countries on the shores of Lake Constance:

Switzerland
Austria
Germany

German certificates of competency are recognised as follows:

as recognition for sailing:
- Sport boat licence inland under sail
- A licence issued by the DSV until 31 March 1989
- Sport coaster licence
- Sport sailing licence
- Sport offshore licence
as recognition for motor:
- Pleasure craft licence inland under engine
- Pleasure craft licence sea
- Motorboat licence A for inland navigation
as recognition for sailing and motor:
- Inland pleasure craft licence under sail and engine
- A combination of one recognised certificate of competence each for sailing and motor

Procedure

You must apply for a holiday or holidaymaker's permit from the relevant authority before you go on holiday. In your application, state the exact address and the period for temporary recognition.

Apply to the

Landratsamt Bodenseekreis in Friedrichshafen: informally
Constance District Office: by application form
Lindau District Office: by application form

Deadlines

in good time before the start of your holiday

Required documents

a clearly legible photocopy of your skipper's licence

Costs

Landratsamt Bodenseekreis: EUR 36.00
You can pay the fee either by invoice or directly in cash when you collect your licence from the Landratsamt.
Constance District Office: EUR 36.00
You will receive a fee notice together with the temporary Lake Constance skipper's licence.
Lindau District Office: EUR 12.50 per category
You will receive a cost invoice. You can pay in cash when you collect your licence from the district office.

Please note: Do not enclose cash or a cheque with your application.

Processing time

The processing time depends on the individual case and is usually completed within one week.

Miscellaneous

see above

Legal basis

Verordnung des Ministeriums für Verkehr und Infrastruktur zur Einführung der Bodensee-Schifffahrts-Ordnung (EinfVO-BSO)

Release note

machine generated, based on the German release by: Verkehrsministerium Baden-Württemberg, 27.02.2026