New York Boat Registration Numbers: Size, Placement and Stickers

New York boat registration numbers start with NY (State Parks Boater's Guide) and go on each side of the forward half of the hull, in figures and letters of at least 3 inches (Vehicle and Traffic Law 2253). The registration stickers are a separate piece: the New York DMV says to put them 18 inches from the bow on both sides. This is a plain-words summary, not legal advice, so check with the DMV before you apply anything.

What a New York number looks like

The State Parks Boater's Guide describes the number as the letters NY followed by four numbers and two letters, with a space or hyphen the width of a letter between the groups, as in NY 1234 AB. That matches the federal format, where the first two capital letters name the state (33 CFR 174.23) and the list of state codes gives New York as NY (33 CFR part 173, Appendix A).

The DMV assigns the number, and it stays with the boat until the boat is destroyed, abandoned or permanently removed from the state, or until the DMV commissioner changes or ends it (Vehicle and Traffic Law 2253).

New York boat number placement

• Where: painted on or attached to each side of the forward half of the vessel, by the owner (Vehicle and Traffic Law 2253).
• Size and color: block letters of at least 3 inches, read from left to right, in a color that contrasts with the hull (State Parks Boater's Guide).
• Readability: kept legible so it can be read in daylight from one hundred feet (Vehicle and Traffic Law 2253).
• Nothing else: no other number on the forward half (Vehicle and Traffic Law 2253).

The law says "painted on or attached" and the Parks guide says "painted or permanently attached". Neither names vinyl, so if you are unsure that your lettering counts as attached, ask the DMV first.

New York boat registration sticker placement

The DMV page says to put the registration stickers 18 inches from the bow on both sides of the boat, which it describes as about where they sit on a boat that also carries numbers on the hull (New York DMV).

The Parks guide posted online words this differently: stickers on the hull, in line with the registration number and toward the stern (State Parks Boater's Guide). The two sources do not read the same, so confirm the spot with the DMV before you stick anything down.

The law calls them validating stickers and says a boat is not considered validly registered until a sticker and a current certificate have been issued. Where the hull is wood and the boat has a windshield, the stickers may go on the windshield (Vehicle and Traffic Law 2253). The DMV issues boat registrations for 3 years (New York DMV).

Coast Guard documented boats

For a boat documented by the Coast Guard, the DMV says you get New York stickers only, with no New York registration number, and to attach the stickers where the numbers are normally located (New York DMV). The Parks guide says this covers documented pleasure vessels, while vessels operating commercially with a U.S. or foreign document are exempt from state registration (State Parks Boater's Guide). The law also says a vessel with a valid marine document need not display its assigned number (Vehicle and Traffic Law 2253). The name and hailing port on a documented hull are a separate Coast Guard rule (46 CFR 67.123).

Ordering the numbers

Our boat registration number decals are made from the number you type. You pick the letter height (3, 3.5, 4 or 5 inches), see the decal at true scale on a section of hull, and order one decal per side. Prices start at $41.99 per decal and depend on the width your number needs. There is no proof step, so check the number against your certificate before you add it to the cart. The sticker comes from New York, not from us. Have a work truck too? The shop has USDOT number and company-name decals.

For hull prep and straight placement, read how to apply boat registration numbers. On a pontoon, see where numbers and names go. Boating elsewhere? We also cover Ohio and South Carolina.