Boat Excise

You must pay an excise tax for a boat you own on July 1 and moor or locate in Massachusetts. Pursuant to Ch. 60B of the Massachusetts General Laws, every motor vehicle and trailer "registered" in Massachusetts is subject to the motor vehicle excise unless expressly exempted. The excise is assessed for the fiscal year that begins on that date. All sums received from the excise imposed under this chapter shall be paid into the treasury of the city or town, and fifty per cent of said excise shall be credited to the municipal waterways improvement and maintenance fund if town established under the provisions of section five G of chapter forty.

Returns

You must file a return by August 1 with the assessors of the city or town where the boat is moored or docked for the summer season or registered or principally located if it is not moored or docked for the summer. Your abatement rights may be lost, or the amount of abatement limited, if you do not timely file a return.

Valuation & Rate

The amount of the excise is based upon the fair cash value of the vessel and its equipment as determined by the local assessors, but not in excess, as determined by the length and age of the boat under a schedule established by General Laws Chapter 60B §2(c). After the valuation is determined, an excise tax of $10.00 per thousand is assessed.

Payment Information

Bills are issued by the city or town where you moor or dock the boat for the summer season, or where the boat is registered or principally located if it is not moored or docked for the summer. Assessors inform local tax collectors to facilitate the distribution and collection of payments. To avoid any collection charges or action, you must pay the excise in full within 60 days of the bill’s issue date. Payment must be received by the tax collector, not just mailed (postmarked), on or before the due date. The provisions of law relative to the collection, payment, and administration of the motor vehicle excise imposed under chapter sixty A shall, so far as pertinent, apply to the excise imposed under this chapter.

Keeping Your Information Current

Unlike the motor vehicle excise, liability for the boat excise does not depend upon registration of the boat but rather upon ownership of the boat on July 1. If the ownership is acquired after July 1, there is no excise for the current fiscal year.

The Department of Environmental police annually transmits a list of all ships or vessels documented as of July first under the laws of the United States whose owners reside in Massachusetts. The boat list shall include, for each boat, the name and residence of the registered owner, the documentation number, type, length, and model year of the boat, and the type and horsepower of the engine or motor used to propel said boat, and the city or town in which it is habitually moored or docked.

It is vital to keep your boat information current, and the environmental police, registration, and titling bureau has two forms to help you do this.

The Status Change form is used to change an address, mooring or storage location, or engine information.

The Cancelation Form is used to cancel the registration and title from our recreational vehicle registry once the boat is sold, federally documented with the Coast Guard, destroyed, or moved to another state.

Important Notice

A bill for a boat that is no longer owned should not be ignored. You are personally liable for the excise until it is paid or abated. Abatements are adjustments to the tax you owe. If you qualify for an abatement, the adjustment to the tax will reduce what you owe.

Filing an application does not stay the collection of your excise bill. Failure to pay the excise when due may subject you to interest, collection costs, a penalty of $20.00, or 20% of the excise, whichever is greater, and collection action, including loss of mooring or docking privileges. You will receive a refund if an abatement is granted AND the bill is paid.

Excise Proration

The excise can be reduced, upon application, of an abatement. Excise is prorated based on the number of months in the fiscal year after the month in which the last eligibility requirement occurs.

Valid reasons for abatement

• Moved outside of Massachusetts
• Boat was overvalued
• Moved from the billing city or town
• Transferred boat ownership
• Boat sold, traded, junked, repossessed, stolen, or deemed a total loss

NOTE: You are not entitled to an abatement if you (1) cancel your registration and retain ownership of the boat, or (2) change the registration or location of the boat to another Massachusetts city or town, during the calendar year.

DEADLINE:

Your abatement application must be received by the board of assessors within three years after the excise was due, or one year after the excise was paid, whichever is later. To preserve your right to an abatement and to appeal, you must file on time. By law, assessors may act on late applications only in limited circumstances where the excise remains unpaid, and their decisions in those cases are final.

Boat Excise Abatement Application

Please fill out the form and submit all supporting documentation by mail or email to assessors@bridgewaterma.org

Valid reasons for exemptions

• Ships and vessels engaged in interstate or foreign carrying trade or engaged in fishing and documented and carrying “papers” under the laws of the United States, and which are taxable under the provisions of General Laws Chapter 59, Section 8 or Chapter 63, Section 67
• Vessels owned by the Commonwealth or any political subdivision
• Law enforcement vessels
• Ferries
• Boats, fishing gear, and nets owned and actually used by the owner in the pursuit of his business if engaged exclusively in commercial fishing, with a total value of $10,000 or less
• Vessels with a value of $1,000 or less.

Applications for exemptions use the same form as an abatement. Please don’t forget to attach the documentation establishing the qualification.

Boat Registration Frequently Asked Questions

Additional information about boat registration can be found here.