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How to Get a Mooring Licence
Follow this step-by-step guide to get your Wadjemup / Rottnest Island mooring licence.
Becoming a licensee means you have a designated spot to moor your boat
Wadjemup is a popular boating location, and it can get busy on the water. A mooring licence ensures that you have a place where you can secure your boat any time you make the trip over to the island.
However, there are only a set number of mooring licences, and there is a waitlist for each bay. Submitting an application for a mooring licence allows you to join the waitlist for the next applicable mooring licence that becomes available.
Check your eligibility
How to make sure you and your boat are eligible.
For your boat
To apply for a licensed mooring, your boat has to meet the following criteria. Your boat must:
- Be a recreational vessel registered in Western Australia with the Department of Transport.
- Have current registration at the time of your application.
- Have a registered length of at least 6.4 metres.
- Either be a sailing vessel, or have its own power source capable of reaching a speed of five knots.
- Be covered under an insurance policy with the required level of third party legal liability.
It must not:
- Already be nominated by another owner under any other permit application.
- Currently be on the mooring waitlist.
- Be either a licensed boat or additional vessel of any mooring site licence.
For you
You are eligible to apply for a licensed mooring if you meet the following criteria:
- Your principal place of residence is within Western Australia.
- Your name appears on the Western Australian electoral roll as an elector (under the Electoral Act 1907).
- You are named as a registered owner of your boat on the certificate of registration issued by the Department of Transport for the vessel you nominate in your application.
- You own at least 25% of the nominated boat’s net worth.
- You do not already hold a mooring site licence, or have an application recorded on the mooring waitlist.
How to apply for a mooring licence
Preparing your application
Confirm your eligibility and gather the supporting documentation you need in order to prepare your application.
- Complete and sign your application for the mooring site licence waitlist.
- Confirm your details on the Western Australian electoral roll are current and correct. If you are registered as a silent elector, contact the Western Australian Electoral Commission for an electronic copy of your evidence of enrolment.
- Obtain an electronic copy of your boat’s certificate of registration. You can do this through DoTDirect.
- Confirm that your registration is current and the certificate includes:
- Your name as a registered owner
- Registration number
- Registered length
- Date of registration expiry
If your boat is registered in your business name, you will need to get a Western Australia Statutory Declaration to confirm that you are the legal individual owner. This must be physically signed (not electronically) in the presence of an authorised witness.
Submitting your application
Once you have completed the steps above and gathered your documentation, you can submit your application.
To submit, send an email to Rottnest Island Authority Marine Administration at [email protected]. Be sure to attach your application form and supporting documents. This must be done in a single email.
Once you have submitted your application, it will be assessed and approved. You will then need to pay a non-refundable $62 fee to be placed on the mooring licence waitlist.
If your approved application is complete and meets all eligibility requirements, you will then receive confirmation of your position on the waitlist for your nominated bay.
You will be contacted by email if your application is incomplete, or ineligible for any reason.
Joining the licensed mooring waitlist
Simply submitting your application does not immediately entitle you to a mooring. Many other people are also waiting for a spot. So instead, you are put onto a waitlist for a mooring in your nominated bay.
Please note that due to high demand, waitlist times are substantial. The average wait time is between five and 10 years.
To ensure a fair system for everyone, you can only register on one bay’s waitlist at any given time. Being on the waitlist does not permit you to use the Shared Mooring System (SMS) either. You still need to apply for an authorised user permit in the meantime (see below).
Maintaining your mooring waitlist application
To stay on the waitlist, you will need to keep your contact details up to date. Email [email protected] from your nominated email address if you change your contact details.
Selling your vessel
As soon as you sell your vessel, email [email protected] advise the date of sale. RIA can then approve up to six months for you to nominate a new vessel to stay on the waitlist.
Changing your vessel
If you purchase a new vessel and it is eligible to nominate to your application, email an application to substitute a vessel form to [email protected]. Ensure you include the new vessel's registration certificate in your name.
Fees for licensed moorings
Once you receive your mooring licence, you’ll be issued with an invoice. This single payment includes the below fees and covers you for the Wadjemup boating season that runs from 1 September until 31 August.
- A mooring site licence fee. Mooring site licence fees vary depending on the length of your boat.
- 10 metres or less: $ 1,166.50
- More than 10 metres: $116.50 per metre
- Admission fees. The annual admission fee provides unlimited access to the reserve for the boating season.
Maintaining your mooring licence
Once you have obtained your mooring licence, you need to renew it every year.