16
Minimum age to sit the category B exam
Nautly/How to get the licence
Voditelj brodice · Step by step
How to get a Croatian boat licence
A practical, step-by-step guide to earning the Croatian Voditelj brodice kategorije B licence — what to study, how to book your exam at a Lučka kapetanija, the documents and fees you need, and exactly what happens on exam day.
Voditelj brodice kategorije B — Croatia's recreational skipper licence, taken as an oral exam before a harbour master's commission.
The journey at a glance
From a blank page to a licence in your hand — three steps and a result.
1
Learn the material
Study the official exam programme. There's no mandatory course for category B — self-study or an optional prep course both work. How to study →
2
Choose a kapetanija & book
Pick a harbour master's office, book an exam date, and submit your documents and the paid fee. Documents & fees →
3
Sit the oral exam
Answer questions before a three-member commission, work a chart and tie knots. Usually 15–30 minutes. On the day →
✓
Receive your licence
Pass, and you collect your licence from the office — usually shortly after. Category B is valid for life — no renewal. After you pass →
A course does most of this for you. If you book a preparation course with a reputable school, much of this runs through them: you get study material (usually a PDF or handbook) to work through, then an in-person lesson, and the school registers you and books the exam date. For international students the exam can often be arranged in English — ask the school what it offers.
Step 1 — Learn the material
There is no mandatory course for the recreational category B. You can study on your own and register for the exam directly, or take an optional preparation course (tečaj) run by a sailing school. A course is only compulsory for the commercial category C. ⓘ NotePossible 2027 law changes could make the theory exam stricter and a practical exam mandatory. Exactly what will change, and when, is still uncertain.
The exam follows the official programme set out in the annex (Dodatak) to the harbour-master regulations. Whether you study in a classroom or from a book, the subjects are the same:
- Rules of the road (COLREG). Give-way and stand-on situations, crossing, overtaking and head-on encounters.
- Lights, shapes and signals. Navigation lights, day shapes, sound signals and distress signals.
- Navigation & chart work. Reading an Adriatic chart, plotting a course, measuring distance and taking a bearing.
- Buoyage, engine, safety & meteorology. IALA marks, basic engine knowledge, fire and pollution prevention, and Adriatic weather.
- Knots and basic VHF radio. A handful of practical knots and the basics of marine VHF use — calling on channel 16, distress and call signs.
Most candidates prepare over a few weeks. Much of the material is international — COLREG, the phonetic alphabet and navigation principles are the same everywhere — so you can study the concepts first in your own language, then learn the Croatian terminology you'll hear in the room. For a deeper look at what each subject involves, see our guide to the Voditelj brodice B exam.
Language — confirm before you book. The official syllabus and exam are in Croatian. Some sailing schools advertise that the exam can also be taken in English, German or Italian, but this is not an officially guaranteed option and may depend on the examiners available at your chosen office. If you need to be examined in another language, confirm it directly with that harbour master's office first. The state exam fee is the same regardless of nationality, but if the exam is taken in another language, any interpreter or translator the office requires is an extra cost you would cover yourself.
About the VHF radio. Basic marine VHF use is part of the B syllabus. The standalone Short Range Certificate (SRC) for operating VHF DSC equipment is a separate supplementary radio exam (RTF) with its own small fee — exactly how the two relate can vary, so check with your office if you need the full radio certificate.
Step 2 — Choose a kapetanija and register
You sit the exam at the Ministry (Ministarstvo mora, prometa i infrastrukture) in Zagreb, or at any Lučka kapetanija — harbour master's office — on the coast, or one of its branch offices (ispostave). There are eight main harbour master's offices:
Pula
Rijeka
Senj
Zadar
Šibenik
Split
Ploče
Dubrovnik
The official, up-to-date list of every office and branch is published by the Ministry: Lučke kapetanije — mmpi.gov.hr. Book a date directly with the office by phone or email, or through the Ministry's online e-Pomorac service. Exam sittings are scheduled periodically, so ask which date is next available. If you take a preparation course, the school usually arranges the registration, booking and paperwork for you.
For category B, you typically need to bring or submit:
- A completed exam application form (prijava)
- Two photographs, 3 × 3.5 cm
- A copy of your ID card or passport
- Proof of first-aid knowledge — a driving licence is accepted, otherwise a first-aid certificate
- Proof that the state fee has been paid
The essentials, confirmed. The state administrative fee for the category B exam is €58.40 (as of June 2026) — a nationwide fee, identical at every harbour master's office. The minimum age is 16 (under-18s are limited to engines up to 15 kW). No medical certificate is required for category B — it is only needed for the commercial C category and yacht-skipper certificates. Fees and document lists can change, so confirm the current details with your chosen office. You may verify the official requirements on the Ministry of the Sea website.
Step 3 — Exam day
The exam is taken before a three-member commission (ispitna komisija) appointed by the Ministry or the harbour master's office. It is an oral and theoretical exam — there is no on-water boat-handling test.
In practice the day runs much as you'd expect: you arrive at the office, wait until you're called in, and then sit in front of the commission, who take turns asking questions. Two practical tasks happen right there at the table — reading and working a nautical chart (a course, a distance, a position) and tying a few knots on a length of rope.
The examiners move across the programme — the rules of the road, lights and signals, navigation, engine and safety, meteorology, and basic VHF radio. A sitting usually lasts around 15–30 minutes — it depends on the candidate and the commission; the result — passed or failed — is given at the end.
One detail that varies. Most candidates describe a purely oral exam in front of the commission, but a few sources mention a short written element graded at 70% or above. The exact format can differ between offices, so treat the oral exam as the core and ask your office whether anything is written.
After you pass — receiving your licence
On exam day the commission tells you straight away whether you passed — often with a written confirmation of the result. The licence itself (officially a certificate of competency, uvjerenje o osposobljenosti za voditelja brodice) is then issued by the office; depending on the office you collect it the same day or within the next few days. That is the document you later show a charter company as proof of qualification.
Category B is valid for life — there is no renewal, refresher or expiry for the recreational B licence.
The essentials
The numbers worth knowing before you begin.
58,40 €
Nationwide state fee for the B exam (as of June 2026)
∞
Valid for life — no renewal
12 NM
Valid up to twelve nautical miles from the coast
Common questions
The basics of getting the licence, answered plainly.
Do I need to take a course?
No. There is no mandatory course for the Voditelj brodice kategorije B licence — you can self-study and register for the exam directly. A preparation course is optional and many find it helpful, but it is not required by law. A course is required for the commercial category C.
How much does it cost?
The state administrative fee for the category B exam is €58.40 (as of June 2026), the same nationwide at every harbour master's office. An optional preparation course is extra — typically somewhere between roughly €150 and €350 depending on format. Fees can change, so confirm the current amount with the office.
Do I need a medical certificate?
No. A medical certificate is not required for the recreational category B. It is required for the commercial category C and for yacht-skipper certificates.
Where can I take the exam?
At the Ministry in Zagreb or at any Lučka kapetanija on the coast — Pula, Rijeka, Senj, Zadar, Šibenik, Split, Ploče and Dubrovnik — or one of their branch offices. The official list is at mmpi.gov.hr.
Can I take the exam in English or German?
The official syllabus and exam are in Croatian. Some schools state the exam can be taken in English, German or Italian, but this is not an officially guaranteed option and may depend on the office — confirm in advance.
How long is the licence valid?
The category B certificate is issued for life — there is no renewal, refresher or expiry. The commercial category C and yacht-skipper certificates do have renewal conditions.
What documents do I need to register?
A completed exam application form, two photographs (3 × 3.5 cm), a copy of your ID card or passport, proof of first-aid knowledge (a driving licence is accepted, otherwise a first-aid certificate), and proof of the paid state fee.