Title 46 — ShippingRelease 119-73
§12133 Duty to carry certificate on vessel and allow examination
Title 46 › Subtitle Subtitle II— - Vessels and Seamen › Part Part H— - Identification of Vessels › Chapter CHAPTER 121— - DOCUMENTATION OF VESSELS › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER III— - MISCELLANEOUS › § 12133
Summary
Vessels must carry their documentation unless regulations exempt them, and the owner or person in charge must show it when asked. Willful refusal faces a Title 18 fine, imprisonment not more than one year, or both.
Full Legal Text
Title 46, §12133
Shipping — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)The certificate of documentation of a vessel shall be carried on the vessel unless the vessel is exempt by regulation from carrying the certificate.
(b)The owner or individual in charge of a vessel required to carry its certificate of documentation shall make the certificate available for examination at the request of an officer enforcing the revenue laws or as otherwise required by law or regulation.
(c)A person willfully violating subsection (b) shall be fined under title 18, imprisoned for not more than one year, or both.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Historical and Revision Notes
Revised SectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 1213346:12103(e). 46 App.:277.R.S. § 4336; Aug. 5, 1935, ch. 438, title III, § 312, 49 Stat. 528; Pub. L. 85–237, § 2, Aug. 30, 1957, 71 Stat. 518; Pub. L. 103–182, title VI, § 686(a)(5), Dec. 8, 1993, 107 Stat. 2220. This section consolidates and clarifies the requirements contained in the source provisions. The specific civil penalties are omitted as unnecessary because of the general civil penalty in section 12151(a) of the revised title. See also 19 U.S.C. 1581.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
46 U.S.C. § 12133
Title 46 — Shipping
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73