Harbour Dues

The public right of navigation is dependant on the payment of these dues and once a vessel is on the water, within Poole Harbour jurisdiction, it is ready to exercise the right of navigation and the Harbour Dues payment is required.

All ships entering the Harbour pay ‘Ship Dues’, which is the equivalent of a leisure vessel’s Harbour Dues.

The monies raised are primarily to maintain the harbour and to provide for it’s long-term viability, going towards the cost of:

• Staff – To ensure the smooth and efficient management of the Harbour including safety of navigation, protection of the marine environment and responding to and managing marine emergencies.
• Poole VTS – Equipment required for traffic management to assist the VTS Officer including, Radar, AIS, CCTV, Comms and live Weather and Tidal information
• Patrols – Providing advice and assistance to mariners and enforcing Harbour legislation.
• Maintenance – Ensuring Aids to Navigation are maintained to Trinity House requirements, mark the navigable channels, safe moorings are properly serviced and fit for use, patrol and workboat vessels are in service, channels surveyed and dredged where required, harbour signage and other essential equipment.
• Removing Hazards – Any danger to navigation or pollution risk to ensure the harbour is safe to use.
• Training and Development – Contributing to safe and efficient operations.

2025 Harbour Dues Decal

Continuing the current theme of harbour buoyage, introduced last year, this year’s design features the main shipping channels ‘Buoy No 29’, commonly known as ‘Stakes Buoy’. Here the channel splits into either the Little Channel or into the shipping turning basin and onwards to the Wareham Channel.

We want to make the process of paying harbour dues as easy as possible for our visitors so that they can enjoy a hassle-free trip. To pay, you can visit us directly at the Harbour Office or use other clubs and marinas that will help. You can also make your payment online by clicking the link here.

Small Commercial Vessels are charged a different Harbour Dues tariff to recreational craft and Passenger Dues may also apply.

• A Fishing Vessel is a commercial fishing vessel with a obviously visible registry number such as PE12 etc – licensed by MCA under fishing vessel regulations. Some are licensed to carry a small number of passengers in which case the passenger dues fee for fishing vessels applies in addition to the harbour dues. They aren’t required to complete our Small Commercial Vessel (SCV) Registry unless they carry passengers.
• A Charter Vessel is licensed to carry passengers for recreational fishing or diving or tours etc. They lack the MCA Fishing Vessel number and can’t catch fish to sell. They require full coding  through private surveyors and this includes higher certification requirements and are required to complete our SCV Registry.
• A Passenger Vessel is licensed to carry more than 12 passengers

Please click HERE to apply for Harbour and Passenger Dues for a Small Commercial Vessel.

You can find our more about our Small Commercial Craft Registry HERE where you are required to submit selected safety certification.

While the vast majority of those who pass through our waters are law-abiding patrons, we have unfortunately had incidents where it has become necessary to arrest vessels and sell them in order to repay harbour dues. The harbour authority has this right under section 44 of the Harbour, Dock and Piers Clauses Act 1847 and will exercise that right should they encounter such a situation.

If you pay your harbour dues, you are required to display your ‘harbour dues decal’ on the port side of your watercraft. Doing this clearly indicates to harbour staff, who check vessels at random intervals, that you are adhering to harbour byelaws. If your craft does not have this decal, the harbour authority is within their right to stop you, to check dues have been paid.