Where candidates go wrong
- They read the limit as "5 miles from the coast". Article 8.d of RD 875/2014 says 5 millas en cualquier dirección de un puerto, marina o lugar de abrigo (5 miles in any direction from a port, marina or shelter).
- They assume sail comes with the title. It does only after the sail practicals.
- They think the PNB lets them take paying guests. It never does.
- They forget the boat has limits of its own, which may be tighter than the title.
The attributions
| Rule | Source | |
|---|---|---|
| Atribuciones básicas (basic) | motor craft up to 8 m eslora (length), never more than 5 nm from a port, marina or lugar de abrigo (shelter) | art. 8.d.1º |
| motos náuticas (PWC) within the limits specific to PWC | art. 8.d.2º | |
| Atribuciones complementarias (complementary) | sail up to 8 m within the same limit, after the Anexo V sail practicals (16 h if done separately; done once, valid for any title) | art. 9.d |
Two further points:
- Night. Article 8.d has no daylight restriction, unlike the Licencia (art. 11) and the no-title exemption (art. 10). On that reading the PNB allows night passages inside the 5-mile limit. This is a reading of the text, not an official statement.
- PWC. Under any title, a PWC may be used only from 1 hour after sunrise to 1 hour before sunset (RD 259/2002 art. 10.7).
CAUTION — The boat has its own limits Under RD 339/2021 a CE-marked boat of design category C may use zones 4–7 and category D only zone 7 (sheltered waters). Zone 5 is up to 5 miles from a shelter or accessible beach. The title and the boat must both allow the trip.
What the PNB does not allow
- Commercial use. The habilitaciones anejas for charter attach to the PER, Patrón de Yate and Capitán de Yate, not to the PNB.
- Inter-island passage by name. Article 8.c lists "navegación entre islas" in the Baleares and Canarias for the PER. The PNB lists nothing of the kind, so any crossing must stay inside the 5-mile rule the whole way.
The ladder
| Title | Motor length | Limit | How you get it |
|---|---|---|---|
| No title | ≤5 m / ≤15 CV, private use only | – | – |
| Licencia de Navegación | ≤6 m, plus PWC | 2 nm, daylight | school course, 2 h theory + 4 h practical, no exam |
| PNB | ≤8 m, plus PWC | 5 nm from shelter | exam, practicals, radio course |
| PER | ≤15 m | 12 nm, plus inter-island Baleares/Canarias | exam, practicals, SRC radio course |
From 1 October 2026 (RD 1188/2025) anyone helming a rented motorboat needs at least a Licencia, including boats ≤5 m / ≤15 CV. The ministry restated this on 23 September 2026.
Getting it wrong costs money
Helming without a sufficient title, or beyond its attributions, is a grave offence. RONM art. 50 fines it at €1,000–6,000 for an embarcación. Going 6 miles out on a PNB is exactly that.
The next step
A PNB holder, or anyone who passed the PNB theory, sits only PER units 7–11: 18 questions in 45 minutes. See PER Theory Exam Prep.
What the examiner wants to see
Attributions are not a separate unit on the paper. UT4 questions on navigation limits assume you know them, and so will any Capitanía inspection.
Vocabulario del examen
| Español | English |
|---|---|
| atribuciones | attributions (what the title allows) |
| eslora | length |
| lugar de abrigo | shelter |
| moto náutica | personal watercraft (PWC) |
| prácticas de vela | sail practicals |
| orto / ocaso | sunrise / sunset |