Legal frame NN 42/17 art. 2 point 7 (definition) and art. 5(2) (remote cut-off); Pravilnik NN 13/20 art. 37(4)–(5) (area IIIc); Pravilnik o sigurnosti pomorske plovidbe NN 52/25 arts 49–50; licence rules in NN 27/05 arts 70 and 77 (kept by NN 13/20 art. 48).
What the law calls it
The charter regulation defines an osobno plovilo na vodomlazni pogon (personal watercraft) as a brodica under 4 m with an internal-combustion engine and a water-jet pump, on which the rider sits, stands or kneels. It is a boat, not a toy. Every boat rule applies, plus three of its own.
Licence
There is no separate jet-ski licence. Because a rented jet ski is a brodica hired without crew, the personal-use crew rules apply (art. 77):
- up to 15 kW, category A would legally be enough;
- over 15 kW, category B and age 18 (art. 70(3)).
Rental jet skis are generally well over 15 kW, so in practice you need B and must be 18, or a recognised foreign equivalent (Lesson 1.3). Check the registration: the power is written there.
Where you may ride
| Rule | Limit | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Navigation area | IIIc only — within 1 nm of the mainland or an island, Croatian waters only; written into the registration | NN 13/20 art. 37(4)–(5) |
| Planing | Only beyond 300 m from the coast, and only where planing is not banned | NN 52/25 art. 50(2) |
| Speed inside 300 m | 8 kn, with special care | NN 52/25 art. 50(1) |
| Off the coast | At least 50 m (craft under 15 m) | NN 52/25 art. 49(1) |
| Off a buoyed beach | At least 50 m | NN 52/25 art. 49(3), NN 40/26 |
| Divers | At least 50 m from the diver marker | NN 52/25 art. 49(12) |
Put together, you get a corridor between 300 m and 1 nm (1,852 m) where a jet ski may plane. Inside 300 m you are at displacement speed, at 8 kn or less; beyond 1 nm you are outside the jet ski's permitted area altogether. Local harbour-master orders can narrow that corridor further.
WARNING — The 300 m line is policed The police maritime units list "jet skis planing at the prescribed distance from the coast" among the things they check. Planing close to a beach is exactly what they are looking for.
Equipment
- The EU construction rules require a kill-cord or self-circling device.
- Rental jet skis must also have a system for starting and stopping the engine remotely (NN 42/17 art. 5(2)). The operator can stop you from the shore, and will.
- Liability insurance is compulsory over 15 kW (NN 13/20 art. 8).
Practicalities
- Ask the operator where the 300 m line runs; buoys or landmarks are often used.
- Passengers count: two on a jet ski rated for two is not three.
- Do not tow anyone (water-ski, tube) unless the operator is approved to do it. Such activities need harbour-master approval (Pomorski zakonik art. 54.c), which this course does not cover.
- Alcohol rules are exactly the same as for any helmsman: 0.5 g/kg (Module 4).
For handling and safety technique, see Personal Watercraft (PWC) in the MCA library.