Hawaii - Clearance
Hawaiian entry regulations are basically the same as the rest of the United States (see Noonsite/USA/Formalities page), but there are slight differences and regulations are usually applied in a more detailed manner. This is partly due to the fact that to arrive in Hawaii from the US mainland, yachts must leave US territorial waters.
ARRIVAL FORMALITIES
Advance Notification:
See a list of DOBOR district offices here. It is wise to make contact with the harbor master by e-mail prior to entry, who can normally assist with the application for a temporary mooring permit.
Ports of Entry:
Yachts must enter at an official port of entry. Yachts stopping elsewhere may be liable for heavy fines. This rule also applies to US registered vessels coming from foreign ports; they must call at an official port of entry before proceeding elsewhere. American captains have been fined for making landfall at other Hawaiian ports and attempting to clear Customs by telephone.
General Process:
Yachts must report immediately on arrival to Customs and formal clearance must be made within 48 hours of arrival. Working hours are 08:00-16:30 Monday to Friday. (Vessels arriving at the weekend may have to wait until Monday to obtain clearance).
It is possible to use the ROAM App. here as in the US and other territories.
Vessels that have cellphones can call Customs before arriving to minimize the waiting time. After hours, it is necessary to telephone Customs.
On arrival, no one must go ashore except for the person reporting the arrival to Customs, who must afterward return to the yacht, until formalities are completed. Violations of this rule can result in heavy penalties, even forfeiture of the boat.
Border Patrol/Customs will normally contact the Dept. of Agriculture who will come and check for banned food stuffs and animals and will likely collect garbage to dispose of it properly. Garbage must be double-bagged. In some places Border Patrol will handle everything. See Biosecurity for more information
See Documents for the paperwork required on arrival.
US vessels arriving from a US port on the mainland who have not stopped at a foreign port en route or have had no contact with any other vessel at sea, and who have only US citizens on board, do not need to clear Customs, but must be inspected on arrival by an agricultural inspector of the State of Hawaii. They must inform the agricultural department of their arrival.
Domestic Cruising:
After having cleared into Hawaii, US vessels are free to go anywhere in the USA.
Most foreign vessels now required to have a cruising license. See Documents for further details. Foreign vessels without a cruising license must check in with Customs at every other port they visit. Precise instructions of the procedure will be given at the first port of entry.
Note that Hawaii now has a schedule of anchoring fees, making it almost as expensive to anchor as it is to moor in a marina. See Fees for more details.
CLEARING OUT
On departure all yachts, including US registered vessels, must obtain a Customs clearance form for foreign destinations. If you were granted a cruising license to cruise U.S. territorial waters, you must clear your departure with CBP before proceeding to a foreign destination.
Useful link:
Last updated: April 2024
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Effective February 14, 2023, and until further notice, the DOBOR Kauai District Office and Nawiliwili Small Boat Harbor Office will have limited hours of 7:45am to 1:00pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
It is possible to clear in at Ko’Olina Marina (Barber’s Point) on Oahu. Officers came from Honolulu to board us and clear us in within 2 hours of arrival on both of our visits (April & June 2018).
We were required to pay for a local contractor to dispose of all garbage deemed “foreign” by the Agriculture clearance agent when arriving from overseas – the cost of this was VERY expensive: $150 + $90/bag, max bag weight 20lbs.
We were advised that the only trash that could be guaranteed not to be deemed “foreign” and require expensive sterilization/incineration was clean beverage containers suitable for recycling that no animal or vegetable products had ever touched – i.e. soda and beer cans, water bottles, etc.
Even clean washed empty cans, glass jars (pickles, jam, etc) and clean plastic wrappers were required to be incinerated.
It is not possible to haul out in Ala Wai. Keehi Marine Center (Honolulu) on Oahu and Ko Olina (Barbers Point Harbour) offer haul outs, Keehi is cheaper.
If you need a slip, get one at the Yacht Club, better facilities and security patrols constantly.
Mike Fossl reports that it is no longer possible to clear in at Nawiliwili / Port Allen.