The Bahamas now sells a 30-day permit, which changes the winter maths
What changed
The Bahamian government revised its cruising permit fees with effect from 1 April 2026, following complaints about the schedule introduced the previous July. The 12-month permit that had been the only option remains, at USD 1,000 for a vessel of 50 feet up to 100 feet and USD 3,000 for anything of 100 feet and over. Two shorter permits now sit alongside it.
The 30-day permit costs USD 350 for vessels of 50 feet up to 100 feet and USD 600 for those of 100 feet and over, with no complimentary re-entry. The six-month permit costs USD 750 and USD 2,000 for the same two size bands, and carries one free re-entry within its period. Smaller craft are priced below these bands, starting at USD 150 for a 30-day permit under 30 feet.
Who saves money
The obvious beneficiary is the yacht that visits once. An owner who brings a 40-metre boat across from Florida for three weeks in February and takes her back has been paying USD 3,000 for a permit covering a year he does not use. That is now USD 600. On a yacht that also pays anchorage fees, tender permits and passenger tax, the difference is not decisive, and it is a real cut in a line item that had gone the other way in 2025.
The loser is the yacht that comes and goes. Re-entry allowances are what the short permits give up. A boat running Nassau to Florida and back through a season will burn through the free re-entries quickly, and at that point the 12-month permit is the cheaper document even though it costs five times as much on day one.
The frequent option
For owners who cross repeatedly there is the Frequent Digital Cruising Card, which allows unlimited entries over a two-year period. It is priced at USD 1,500 for boats under 50 feet, USD 2,500 for vessels up to 99 feet and USD 8,000 for anything over 100 feet. On a two-year view that is USD 4,000 a year for a large yacht.
Against two 12-month permits at USD 3,000 each it looks expensive. Against a boat that clears in four or five times a year it does not. The card also removes the administrative friction of re-clearing, which on a yacht that shuttles guests from Florida every fortnight is worth something on its own.
The rest of the schedule
Anchorage fees for foreign vessels sit separately, reported in a range from USD 50 to USD 1,500 depending on duration and size, with two-year validity, and they do not apply to vessels based in a marina. Fishing permits run at USD 100 for boats under 50 feet and USD 300 for larger vessels, for 30-day periods. Passenger tax is USD 30 per person aged six and over beyond three occupants.
Sources differ slightly on the re-entry allowance attached to the 12-month permit, with one account describing two free re-entries and another describing unlimited re-entry within the period. The permit fee itself is not in dispute. An owner planning a heavy season should confirm the current position with Bahamas Customs before committing to a permit length.
Planning the winter around it
The decision now has to be made before the season instead of during it, which is a change in habit. Work out how many separate entries the programme requires, price the three permits and the digital card against that number, and buy the document that matches the itinerary.
The wider signal is that the Bahamas is prepared to reverse a fee decision when the yachts stay away. The 2025 schedule drew enough pushback for the government to restructure it inside a year. That is useful information for owners weighing any Caribbean destination that has recently raised its charges.