Montana Boaters No Longer Need Validation Stickers; Still Need Validation From Other Boaters

Tue, 05 May 2026 08:00:00 -0600

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks confirmed this week that boat validation stickers are no longer required on watercraft in the state, removing one of the few remaining reasons boaters had to interact with a government office before putting something heavy and fast onto a body of water shared with swimmers.

“The registration requirement still exists,” clarified FWP spokesperson Jen Halvorsen. “You still register your boat. You just don’t need the physical sticker on the hull anymore.” She said the change was made to “reduce unnecessary administrative burden,” which is government for “the stickers kept peeling off and nobody checked them anyway.”

Bureaucracy on The Bozeman Daily Bee

Montana Boaters No Longer Need Validation Stickers; Still Need Validation From Other Boaters