Hi,

No formal qualifications are required in Australia to cruise unless you are
taking on paying passengers other than perhaps a power boat license if your
vessel can do more than 10 knots. For paying passenges you need a
commercially registered vessel (survey approval) which is expensive and a
coxswain or Master 5 certificate.

Be aware to check NZ regulations if you are coming via NZ with your yacht as
I believe they won't let you leave without a liferaft !

A coxswain's course plus celestial navigation and weather is an excellent
idea, but not compulsory.

Best of Luck and we may see you on the high seas - we are building a 35ft
catamaran for a world trip leaving Cairns, Australia in August 2006
(www.bluewaterrallies.co.uk)
Ray & Liz


"Moores Family" wrote in message
...
G'day folks
Like a lot of baby boomers, we're planning our retirement cruising
activities. I've had a fair amount of experience bay cruising in a H28
in past years, but that was a while ago before career and kids got in
the way.

We're now looking at cruising 'round the Oz coast and S/W Pacific for a
few years in something nice and comfortable 'round 45 feet or so. I'm
perfectly happy with my standard of seamanship and we'll be doing a lot
of shakedown stuff before we go offshore too much, but I've no formal
qualifications- nor any real desire to have any, unless there's a real
good reason for same...

I've no intention of taking crew, paying or otherwise, just wife and
self. Does anyone know of requirements for licences or formal
qualifications for Oz registered international cruising? The insurance
company is happy with my current experience and isn't interested in
anything else...

Thanks
JM