Boat and trawler rental

About the business

Renting out a boat or trawler in Bangladesh serves three kinds of customer. First, fishers who hire a trawler or work it on a share with the owner. Second, people in haors, chars and along the coast who have no other way to travel or move goods. Third, tourists, from Kaptai to Tanguar Haor, the Sundarbans and Nijhum Dwip. The money can be big: on 13 July 2025 the trawler FB Sadia-2 landed 65 maunds of hilsa from a four-day trip at Alipur fish port in Kalapara, Patuakhali, and it was auctioned for Tk 39,60,000. But the costs and the risks are just as large. Diesel has been Tk 115 a litre since 19 April 2026, and fishers in Chandpur put daily use at two to three litres for a single-engine boat or trawler and five to six litres for a twin-engine one. Above all, fishing stops by law at set times of year. On 15 September 2026 the national task force of the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock decided that from 8 to 29 October - 22 days - catching, transporting, storing and trading hilsa is completely banned nationwide. Through those days the trawler sits tied at the ghat earning nothing while instalments and repair bills carry on. An owner who depends on fish alone is exposed; one who can also take tourists and cargo works all twelve months.

Unit economics

What you need to start

• The boat or trawler and engine, fuel tank, ice box, anchor and ropes, life jackets and buoys, torches and a means of communication. Nets are a separate cost for fishing.Equipment
• Vessel registration, survey and fitness certificate plus skipper certification, from the inland water transport authority and the local marine office. Fees and validity could not be verified in this research; check with the relevant office before applying.Licence
• Department of Fisheries registration and the fisher card, for fishing work. VGF food support during a ban goes to card holders. From 8 to 29 October 2026, for 22 days, catching, transporting, storing and trading hilsa is banned, enforced jointly by the district administration, river police, coast guard and fisheries department.Licence
• Trade licence from the city corporation or municipality: form Tk 10, licence book Tk 50, standard tax Tk 30, stamp Tk 150-300, licence fee Tk 100-60,000 by trade type. Issued in 3-5 working days and renewed yearly.Licence
• Handling the boat and knowing the waterway, reading weather warnings, basic engine repair and managing crew. At sea, navigation and judgement in bad weather are a matter of life.Skill
• A diesel pump and depot, an ice mill, a repair dockyard and a fish arat. In Chandpur depots have supplied less than dealers needed, so more than one source is advisable.Supplier
• Mooring space at a ghat or jetty, plus somewhere to repair and to lay the boat up in the dry season.Workspace

How the work is done

1. 1Decide what the boat will do - fishing, passengers and cargo, or tourists. The hull, engine and paperwork differ for each, and a boat built for one does not serve another well.
2. 2Register the vessel and get its survey certificate. Check registration, fitness and skipper certification rules with the inland water transport authority and the local marine office. Fees and validity could not be verified in this research, so ask at the office.
3. 3For fishing, register with the Department of Fisheries and get the fisher card. Matlab Uttar upazila in Chandpur has 9,100 card-holding fishers, and it is card holders who receive the government's VGF food support during a ban.
4. 4Put the ban dates on the calendar. From 8 to 29 October 2026, 22 days, catching, transporting, storing and trading hilsa is banned nationwide. Budget the whole year assuming zero income on those days.
5. 5Do the diesel arithmetic first. Tk 115 a litre; 2-3 litres a day on one engine, 5-6 on two. On a long trip the figure multiplies, so measure a trip's fuel before quoting a rate.
6. 6Fix the skipper and crew. A sea-going trawler needs several hands and their food and wages are a large part of trip cost. Agree in writing whether they work on a share or on wages.
7. 7Carry safety gear - life jackets, buoys, torches and a way to communicate - and respect weather warnings. In June 2025 rough seas kept 5,000 trawlers in Cox's Bazar from fishing.
8. 8Sort out the fish arat relationship. At Alipur port in Kalapara fish is sold at auction and the arat takes commission. Find out which arat takes what commission and how fast it pays.
9. 9Line up alternative work for the ban months - hauling sand and bricks, moving paddy and goods, or tourists. A trawler that depends on fish alone sits idle for more than a month a year.
10. 10For tourist work, prepare more - seating, a canopy, life jackets and a clean boat. The Rangamati Tourist Boat Owners Association said about 60 percent of boats were hired over the Eid holiday, so even in peak season not every boat goes out.
11. 11Record diesel, wages, ice and takings for every trip separately. Fuel prices change monthly, so quoting from an old calculation loses money.

Sources

• সিটি কর্পোরেশন থেকে ট্রেড লাইসেন্স প্রাপ্তির ধাপ সমূহ

  Collected: 16 Sept 2026

  Supports: Starting capital · বাংলাদেশ

• ৮ অক্টোবর থেকে ২২ দিন ইলিশ ধরা বন্ধ (ইলিশ সম্পদ উন্নয়ন জাতীয় টাস্কফোর্স কমিটির সিদ্ধান্ত)

  Collected: 15 Sept 2026

  Supports: Starting capital · বাংলাদেশ

• আগামী মাসেও একই থাকছে জ্বালানি তেলের দাম (ডিজেল প্রতি লিটার ১১৫ টাকা, ১৯ এপ্রিল ২০২৬ থেকে কার্যকর)

  Collected: 30 Jul 2026

  Supports: Starting capital, Variable cost · বাংলাদেশ

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