Title and regristration

re:

Thank you.
Concerning operation of foreign vessels in US waters. Is any operation, like sailing, considered trade? Or only shipping goods. And how are boaters supposed to prove they went to the bahamas first?

 

If you are just a recreational boat and visiting, then you just enter through customs, make your declarations , etc and go your way. If you are going to be here a long time (I think it's 90 days or more but I'd have to check) you can get a cruisng permit. You do that from us customs (ICE).

However if you are carrying passengers for hire (they pay you) or cargo for purpose of selling it in the US (it can be anything from soup to nuts) then you are in trade.

How do you prove you've been to the Bahamas. Like any country, when you enter you have to "enter" through customs, fill out forms, get inspected, all that normal stuff. You would have the paperwork.