Marine Agents

A marine agent, also referred to as agent, vessel agent, ship or shipping agent is a person under contract with a ship owner or operator to act on behalf of the vessel owner or operator for all the transactions of a ship in a California port that the ship visits or docks.

Effective January 1, 2022, we can share the marine invasive species fee billings with you as the marine agent acting on behalf of a vessel owner or operator without requiring a Power of Attorney or Agent Agreement. We will send you a copy of the billing for each arrival for which you are acting on behalf of a vessel owner or operator, based on the information we receive from the California Marine Exchanges (CMEs).

The original marine invasive species fee billing is sent to the vessel owner or operator as legal notification, with a note indicating a copy has also been mailed to the marine agent of record for the arrival for which the billing applies.

Register for an Online Services Profile

Marine agents can register for an online services customer profile. After you have registered for a profile, you can request access to your clients' accounts by selecting the Request Access to an Account link under the I Want To heading. This will allow you to:

  • Access your marine agent account,
  • Pay marine invasive species bills,
  • Submit Power of Attorney and agent agreements,
  • View and print bills,
  • See all client billing history, and
  • Receive information bulletins on your Online Services account.

Visit our Tutorials page for information on how to register through our online services system.

Power of Attorney/Agent Agreement

If you choose to submit a completed CDTFA-392, Power of Attorney (POA) or CDTFA-5226, Marine Invasive Species Fee — Agent Agreement, we will keep the document on file for reference purposes.

Submission Options — You may return your signed POA or agent agreement form to us by:

  • Logging in to your Marine Invasive Species Fee account through our online services system,
  • Emailing your form to CDTFA's MIS Team, or
  • Mailing your form to:

    California Department of Tax and Fee Administration
    PO Box 942879, MIC 88
    Sacramento, CA 94279-0088