Joining IFBSO

Applications to join IFBSO are welcome from any established boat show or marine trade exhibition meeting the criteria below.

Criteria for IFBSO membership

The exhibition must be of an international stature to the satisfaction of the IFBSO Executive Committee. In particular, the Committee will expect that:

• The exhibition is well organised and professionally presented.
• The exhibition is of national significance.
• Exhibits include a wide range of international products.

The exhibition must be of a commercial nature.
The exhibition must have been in existence for at least three years.
The exhibition must comply with the requirements of the IFBSO Code of Excellence.

Congress attendance

Please note that the IFBSO Constitution requires every organiser of a member exhibition to send at least one representative to Congress at least every third year. Congress is held in a different country each year, usually in the last week of May. An organiser that fails to send a representative to more than two consecutive Congresses may be asked to reinstate the membership of all member exhibitions run by the company.

Procedure for applying for membership

The joining fee for new members is £1000.00 sterling, to be paid on application, 50% to be returned if the application for membership is not accepted. To apply for membership of IFBSO, the organiser must submit an application form to the Secretariat.

The Secretariat will consult members in the country of the applicant and will also consult ICOMIA before submitting the application to the Executive Committee for consideration. If practicable, the Secretariat will also make arrangements to visit the show in order to be able to give a first-hand report to the Committee.

The Executive Committee will normally consider applications at its meeting at METS in November. In view of this it is important for applications to be received in good time for the Secretariat to organise a visit to the show before meeting with the Committee.

The Executive Committee will consider the application and decide whether to put it forward to IFBSO members for consideration at the next Congress in May/June. If so, the Executive Committee will invite the applicant to make a presentation at Congress.

The final decision on whether to accept the exhibition into membership will be made by a meeting of IFBSO members following this presentation, and applicants will be notified of the outcome before the end of Congress. If successful, membership will commence with immediate effect and the new member will be invoiced for a half-year's subscription, which will cover membership fees until the end of the subscription year on December 31. The current annual subscription is £1250, plus an annual fee of £200 towards the cost of Congress registration.

Application forms may be downloaded from here.