License to Lead: How to Earn Your Captain’s License
By Captain Chris Caldwell
Before you can operate your own boat, most states require you to pass a boating safety course, a simple prerequisite you can knock out with an online test. But that basic certificate is not a captain’s license. In fact, there is no such thing as a “captain’s license.” So, what are you earning?
The US Coast Guard (USCG) issues an Operator or Master credential to mariners who have earned the experience and sea time to operate a vessel of a certain size. Most of us who hold this credential need it to work aboard commercial vessels. But maybe you always wanted to reach this goal, even with no plans to use it professionally. Here’s how to get a captain’s license.
OUPV or Master: Which Captain’s License Do You Need?
The USCG issues two basic licenses. The Operator of Uninspected Passenger Vessels license, or OUPV, limits you to an uninspected vessel and a maximum of six passengers. You may have heard it called a “six-pack.” Small-boat owners typically use it to run fishing charters or handle yacht deliveries.
The next level is the USCG Master license. The Coast Guard rates it by the vessel tonnage you have the experience to operate, based on your time aboard vessels of similar size: 25, 50, 100, or more gross register tons (GRT). A USCG stability test on the vessel sets its passenger count, which appears on the vessel’s Certificate of Inspection (COI). A Master license also defines where you can operate: Inland, Great Lakes, Near Coastal (less than 200 miles offshore), or Ocean.
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How Much Sea Time Do You Need for a Captain’s License?
Start by downloading a sea service form from the USCG’s National Maritime Center.
Documented sea service includes the time you spent aboard your own boat as well as boats you worked on. You can also count time aboard a friend’s pleasure boat, and even chartered boats, when you served as helmsman or mate. Gather all your time at sea aboard any boat and include each vessel’s official registration or documentation number and other details. Have the owner or captain of each vessel sign the form.
According to Chapman School of Seamanship, the basic USCG OUPV requires at least 360 days at sea, with 90 days or more in the three years before you apply. Fill in the form’s areas of operation, whether inland waters like the ICW or offshore. The OUPV Near Coastal license requires at least 90 days documented in Near Coastal waters.
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The USCG Master Inland and Great Lakes requirements look much the same as the OUPV but call for more documented time on larger vessels to support your requested tonnage. To sit for the Master exam for up to 100 GRT, you need 360 days at sea.
The big daddy, the USCG Master Near Coastal, lets you operate up to 200 miles offshore, and the requirement climbs to 720 days at sea. Some inland time counts toward this license, but you need a minimum of 360 days in Near Coastal waters. Again, use the sea service form to document it all.
License | Minimum documented sea time |
OUPV (six-pack), Inland | 360 days, with at least 90 in the three years before you apply |
OUPV, Near Coastal | 360 days, including at least 90 in Near Coastal waters |
Master, Inland/Great Lakes (up to 100 GRT) | 360 days, with more time on larger vessels to support the tonnage you request |
Master, Near Coastal | 720 days, including at least 360 in Near Coastal waters |
What Else Do You Need Before the Coast Guard Issues Your Credential?
Sea time alone won’t get you there. You must earn more certifications before the Coast Guard awards your Merchant Mariner Credential. Start with First Aid and CPR training. Your application also requires a background check, a signed conviction statement, a physical examination report, a chemical (drug) testing report, and evidence of citizenship: US citizenship for a Master, or a green card for an OUPV.
Depending on where you plan to work, you may also need a TWIC (Transportation Worker Identification Credential), which the TSA issues after its own background check. Your goals may call for other training as well, such as First Response Training International (oxygen use) and an FCC Marine Radio Operator Permit (see our guide on how to use a VHF radio).
Now you can see this isn’t a Captain Ron kind of thing. It’s a serious Merchant Marine credential, and you must earn it through rigorous testing and certification.
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How Do You Prepare for the Captain’s License Exam?
Once you have all the requirements in hand, you sit for the exam—actually a few tests, depending on the license level you want.
I recommend attending a professional training program in person, but that’s me. Others may prefer an online program from the comfort of home. Choose a training school with its own facility or a traveling program that visits your area a few times a year.
How Can You Build Sea Time Without Owning a Boat?
You can rack up more sea time before earning your license even if you don’t own a boat. Contact a boat dealer about helping relocate boats to shows or delivering them to new owners. Or sign on as a mate with a ferry or water taxi. All that time accumulates toward your license.
What Can You Do With a Captain’s License?
As your skills increase and your knowledge of below-deck systems grows, consider becoming a delivery captain or a training captain for new boat owners.
And that’s just the pleasure-boat world. What about running a large charter boat or a scuba charter, or serving as Master on commercial vessels such as oil-field or wind-farm service boats? As your license grows, so does the demand for qualified Masters—and so do the pay and benefits. Who knows? You may become a TV star on a charter-boat reality show, eye patch not required.
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