Free tool
Sea-time calculator
Enter your voyages and it applies the day-credit, calendar-dedup, and 90-day recency rules to tell you the tier you qualify for and exactly what is still short. Runs in your browser, no signup.
Open the calculator U.S. Coast Guard captain's license · Operator of Uninspected Passenger Vessels (OUPV) & Master 25/50/100 Ton
Do you qualify, and how long will the Coast Guard take?
The multiple-choice exam is the part everyone studies. The part that actually stalls people is eligibility, paperwork, and the wait. This guide answers those three, free and without a course pitch.
Free, independent tools for the U.S. Coast Guard captain's license: a sea-time calculator that tells you if you qualify, a dated tracker of how long the National Maritime Center (NMC) and the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) are actually taking right now, and a state-by-state map of the charter licenses and fishing permits you need on top of the federal credential. We are not affiliated with the U.S. Coast Guard, the National Maritime Center, or any course provider, and we do not issue or process credentials. United States only (OUPV six-pack and Master 25/50/100 Ton).
The three things that stall people
Not the test. The chart around it.
Course sellers answer the exam because that is what they sell. These three are the questions that decide whether you can run a charter next season, and nobody sells the answer.
Dated data building
NMC + TWIC processing tracker
How long the National Maritime Center and the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) are actually taking right now, every figure dated to its official bulletin. The backlog moves every few weeks, so we date every update.
See current wait timesState map building
State charter-license map
The federal captain's license is necessary but not sufficient. See the state charter license and the federal fishery permit you also need to run passengers for hire, state by state.
Check your stateField note
How much sea time do I need for a captain's license?
The OUPV (six-pack) and Master 25 to 100 Ton routes require 360 days of documented sea service since your 16th birthday, of which 90 days must fall inside the recency window. A day counts for 4 or more hours underway, capped at one day per calendar date. The sea-time calculator applies those rules to your own voyages.
Source: 46 CFR Part 11 · NMC OUPV checklist · last verified 2026-07-22
Chart soundings · the numbers that matter
- 360 days Total sea service for OUPV / Master, counted since your 16th birthday.
- 90 days Recent days required inside the recency window (window length varies by source, so the tool lets you set it).
- 4 hrs Minimum underway to credit one day; 8-hour standard day; never more than one day per calendar date.
- ~4 months NMC processing most recently, down from 8 to 12 months at the May 2026 resumption. Backlog: more than 19,000 applications.
- 45+ days TWIC standard processing can exceed 45 days; TSA advises applying at least 60 days ahead.
- CG-719K Medical certificate form, edition 12/25, 10 pages. Sea service is documented on Form CG-719S.
Every figure dated to its official source
Who we are, plainly
No course to sell you
Captain's License Prep is an independent study resource published by Urban Algorithm LLC. We are not the Coast Guard, we are not the National Maritime Center, and we are not a Coast Guard-approved course provider. We do not issue, certify, or process any credential.
The sea-time calculator estimates creditable sea service from the public rules, but the National Maritime Center makes the final determination on every application. Your voyage dates stay on your device: we receive only anonymous, aggregate statistics such as which tier people target, never a name, an account, or your actual log. No email, no signup, no paywall.