Can I still test under old rules? 🤷🏼‍♂️

My sea time started in the year 2000 on a USCG cutter of 1600 tons. I used this sea time to get my AB

Now I am taking the Tow Vessel shortcut to go from 1600 ton Mate T/V to 500 ton Master and will apply for 1600 ton master when I receive my 500 ton.

I would like to test under the old rules, I can’t find anything to indicate that the old rules wouldn’t still apply since my time started before March 31st 2014.
Is this still an option?

Does my seatime working in the deck department in the USCG still allow me to test for master under the old rules? Is This time considered “qualifying seatime” ?

Thanks, hope everyone is staying busy and healthy!

No. If you haven’t already applied and been sent an approval to test, it’s too late. See CG-MMC Policy Letter 01-19.

Thank you, I didn’t think so but was curious because they still list the old rules on the Examination section on the NMC website

The old exam guide is still on NMC’s web page as there may still be a very small few who can take exams under the old rules. An application received on March 23, 2019 would have met the application deadline. As that was not long after last year’s furlough, there were still processing delays at NMC. So that mariner might have been approved to take the test under the old rules as late as June or July. Then they have a year to take the tests. So some exams are still be given under the old rules, but only if they had applied before March 24, 2019.