Can someone explain to me the process or how to get a 3M job on foreign flag ships? Is there a way to get my Bohemian license or some other license? It is impossible to ship as a 3M now in the US flag. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Check out this web siteon information for a UK CeC license. If you have a 3rd Mate Unlimited Oceans then you can get a CeC as OOW. “Third mate and Second mate on STCW Regulation 11/1 both equate to OOW for a CEC.” (Per Ms. Wright at UK MCA).
If you wish to make a CEC application please submit the following
documents:
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Completed application form (declaration signed by the seafarer)
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Non-UK Certificate of Competency
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Proof of the seafarer’s standard of English (Not required for USCG
license holders). -
Passport or discharge book
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Two Passport photos
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£76 Fee
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The application form can be downloaded from our website using the
following link:
https://afrmmcanet.mcga.gov.uk/formspublic/getformharness.asp?formname=STARTFORM.
Please ensure the signature is contained within the box in section 4.
Hope this helps out…
[QUOTE=Capt Brian;31917] Hope this helps out…[/QUOTE]
The Brits have fewer ships and jobs than the US. Unless you really want to work on a UK flagged ship you don’t need a UK CeC. And the nice lady forgot to mention that to sail on a UK ship you need an ENG1 medical certificate and there are, at last count, 2 doctors in the US who can issue them. They don’t recognize a US medical and they don’t recognize a US GMDSS certificate either.
You need a license or endorsement from the ship’s flag state, not an MCA CeC to sail on a foreign ship other than a UK ship, but the MCA is delighted to sell you a CeC because they need the money really badly because they don’t have any ships to tax.
Either get a license endorsement from the flag state you wish to sail for (if they will issue one without a job) or when you get a job you can apply for one and work based on your submitted application. Part of the S in STCW means standardization, that is why there is a “White List.”
You are absolutely correct on the UK flagged vessels, but that was just one route (since he mentioned “some other license”). I did not post all that she had written me due to character contraints on the forum. You are close on the “approved” doctors in the US, actually a whopping 3 (Ft. Lauderdale; Newport, RI & Seattle).
[QUOTE=Steamer;31949]The Brits have fewer ships and jobs than the US. Unless you really want to work on a UK flagged ship you don’t need a UK CeC. And the nice lady forgot to mention that to sail on a UK ship you need an ENG1 medical certificate and there are, at last count, 2 doctors in the US who can issue them. They don’t recognize a US medical and they don’t recognize a US GMDSS certificate either.
You need a license or endorsement from the ship’s flag state, not an MCA CeC to sail on a foreign ship other than a UK ship, but the MCA is delighted to sell you a CeC because they need the money really badly because they don’t have any ships to tax.
Either get a license endorsement from the flag state you wish to sail for (if they will issue one without a job) or when you get a job you can apply for one and work based on your submitted application. Part of the S in STCW means standardization, that is why there is a “White List.”[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Capt Brian;31981]You are close on the “approved” doctors in the US, actually a whopping 3 (Ft. Lauderdale; Newport, RI & Seattle).[/QUOTE]
Thanks for the update on the doctors, Brian. It looks like Seattle is finally on the map. I wonder if the new USCG physical standards will put the US on the medical white list. That is another little honey pot for the MCA, you can get a US medical cert for $50 but pay double or triple for an ENG1 which, like the CeC, is not required by 90 percent or more of those who blindly shell out their cash.
Does anyone have experience getting a liberian license? I hear they are easy to obtain but can you find jobs and are they worth having?
when i graduated from maine maritime in 1986 as a deckie there were not many US shipping jobs either, I weighed my options and decided to use my license and work on the tall ships here and internationally; the pay is low but the marlinspike seamanship, experiences, and maritime industry connections I made then have been proven over and over again in my career as one of my most valuable assets. I would strongly encourage you to consider working in the Maine Windjammer Fleet, Sea Education Association, Sea Cloud, etc etc.
This approach lead to my receiving my panamanian, liberian, vanuatuian, and marshall islands certificates over the years as I travelled the world sailing. When shipping improved and I decided to start shipping commercially, the transition was simple and I have since that time never been without work.
My Norwegian endorsements were pretty easy to obtain, I just had to fill out a few applications, take a few photos, and take a NIS approved physical in Boston. My GMDSS was also valid. The funny thing is, the license endorsement I received is good for 3m/2m, so I am actually going to sail as 2nd later this summer, even though I only have my 3m unlimited, not even a year out of school?!..sure
Contact the maritime agency/directorate of the country you want to obtain your license/endorsement from, and they should help you with sending you the right stuff to fill out.
I don’t think there are any countries right now where the industry is scooping up new mates…at least not in Norway, Russia/Latvia/Belarus, India, or the Philippines.
[QUOTE=Jacknthebox;31910]Can someone explain to me the process or how to get a 3M job on foreign flag ships? Is there a way to get my Bohemian license or some other license? It is impossible to ship as a 3M now in the US flag. Any help would be greatly appreciated.[/QUOTE]
You will need to have your license and STCW certificate “endorsed” by the country where the ship you will work on is registered. An “endorsement” is the issuance of an STCW document by a country based on the mariner already having one issued by another country. The original U.S. documents would be a “ceretificate” and you would need an endorsement to that certificate to work on another flag’s ships. You should probably at least get an idea of what flag ships you want to work on, and then contact the registry of that country to get your U.S. documents endorsed.
“Bohemian license”??? (I couldn’t resist, I went to high school in Bohemia, NY)
[QUOTE=Axelrod;31989]Does anyone have experience getting a liberian license? I hear they are easy to obtain but can you find jobs and are they worth having?[/QUOTE]
If you want to work on a Liberian Flagged vessel you need one. I worked for Vela ( Saudi Aramco)_ and almost all of their VLCCs are. They only hire Filipinos for 3rd and 2nd though.
I don’t know of ANY one who needs a Bohemian license though, Bahamian maybe, but not Bohemian. 
You have to have a job on a Liberian Flag ship before they will issue a license. Your employer will file the paperwork for the license and seaman’s book.
Finding an employer that will hire Americans is another matter. Maybe some of the containerships that call on US ports all the time. Having a US crew member with a TWIC would probably be pretty helpful to them. Mostly German management companies.
Haha, so Cavo, what was your High School mascot? A Beatnik!!??
I was just wondering is any of these are possible reasons why companies would not hire US crew to work on-board non-US flagged vessels:
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Some foreign flagged vessels might make port calls in countries which are “hostile” to the US, Cuba, N. Korea, and Iran come to mind.
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US crew have higher wage expectations and US crew can “jump” ship in most countries by simply having a US passport and leaving the vessel.
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If a ship was hijacked by pirates, having an American on the crew could lead to increased ransom demands and possible danger to the crew.
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Non-US crew might/could be hostile to having an American crew member on-board…?
no, none of those reasons come to mind in my experiences working “foreign”.
the most common complaints I hear are: 1. fear of litigation , 2. poor quality of seamanship, and 3. fat
[QUOTE=SaltySailor;35313]I
- If a ship was hijacked by pirates, having an American on the crew could lead to increased ransom demands and possible danger to the crew.
[/QUOTE]
if anything, the crew of the ship that I am on are happy that there is an American onboard, since now if there is any type of piracy related incident (we are off Oman), the US Navy will immediately respond. at least that’s that they tell me.