License Continuity

:slight_smile:I’m obviously not that detail-oriented.

Yes I have the Med Cert. it expires this year on the same date as the MMC

Also on medical certificates,we just issued a policy letter on getting the expiration date of the medical certificate to match the expiration of the MMC.

Also recently, the NMC began accepting applications for a medical certificate only by direct e-mail to NMC. This is for medical certificates only, if you also are applying for MMC endorsements, the application still needs to go to an REC.

Only for a maximum of 5 years. In continuity it has no expiration date.

So, if you get a physical every year (which is probably good advice anyway) and you take the form 719K with you for the Doc to sign each time, then you will actually have at least nine years you can keep your MMC current no matter what happens to you physically. You get at least four years worth of time on your unexpired medical certificate that you renew every year, and then another 5 years that you get when you renew your MMC the last time before your medical certificate expires (remember not to use MMC for work after medical certificate expires).

I wonder if anyone has put their license into continuity for that long and then decided they needed it again. I’d be afraid I wouldn’t remember how to fill out the forms correctly.

No never mind. You would only get the full nine years if you kept renewing your MMC every year as well. I doubt anyone wants to go through that pain.

But DO remember to ask for renewal anytime you need to modify, ad an endorsement or anything like that. I just increased scope on my one year old MMC and the NMC tried to talk me out of renewing the MMC since the old one was just a year old. Since there is no additional cost to renew when modifying, I insisted that they renew.

Why not really staying ahead of the curve and renewing everything every six months. But seriously you’re forgetting that while you are not sailing on your license your sea time will disappear and if you go to reapply you won’t have the sea time currency so the license will be really lost forever. Putting it in continuance if you intend to be away for a while is good insurance.

Thanks

I don’t think there are many. I call continuity a roach motel, licenses go in but they don’t come out. I’m asked not infrequently about how to restore a long expired license, but have never been asked how to get one out of continuity.

Slapshot,

Not to beat a dead horse, but you should really consider renewing your MMC now before your current medical certificate expires. Instead of attaching the 719K, just attach a photocopy of the medical certificate. If you haven’t recovered to the point you can pass a physical in the next 5 years, then is the time to consider continuity. If you recover early enough, you renew your medical cert for free and go about getting seatime for your next MMC renewal. If you don’t get the seatime, you just take the open book test.

Hey thanks for the info I will try that.

I have a former co-worker who had to put his tankerman assist into continuity because he had no recency…which brings me to this question…

I shouldn’t have to worry about it this now, but down the line I might. If someone has both deck and engine tickets but only has seatime for one in a five year period, will they have to put the other one in continuity? or just taking the open book exam will suffice renewing?

You can renew any national endorsement without sea time. If you don’t have sufficient sea time, you do the open book at-home test.

I don’t see any benefit to your co-worker putting tankerman-assist into continuity, it makes no difference for that particular endorsement. If you don’t have the recent service, you have to take the original course, and that’s the same as it takes to get the endorsement for the first time. For Tankerman-Assitant, there is no benefit to continuity.

he did that because the nmc told him he had to.

so i understand about the open book exam in regards to my specific question…however what would happen with the stcw endorsements such as oicew and oicnw?

See my post above about STCW and continuity.

About how long is the NMC taking to issue a renewal these days?

I realize this is an old thread but I just wanted to point out that this trick no longer works if you have STCW, since STCW classes are required every renewal now.

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Aren’t all the STCW certificates (the ones from the school) valid for 5 years? As long as renewing within those 5 years, you’d just add a copy of the course completion along with application, correct?

That could be true, in which case it’s possible to seriously get around the intent of the STCW rules.

This is only about tankerman but I would assume if you dug into the NVICs for the other STCWs you’d find similar provisions.
“Note: Course used for original issuance or renewal of endorsement
cannot be used for a subsequent renewal of the same endorsement”

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