I’m hoping someone might help me understand why my OICNW has a tonnage limitation. The checklists only have OICNW 500 and above with no mention of tonnage restrictions and yet mine is OICNW 500-3000. Could this possibly be a mistake by the NMC or is there perhaps a NAVIC of which I’m unaware?
Also, I was grandfathered in for a lot of the classes currently required for the STCW endorsements (OICNW 500-3000, and Master 500-3000).
My second question is: if I’m planning on upgrading to OICNW 3000 and above (and hopefully later into 3000+ Chief and Master) will I have to take these courses or does the grandfathering extend through the raise in grade, even though the grandfathering period is over?
It’s just speculation, but it might have been to match the tonnage limit on your national endorsement (license). Was that limited to 1,600 GRT (or 3,000 GT if it was for OSVs)? Even if you also have Master 500 GT to Less Than 3000 GT, your OICNW shouldn’t be limited. You couldn’t sail as mate on a vessel over 1,600 GRT/3,000 GT without a license for that tonnage, but you still should not have a tonnage cap on OICNW. In any event, you shouldn’t need to do anything more to get endorsement changed to just “500 GT or More.”
If you currently hold Master 1,600 GRT and STCW Master 500 GT to Less Than 3,000 GT, you will have to do more for STCW Master 3,000 GT or More. Unlike OICNW, these are separate endorsements, you would be applying for a different endorsement than the one you were grandfathered to. At a minimum, you will need to do all the assessments in NVIC 10-14 that do not have “Note 1” to indicate that they are not required if you hold Master Less Than 3,000 GT.
Understood. As far as not being able to work with the endorsement, that includes foreign flag? Or is that were the “endorsement” comes in; you have to have the domestic license in order for the endorsement to actually endorce anything?
Yes. No matter where you are working, you need to be within the scope of both your STCW and national endorsements. That’s why the tonnage limit on your OICNW seems unnecessary.
There is a requirement that, with the exception of ETO, to hold an STCW endorsement you must also hold an approriate national endorsement. See 46 CFR 11.201(a) and 12.201(a)(l).
Except the domestic endorsement no longer mentions ITC tonnage so then how is anyone, especially a foreign owner or crewing agency, supposed to know what you’re limited to if the STCW endorsement doesn’t give the ITC tonnage limit?