Your MMC renewal, on one card.
A Merchant Mariner Credential runs 5 years from issue. Put in your date and this card counts down, shows when to file so the new one starts the day the old one ends, and checks off the pieces: sea service, drug test, medical certificate and TWIC. Free, no sign-up, and it all stays on this phone.
Your credential
0 days
The next date, years on. The board renews on this cycle but hasn't posted this date yet; check the National Maritime Center.
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How to renew
- File inside 8 months. The NMC post-dates a plain renewal up to 8 months from acceptance, so the new credential starts when the old one ends. File earlier and the new 5 years start early (46 CFR 10.205).
- Meet the professional requirement. 360 days of sea service in the past 5 years (CG-719S or sea service letters), or the open-book exercise (email NMCRenewalExams@uscg.mil once you have an approval-to-test letter), or an approved refresher course. Deck officers renewing without sea service also need Rules of the Road unless the course covers it. National Renewal Checklist (PDF).
- Drug test, DOT 5-panel, dated within 185 days of filing (NMC drug testing). Medical certificate due too? Have a CG-719K completed.
- TWIC: hold one, show you applied, or attach the exemption statement if you work only on vessels without a security plan (NMC TWIC page).
- Pay the $50 evaluation fee when you apply and the $45 issuance fee before it's issued, on Pay.gov (the NMC requires Pay.gov since January 19, 2025).
- Submit the CG-719B and attachments in Navita, the NMC's application portal.
| Fee (46 CFR 10.219) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Evaluation, at application | $50 |
| Open-book exercise, only if you take it | $45 |
| Issuance, before it's issued | $45 |
| Medical certificate | $0 |
So $95 renewing by sea service, $140 with the open-book exercise. Fee table: 46 CFR 10.219.
If it expires first
- You can't sail on it: "An MMC, and any endorsements thereon, is not valid for use after the expiration date" (46 CFR 10.227(h)).
- You can still renew. The rule allows 12 months; Coast Guard Policy Letter 01-24 (April 2024) stretched the administrative grace period to 6 years, and the renewal checklist says so.
- Past that, you show continued knowledge with an approved course or the full exam for original issue (10.227(i)).
- Ashore for a while? A Document of Continuity keeps you eligible to renew and doesn't expire (10.227(g)).
Where every number comes from
- Renew any time it's valid, professional options, medical, TWIC, after expiry: 46 CFR 10.227 (renewal)
- 5 years; post-dated up to 8 months: 46 CFR 10.205
- Drug test within 185 days: 46 CFR 16.220
- Medical certificate up to 5 years national, 2 STCW: 46 CFR 10.301
- Renewal fees: 46 CFR 10.219
- Renewal steps, Navita: National Maritime Center
- 360 days in 5 years; 6-year grace: NMC National Renewal Checklist (PDF)
- Grace period one year to six: CG-MMC Policy Letter 01-24 (PDF)
- Pay.gov; medical certificate free: NMC fees
Checked October 27, 2026.