OUPV (Six-Pack) and Master credential paths for charter boats, tour boats, and passenger-for-hire operators in New Hampshire.
It isn't a state license — it's the same federal USCG Merchant Mariner Credential with an OUPV or Master endorsement, used nationwide.
New Hampshire's narrow coastline and Lake Winnipesaukee tour-boat scene supports OUPV Inland and OUPV Near-Coastal.
The nearest USCG Regional Examination Center is Boston, MA. Compare centers and appointment rules in the USCG REC locations guide.
Major New Hampshire charter hubs
New Hampshire's whole coast is governed by one section written for its neighbours, and the answer differs by a few hundred yards. 33 CFR 80.115(a) says the 72 COLREGS shall apply on the harbors, bays, and inlets from Portland Head to Halibut Point at Cape Ann — so Hampton Beach and the open coast are International Rules water — while 80.115(b) draws Portsmouth Harbor's line across the Piscataqua entrance, making the harbour inside it inland water. Lake Winnipesaukee is a different question again: no Part 80 line reaches it, so it is inland water under 83.03(q) if it is navigable water of the United States at all, and that is an OCMI determination. Candidates test at REC Boston.
No Part 80 section is titled for New Hampshire. The state's eighteen miles of coast sit inside 33 CFR 80.115, headed Portland Head, ME to Cape Ann, MA, whose paragraph (b) draws Portsmouth Harbor's line from the southernmost tower on Gerrish Island to Whaleback Light, to Jaffrey Point Light 2A, to Frost Point.
COLREGS Demarcation Lines covering New Hampshire — 33 CFR Part 80
Both kinds of section appear above, so "New Hampshire" is not by itself an answer — the water is. This decides which rulebook you steer by, not where your credential may operate: the route limit is the 46 CFR Part 7 Boundary Line, and the two lines are not drawn in the same place. How the two lines differ · International Rules · Inland Rules
33 CFR Part 80 and the Part 83 definitions above read from eCFR on 12 Aug 2026. Any specific water is a determination for the cognizant Coast Guard Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection.
Not sure the trip needs a credential at all? The captain's-license trigger guide.
Inspected small-passenger-vessel authority — that is a Master.
Master requirementsDocument your sea service
Pass the medical & drug test
CG-719K and CG-719P — medical certificate guide.
Get a TWIC + CPR / First Aid
Submit your application to the NMC
Pass the exam at REC Boston, MA
Or an approved course provider — what it covers and the score you need.
There is no New Hampshire captain's license to get — you earn a federal USCG credential, in the five steps set out above, and sit the exam at REC Boston, MA.
The same — a federal Merchant Mariner Credential endorsement, valid in every state. New Hampshire licenses the business, the guide and local fishing separately.
The minimum age is federal, not set by New Hampshire: 18 for OUPV, 19 for most Master endorsements, 21 for higher-tonnage and ocean routes (46 CFR 11.201(e)).
At REC Boston, MA once the NMC approves the application, or through an approved course provider that administers the exam itself.
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