When to renew your captain's license#
46 CFR 10.227(b) states that a credential "may be renewed at any time during its validity and for 1 year after expiration." The regulation sets no earliest date, but the Coast Guard sets a practical one: its September 2026 bulletin on the Navita launch says renewal applications "may be submitted up to 8 months before expiration and may be postdated up to 8 months." The new credential starts where the old one ends, so an application filed inside those 8 months costs you none of the remaining validity.
Use the whole window. The same bulletin warns that Navita will not immediately shorten processing times — applications are still worked first in, first out — so file as soon as you are inside the 8 months and your medical certificate and competence evidence are ready.
The 1-year window after expiration is a renewal grace period only — the credential is not valid for use after it expires, so you cannot legally exercise its authority during the lapse window.
Renewal is the same federal process in every state — a "Florida captain's license renewal" and a "California captain's license renewal" are the identical MMC renewal — but the nearest Regional Examination Center and off-season timing differ. See the renewal-by-state index for your local REC and scheduling notes.
Under the Inland Navigation Rules, when one of two vessels in sight of one another is required to keep out of the way, what is the primary obligation of the other vessel?
How to file a renewal in Navita (since September 14, 2026)#
On September 14, 2026 the Coast Guard moved credential applications to Navita, a web portal run by the National Maritime Center (NMC). It replaced the ASAP upload portal, which has been discontinued, and the IASKNMC e-mail address is no longer used for questions — those now go through the Case function inside Navita, attached to your application.
You sign in through Login.gov, which verifies your identity before Navita lets you create an account; without a Login.gov account, Navita sends you there to make one first. The application is a guided online form: it flags missing information as you go and will not let you submit until the required items are attached, which targets the most common cause of delay — an incomplete application. You upload the supporting documents to it, Navita calculates the fee, you pay through Pay.gov, and you track status and answer NMC requests in the same account.
Paper applications are still accepted by mail or in person, but the Coast Guard plans to phase them out within the next 12 months and warns that they take "significantly longer" to process. A Regional Examination Center will still review your documents for completeness at an appointment, but RECs do not provide computers or internet access for filing — you submit through Navita yourself afterward.
Already filed before September 14?
- Create or sign in to your Login.gov account
- Start the renewal in Navita's guided application
- Upload the medical certificate, drug-test evidence, and your competence evidence
- Pay the fee Navita calculates, through Pay.gov
- Track status and answer NMC requests through the Case function
The five ways to meet the renewal requirement (46 CFR 10.227)#
To renew, 46 CFR 10.227(e)(1) requires you to demonstrate continued professional competence using ONE of five options:
1. Sea service — at least 1 year of sea service during the past 5 years. The USCG counts a year of sea service as 360 days (46 CFR 10.107), documented on form CG-719S.
2. Open-book exercise — pass a comprehensive, open-book exercise covering the general subject matter of your endorsement.
3. Approved course — complete a Coast Guard-approved refresher or recertification training course.
4. Related employment — at least 3 years during the past 5 years in a qualifying position (instructor, or the operation, construction, or repair of vessels). Deck officers using this option must also pass an applicable open-book Rules of the Road exercise.
5. Teaching — provide evidence of teaching Coast Guard-approved courses relevant to the endorsement at least twice within the past 5 years.
The open-book renewal exercise#
Most recreational captains who don't have a fresh year of sea service choose the open-book exercise. It is a comprehensive, open-book test on the general subject matter of the credential; for deck endorsements that centers on the Rules of the Road. It is typically completed at home or at an approved course provider rather than at a Regional Examination Center.
Because it is open-book and untimed at many providers, the renewal exercise is far less demanding than the original closed-book exam series — but you still need to know where to find each answer. Use the Rules of the Road practice questions to find weak areas, then keep the COLREGs Rules of the Road directory and the Inland Navigation Rules directory beside your renewal materials so you can move from a question to the controlling rule.
USCG captain's license renewal forms — the complete package#
46 CFR 10.227(d) defines what a renewal application must contain. The package is the same MMC paperwork family you used for the original credential, minus the original-issue exam:
1. The signed application for the Merchant Mariner Credential — completed as the guided online application in Navita, or on form CG-719B if you file on paper. Every renewal includes one.
2. Medical certificate — an unexpired USCG medical certificate, or a CG-719K medical application submitted together with the renewal.
3. Drug-test evidence — a passing chemical test result (documented on CG-719P) or proof of enrollment in a random testing program.
4. TWIC evidence — a valid Transportation Worker Identification Credential or proof you have applied for one.
5. Fee payment — $95, or $140 with the open-book exercise (see the cost section below). In Navita the fee is calculated for you and paid through Pay.gov.
6. Consent to a National Driver Register (NDR) check — built into the application.
7. CG-719S sea-service forms — only if you renew on the 1-year-of-sea-service option; one form per vessel under 200 GRT.
Whichever 46 CFR 10.227(e) competence option you choose, its evidence (sea-service forms, course completion certificate, open-book exercise, or teaching/employment documentation) rides along with this package.
Medical certificate, drug test, and TWIC#
46 CFR 10.227(d)(6) requires that you hold an unexpired USCG medical certificate or submit a medical certificate application with your renewal. The Coast Guard charges nothing for that piece — see USCG medical certificate renewal: the fee, the CG-719K, and where to file it for the exam standards and the validity period. Navita takes the medical certificate application too, so a renewal that needs a new one can carry it in the same account.
You must also satisfy the chemical-testing requirement (a current drug test result or proof of enrollment in a random testing program), and hold a valid Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC), which runs on its own 5-year cycle.
How much USCG captain's license renewal costs#
Renewal fees are set in 46 CFR 10.219. For an MMC with an officer endorsement, renewal is a $50 evaluation fee plus a $45 issuance fee — $95 total if you renew on sea service or an approved course. If you take the open-book exercise, add the $45 examination fee for a total of $140.
You may pay each phase separately: the evaluation fee when you submit the application, the examination fee before the exercise, and the issuance fee before the credential is printed. If you file in Navita, it calculates what is due and takes the payment through Pay.gov. These are USCG fees only; an approved course or exam-prep provider charges separately.
Renewing an expired or lapsed captain's license#
If your credential has been expired for less than 1 year, you renew with the same package as an on-time renewal — you simply may not work under the credential until it is reissued.
If it has been expired for more than 1 year, 46 CFR 10.227 requires you to demonstrate continued professional knowledge by completing a course approved for that purpose OR by passing the complete examination required for original issue. This is a knowledge demonstration, not necessarily a full re-evaluation of your original sea service. Active-duty military members may extend the grace period by the length of service that prevented timely renewal.
Document of Continuity — keeping a license alive without renewing#
If you cannot (or don't want to) meet the renewal requirements right now — say you've stopped running trips and have no recent sea service — 46 CFR 10.227(g) lets you exchange the credential for a Document of Continuity instead of letting it lapse.
A Document of Continuity does not expire and does not entitle you to serve as a merchant mariner. What it does is preserve your eligibility: when you are ready to operate again, you renew by meeting the normal 46 CFR 10.227 requirements, rather than starting over with a new original application and the full closed-book exam series. It is the standard move for captains stepping away from the water who want to keep the door open.