Last updated 2026-08-21
TL;DR
A six-pack captain is a USCG OUPV operator, capped at 6 passengers and under 100 GRT. Log 360 days of sea time, then stack TWIC, a CG-719K physical, a DOT drug test, first aid/CPR, and an approved course or exam. File with NMC. Confirm fees there. Nothing here is an approval promise.
What is a six-pack captain?
A six-pack captain holds a U.S. Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Credential with an Operator of Uninspected Passenger Vessels endorsement. The street name comes from the passenger cap. Six paying heads. Not a dock load of friends plus a cooler.
Federal law is blunt. 46 U.S.C. 8902 says, "An uninspected passenger vessel shall be operated by an individual licensed by the Secretary to operate that type of vessel, under conditions prescribed by the Secretary." [1] On the small uninspected boats most new captains actually run, that individual is the OUPV operator.
46 U.S.C. 2101 defines an uninspected passenger vessel under 100 gross tons as one carrying not more than 6 passengers, including at least one passenger-for-hire. [2] That is the box. You are not a ferry operator on this ticket. You are not running an inspected small passenger vessel on OUPV paper. You take passengers for hire on an uninspected boat, you stay inside six, and you stay inside 100 GRT.
The plastic is an MMC. The job title on it is an officer endorsement, OUPV. It can read inland, Great Lakes and inland, or near coastal. Sailing and assistance towing are extras you earn, not gifts. Manning rules still put that operator in charge. 46 CFR 15.605 is the regulation that points an uninspected passenger vessel at a person holding the right license or MMC. [13]
If a buddy swears six-pack means six paying guests plus kids on laps, ignore it. Count people the way the statute counts people. The endorsement caps you at not more than six passengers on uninspected vessels not more than 100 GRT under 46 CFR 11.467. [3]
How do you start six-pack captain licensing?
You start by proving time on the water, then you stack identity, medical, and exam paper, then you file an MMC application with the National Maritime Center. There is no shortcut that skips sea time. Schools that hint otherwise are selling a course, not a credential.
The working order most people should use is simple. Log days now, even if the license is a year out. Book a TWIC appointment on the TSA side while the sea log grows, because card wait is not under NMC control. [9] Book a DOT 5-panel through a lab that knows Coast Guard forms. Sit the CG-719K physical with a physician who will actually complete the Coast Guard medical form, not a vague "fit for duty" letter. [7] [12] Take first aid and CPR that NMC will recognize. Finish an approved OUPV course or sit the Coast Guard exam. Then file.
46 CFR 11.201 sets the general original officer rules: age, English, medical fitness, and related proofs. [4] You need to be at least 18 for this officer endorsement. You also need to show you can understand English well enough to use charts, radios, and orders. Citizenship is narrower than people think. U.S. citizens are the default for officer endorsements, with a written exception that can let a lawful permanent resident hold OUPV on uninspected vessels under 100 GRT. Read 46 CFR 10.221 before you pay a school if your status is not a U.S. passport. [6]
Do not treat a state boating card as the federal license. Some states add their own for-hire rules on lakes and inland waters. That is extra, not a substitute. Confirm the state piece with the state, and confirm the federal piece with NMC. No one can honestly promise you an issue date.
If you want a side-by-side of routes people confuse with OUPV, keep six-pack captain guide 11 open while you build the file.
How much sea time do you need for an OUPV?
You need 360 days of qualifying service for an original OUPV endorsement. 46 CFR 11.467 sets that number. [3] A portion of it has to be recent. Plan on 90 days in the last three years unless NMC tells you a different recency fact on the checklist you file against.
Near coastal is not free. If you want the near-coastal OUPV, the regulation expects a block of those days on ocean or near-coastal waters, commonly 90 days. Inland time alone will not buy the coastal box. Near coastal, once you hold it, covers inland. Inland does not cover near coastal. I'd get near coastal if there is any chance you will run outside the demarcation line. Paying twice in time because you cheapened the geography is a miserable way to spend a winter.
What counts as a day is where files die. 46 CFR 10.232 is the sea service rule, not your marina brag book. [11] A day is defined in that section, with extra math for small vessels and for boats that work long clocks. On a lot of sub-100 GRT boats, NMC still credits a calendar day when the write-up shows at least four hours, but read the current text of 10.232 next to 11.467 instead of trusting a forum post. Sloppy logs bounce.
Use CG-719S for small-vessel sea service if you do not have shipping articles or a discharge. Name the vessel, official number or registration, GRT or length, waters, dates, and the work you actually did. "Helped out on weekends" is not a day. Owner letters help when they look like records. They fail when they look like favors.
Nobody has clean public data on how many OUPV files fail on sea time versus medical. The closest thing you have is NMC's own bounce letters, and those are individual. Write the log like an auditor will read it, because one will.
What papers does the Coast Guard actually collect?
NMC collects an MMC application, identity, sea service, medical, drug test, TWIC proof, first aid/CPR, and either an approved-course completion or exam results. The application form is CG-719B. Sea time for most six-pack applicants is CG-719S. Medical is CG-719K. Drug testing is CG-719P or an equivalent consortium letter NMC will accept.
Fees sit in Table 1 to 46 CFR 10.219. That table lists evaluation, examination, and issuance charges for officer MMCs. [5] Those dollar figures change. Read the table, then pay what NMC invoices. I will not quote a fee here, because a stale number is how people mail the wrong amount.
46 CFR 10.214 is the security piece that pushes you toward a TWIC. [14] 46 CFR 10.302 is the medical standards section behind the CG-719K. [7] Chemical testing for an original MMC is an applicant test under 46 CFR 16.210, not a story about how you "don't do drugs." [8]
Keep copies of everything. NMC does not owe you a scavenger hunt if a lab loses a result. If you want the forms and a bareboat charter paper stack in one folder, OUPVPath sells a $149 one-time USCG OUPV + Bareboat Kit at /start. You do not need it. The Coast Guard forms are free on official sites.
Evaluation of the file is not a vibe check. Incomplete packages sit. Wrong waters on CG-719S sit. A physical that leaves the Coast Guard questions blank sits. Build the stack once.
Do you need a TWIC, a physical, and a drug test?
Yes. For a normal original OUPV MMC, plan on a valid TWIC, a CG-719K medical certificate process, and a DOT chemical test. Skipping one is how a "complete" school packet still dies at NMC.
TWIC comes from TSA, not from the sea school. Enroll through TSA's TWIC program, get printed, and keep the card alive through issuance. [9] 46 CFR 10.214 is why the Coast Guard cares. [14] If TSA delays you, NMC cannot print a faster TSA card. Start TWIC early.
The physical is not a sports physical. 46 CFR 10.302 sets merchant mariner medical standards, and NMC's medical certificate pages tell physicians how to fill CG-719K. [7] [12] Color vision, hearing, chronic conditions, medications, and sleep disorders are where files get messy. Waivers exist for some conditions. They are not casual. If you take a medication that makes a reviewer pause, get the supporting letters before you file, not after a hold.
The drug test is a DOT 5-panel from a collector who knows the Coast Guard form. 46 CFR 16.210 is the applicant testing rule. [8] A clinic special that is not DOT will waste a morning. Timing windows are short. Confirm the current acceptable window on NMC's drug testing guidance before you pee in a cup six months too early, or a week too late.
First aid and CPR still show up on original officer checklists even when people argue about the exact 11.201 subsection. Bring current cards. If a provider is not the kind NMC lists as acceptable, you bought a wall certificate.
Inland vs near-coastal six-pack: what's the difference?
Inland OUPV keeps you inside inland waters. Near-coastal OUPV lets you run the near-coastal waters the endorsement names, and it also covers inland. Great Lakes language is its own box if that is where you actually work.
The passenger cap does not change with the waters box. Six is still six. Tonnage does not change. 100 GRT is still 100 GRT. [3] What changes is where you may take the boat for hire, and what sea time you had to show to get that geography.
I'd file near coastal if your business is coastal fishing, sunset runs that creep outside the line, or a move to another coast later. Inland is fine if you truly live on a river or a lake and will stay there. People pick inland to save ocean days, then spend a season turning down jobs on the bay. That is a planning error, not a Coast Guard error.
Boundary lines and COLREGS demarcation lines are chart facts, not bar facts. If you cannot point to the line on a chart, you are not ready to argue inland versus coastal with a boarding officer. For how this choice stacks against other tickets people shop, see six-pack captain guide 17.
What does a six-pack captain license let you carry?
It lets you carry not more than six passengers on an uninspected passenger vessel not more than 100 GRT, on the waters named on the MMC. [2] [3] Crew is separate from passengers, but you do not get to relabel Aunt Sue as deckhand because you sold seven seats.
Passenger-for-hire is the tripwire. If even one person on board paid, the uninspected passenger vessel definition in 46 U.S.C. 2101 is in play. [2] A "shared gas money" story falls apart when the cash is the reason the boat left the dock. Bareboat charter is a different legal shape. If you remain in charge, it is not a bareboat. For that distinction against OUPV, read six-pack captain guide 23.
OUPV does not authorize you to run an inspected small passenger vessel just because you already take six people fishing. Inspected boats live under a Certificate of Inspection and need the matching master or mate endorsement. OUPV is the uninspected six-pack tool. Use it for that.
Tonnage is measured tonnage, not "it looks small." A fat pontoon or a heavy cat can surprise people who thought 100 GRT was a yacht number. If you do not know the vessel's GRT or the simplified measurement result, you do not know if your license fits the boat.
Course or Coast Guard exam: which path is less painful?
Most first-time six-pack captains should take an NMC-approved OUPV course and use the completion letter to satisfy the exam requirement. Sitting the Coast Guard exam without a class is legal. It is also how people with real wheel time still fail rules of the road in a fluorescent room.
Approved courses exist because 46 CFR Part 11 lets Coast Guard-accepted training replace examination when the school and the course sit on NMC's list. If the school is not on that list, you bought a pep talk. Confirm the provider on NMC's training pages before you pay.
I would not pay extra for hotel-ballroom upselling, logo hats, or "lifetime refresher" padding. Pay for an approved course that actually issues the letter NMC wants. Radar is optional for a basic OUPV. Assistance towing is worth it if you will ever take money to pull a broken boat. Sailing is required if the for-hire boat is a sailboat and you want that endorsement on the card.
Exam subjects still matter even inside a course. Rules of the road, navigation, deck general, and the OUPV-specific pieces are the usual pile. If you cannot plot a simple course or light a tug, do not schedule the test to "get it over with."
What does the first year of six-pack work actually look like?
The first year is paper, then boring professional habits, then the slow realization that six passengers still create Coast Guard and IRS facts. The license is permission to be the operator. It is not a business license, a trade name, insurance, or a hull that meets the uninspected passenger vessel safety gear rules.
Insurers will ask for the MMC, sea time, and sometimes a drug program. Uninspected passenger vessels still need the safety equipment 46 CFR Subchapter C points at, including life jackets that fit the people you actually carry. Boardings are not theoretical. Keep the MMC, TWIC, and vessel papers where you can reach them with one hand.
Money is lumpy. Six seats on a 22-foot boat is not a yacht program. People underprice sunset trips, then skip engine reserves. I'd rather run fewer trips at a price that covers a blown impeller than stack discount Groupon loads. For how operators compare that grind with other tickets, see six-pack captain guide 35.
State tax, local dock rules, and marine sanitation rules will find you faster than NMC will. None of that is on the OUPV exam. Write it down anyway. Keep a simple log of trips, weather, and gear. If nothing else, it makes next year's insurance renewal less of a shrug.
What trips people up on the MMC application?
Sea service that cannot be reconstructed is the classic kill. Next is a CG-719K with blanks, a drug test that is the wrong panel, and a TWIC that is still "in process" in the applicant's head. Criminal history and NDR issues are real too. 46 CFR 11.201 and the Part 10 application rules expect you to disclose, not to hope. [4]
Do not invent vessel numbers. Do not round 40 days into 90. Do not list ocean time on a lake. NMC evaluators have seen every cute version of this.
Photos, signatures, and payment still wreck otherwise clean files. If you apply through the current NMC portal, follow that portal's upload list rather than a 2014 blog. Confirm the live checklist on NMC's site the week you file. Checklists get revised.
Processing time is not a promise. NMC publishes snapshots of pending work. Those snapshots move. Anyone selling a guaranteed issue week is selling. After you hold the card, keep the medical certificate alive. A license with an expired medical is a paperweight on a passenger trip.
How does OUPV compare with a 100-ton Master?
OUPV is the six-passenger uninspected ticket. Master of near-coastal steam or motor vessels of not more than 100 GRT is a different original endorsement with a heavier sea-time bill. 46 CFR 11.428 is the Master NC 100 section, and it asks for 720 days of service, not 360. [15] [3]
If you only need six paying passengers on an uninspected boat, OUPV is the paper that matches the work. If you need to run an inspected small passenger vessel, OUPV will not get you there. Buy the Master path when the boat and the COI demand it, not because a forum said Master "looks more professional."
| Limit | OUPV six-pack | Master NC not more than 100 GRT |
|---|---|---|
| Original sea time | 360 days [3] | 720 days [15] |
| Uninspected passenger cap | 6 [2] [3] | still 6 if the vessel is uninspected |
| Inspected small passenger vessels | Not on OUPV | Possible if the MMC and COI match |
| Tonnage cap on the endorsement | not more than 100 GRT [3] | not more than 100 GRT [15] |
Raises of grade later are possible if you keep logging real days. Starting on OUPV is not a trap if that is the work you have. Starting on Master because you might someday want 20 heads is how people stall for two extra seasons. More comparison pages sit at six-pack captain guide 47 and six-pack captain guide 65.
When do you renew, and what is not required yet?
Plan on a 5-year MMC term. 46 U.S.C. 7106 states, "A license issued under this part is valid for a 5-year period and may be renewed for additional 5-year periods." [10] Medical certificates can run on a shorter clock than the MMC itself. Track both dates.
Renewal is its own Part 10 process, with recency of service or a refresher path if your days went stale. Do not wait until month 59 to discover you needed sea time you never wrote down. Keep the log alive even in a slow year.
You do not need STCW for a domestic six-pack on uninspected passenger vessels in the usual near-coastal or inland pattern. You do not need a radar observer endorsement to hold basic OUPV. You may need radar later if the vessel or the route makes it honest. You do not need a 100-ton Master to take six people fishing.
Confirm every current fee, medical quirk, and portal step with NMC the week you act. OUPVPath is an independent publisher, not a law firm and not a Coast Guard contractor. Use /start only if you want the kit. For adjacent comparisons people ask after renewal talks, see six-pack captain guide 83.
Frequently asked questions
What is a six-pack captain?
It is the common name for a USCG OUPV operator. The MMC endorsement lets you operate uninspected passenger vessels not more than 100 GRT with not more than six passengers, including at least one passenger-for-hire. It is a federal officer endorsement, not a state boating card. See 46 U.S.C. 2101 and 46 CFR 11.467.
How do you start becoming a six-pack captain?
Log 360 days of qualifying sea time, then gather TWIC, a CG-719K medical, a DOT drug test, first aid/CPR, and an approved course or Coast Guard exam. File CG-719B and CG-719S with NMC. Confirm live fees in 46 CFR 10.219 and on NMC. No school can issue the credential. No timeline here is a guarantee.
How many passengers can a six-pack captain carry?
Six, on an uninspected passenger vessel, when at least one is a passenger-for-hire. That cap comes from 46 U.S.C. 2101 and 46 CFR 11.467. Relabeling extras as crew does not work if they paid to be there. Inspected passenger vessels are a different manning and endorsement problem.
How many sea days do you need for an OUPV?
360 days of qualifying service for an original OUPV, per 46 CFR 11.467, with recency and, for near coastal, ocean or near-coastal days mixed in. How a day is counted lives in 46 CFR 10.232. Write CG-719S so an evaluator can rebuild the trips without guessing.
Can a green card holder get an OUPV?
Sometimes. Officer endorsements default to U.S. citizens, but 46 CFR 10.221 includes a path for a lawful permanent resident to hold OUPV on uninspected vessels under 100 GRT. Bring the immigration paper NMC lists. Do not let a school guess your status. Confirm with NMC before you pay tuition.
Do you need a TWIC for a six-pack captain license?
Plan on yes for a normal original MMC with an officer endorsement. 46 CFR 10.214 is the security rule, and TSA runs the TWIC program. Start enrollment early, because TSA and NMC are not the same queue. Carry the card with the MMC once you are working.
Does OUPV let you run a charter with 8 people?
Not as paying passengers on an uninspected six-pack boat. Eight passenger heads breaks the uninspected passenger vessel definition of not more than 6 on vessels under 100 GRT. A true bareboat charter is a different structure, and only if you are actually out of command. Most "eight friends split the cost" trips are still for-hire.
Should you get inland or near-coastal OUPV?
Get near coastal if you might work outside inland waters. Near coastal covers inland. Inland does not cover near coastal. You will need the ocean or near-coastal sea days 46 CFR 11.467 expects for that box. Pick based on the jobs you will take, not based on a slightly easier log.
How long is a six-pack MMC good for?
Five years from issuance under 46 U.S.C. 7106, with renewal for more 5-year periods if you still qualify. Medical certificates can expire sooner than the MMC. Track both. Renewal still needs recency or an accepted refresher path under Part 10. Confirm the current renewal checklist with NMC.
Can you skip the approved course and just take the Coast Guard exam?
Yes. An original OUPV can be earned by exam at a Coast Guard-accepted location. An NMC-approved course is the path most people should buy, because the completion letter replaces that exam. Unapproved prep classes do not. Verify the school on NMC's training list before you pay.
What form logs small-vessel sea time?
CG-719S is the small vessel sea service form most six-pack applicants use. List vessel identity, size, waters, dates, and the work you did. Owner letters should read like records. 46 CFR 10.232 is the rule for what a day is. Keep copies of registrations and a logbook that matches the form.
Do you need radar for a six-pack captain endorsement?
No, not for a basic OUPV. Radar observer is a separate endorsement. Skip it until the boat, the route, or an insurer makes it real. Assistance towing and sailing are the add-ons that match actual six-pack work more often than radar does on a clear-day fishing skiff.
What is the 100 GRT cap in practice?
The OUPV endorsement is limited to uninspected vessels not more than 100 GRT. GRT is measured tonnage, not length folklore. If you do not have the vessel's tonnage document or a proper simplified measurement, you do not know if your MMC fits. Oversized party boats are how people outgrow six-pack paper.
Are USCG processing times guaranteed?
No. NMC posts processing snapshots that change. Medical holds, TWIC lags, and incomplete CG-719S files add time that no course brochure controls. Treat every advertised issue date as marketing. File complete, then watch your NMC application status. This publisher does not promise approvals or dates.
Sources
- U.S. Code 46 U.S.C. § 8902 Uninspected passenger vessels: An uninspected passenger vessel must be operated by an individual licensed by the Secretary under prescribed conditions.
- U.S. Code 46 U.S.C. § 2101 Definitions: Uninspected passenger vessels under 100 gross tons are defined around a limit of not more than 6 passengers, including at least one passenger-for-hire.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 11.467 OUPV endorsement: Original OUPV requires 360 days of service and is limited to uninspected vessels not more than 100 GRT carrying not more than six passengers.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 11.201 Officer endorsement eligibility: General original officer rules include minimum age, English language ability, and medical and related proofs.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 10.219 Fees: Table 1 lists Coast Guard evaluation, examination, and issuance fees for merchant mariner credentials.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 10.221 Citizenship and nationality: Officer endorsements default to U.S. citizens, with a stated path for lawful permanent residents to hold OUPV on uninspected vessels under 100 GRT.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 10.302 Medical standards: Merchant mariner medical certification standards sit in 46 CFR 10.302 and drive the CG-719K process.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 16.210 Applicant drug testing: MMC applicants must pass a chemical test for dangerous drugs under Coast Guard Part 16 applicant testing rules.
- TSA Transportation Worker Identification Credential: TWIC enrollment and issuance are run by TSA, separate from NMC credential evaluation.
- U.S. Code 46 U.S.C. § 7106 Duration of licenses: A license issued under that part is valid for a 5-year period and may be renewed for additional 5-year periods.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 10.232 Sea service: Sea service days are computed under 46 CFR 10.232, including how hours on vessels convert to creditable days.
- USCG National Maritime Center Medical Certificate: NMC publishes medical certificate instructions and CG-719K process details for mariners and examiners.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 15.605 Uninspected passenger vessels: Uninspected passenger vessels must be under the direction and control of an individual holding the proper license or MMC endorsement.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 10.214 Security and TWIC: MMC applicants are subject to security requirements that include holding a TWIC as specified in Part 10.
- eCFR 46 CFR § 11.428 Master NC not more than 100 GRT: Master of near-coastal steam or motor vessels of not more than 100 GRT requires 720 days of service for the original endorsement.