What a six-pack captain license in Arkansas actually takes

Last updated 2026-08-19

Do you need a license for six-pack captain in Arkansas?

Yes, if you carry passengers for hire on navigable waters of the United States. Arkansas does not issue a six-pack captain license. The card is a federal Merchant Mariner Credential with an Operator of Uninspected Passenger Vessels endorsement from the Coast Guard National Maritime Center.

Federal law is short. 46 U.S.C. 8903 says: "An uninspected passenger vessel shall be operated by an individual licensed by the Secretary to operate that type of vessel, under prescribed regulations." ^[4] The manning rule says the same thing in plainer Coast Guard English. 46 CFR 15.605 states: "Each uninspected passenger vessel must be under the direction and control of an individual credentialed by the Coast Guard." ^[5]

Pay is the switch. If customers pay you, or pay a shop that pays you, to be on the boat, and you carry six or fewer, you are in six-pack territory. Splitting fuel with friends is a fact pattern I will not bless in a paragraph. If the trip is the product, get the credential.

A private pond with no navigable connection usually sits outside Coast Guard manning. That exception does not cover the Arkansas River, the Mississippi, or the big Corps lakes people actually charter. I would not run a paid trip on Beaver or Dardanelle on a theory from a comment thread. Ask Sector Lower Mississippi or the Officer in Charge, Marine Inspection. Then get the card.

You still owe state paper. Boat numbering through the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, possible guide credentials if you fish for pay, city privilege licenses, tax accounts. None of it replaces the MMC. Neighboring states run on the same federal skeleton. The six-pack captain license in Alabama writeup is the same Coast Guard pile with different state add-ons.

If you want the order of operations for standing the business up after the card, use how to start six-pack captain in Arkansas.

What does a six-pack captain license actually let you do?

It lets you operate an uninspected passenger vessel under 100 gross register tons with no more than six passengers for hire, on the waters printed on the endorsement. That is the whole product. It is not a Master license. It is not a ticket for a 20-person barge.

Inland and near-coastal are different stamps. Inland covers inland waters of the United States. Near-coastal is the coastal strip (not more than 100 miles offshore) plus inland, as NMC prints it. ^[1] Most Arkansas operators only need inland. Buy near-coastal if the Gulf is a real plan, not a maybe.

Gross tonnage is a measured volume, not the length on the trailer bunks. A typical 24 to 36 foot fishing boat sits under 100 GRT. The six-passenger cap counts paying passengers. Crew is crew. Don't call a paying uncle "crew" so you can seat seven. Boarding officers have heard it.

Uninspected is the legal category that makes six-pack possible. Carry more than six passengers for hire and you land in inspected small passenger vessel rules, a Certificate of Inspection, and a different license path. I would not test that line to squeeze one more rod fee.

Here is the comparison people in this state actually need.

Path	Minimum service	Where it is good	Passengers for hire
Standard OUPV	360 days	Inland or near-coastal as endorsed	6
Limited OUPV	90 days	Only the local area the OCMI writes	6
No federal card	None	Private non-navigable water, and even that is a facts question	Do not take pay on U.S. navigable water

A Master endorsement is a bigger credential. You do not need it to run a six-pack boat. People upsell it anyway. Skip it until a boat or a route forces the issue. California and Alaska operators chase different water and different add-on paper, but the OUPV core is still this federal card. See six-pack captain license in California or six-pack captain license in Alaska if you are comparing coasts to inland.

How much does six-pack captain cost in Arkansas?

Coast Guard user fees for an original officer endorsement are published, not guessed. 46 CFR 10.219 lists original officer evaluation at $100, examination at $45, and issuance at $45. ^[2] That $190 is the federal cash to NMC if you sit the exam. It is not the full cost of getting legal.

You will also pay TSA for a TWIC, a clinic for the CG-719K physical, a DOT 5-panel drug test that meets 46 CFR part 16, and a first aid plus CPR class the Coast Guard will accept. ^[8][11][12] Those prices move by zip code. I will not invent them. Confirm the TWIC amount on the TSA page when you book. Confirm the physical with a doctor who has actually finished a CG-719K. Some family clinics have never seen the form and waste a visit.

A USCG-approved OUPV course, if you want the exam waiver, often runs several hundred dollars. Schools advertise hard. Compare the current approved list on the NMC training page, not a Facebook ad. ^[13] If the course is accepted, you may not owe the $45 examination fee. Travel to a Regional Exam Center is real money if you sit exams yourself. Memphis is the usual drive for a lot of Arkansas applicants. Confirm the desk on the NMC page before you book a hotel. ^[6]

Skip the "state of Arkansas captain license" product. It does not exist. I also would not buy the most expensive coastal course if I only planned Greers Ferry. Spend on sea-time documentation quality and a clean medical file. That is where files stall.

State-side, budget for AGFC boat registration if the vessel is numbered here, any guide license AGFC actually requires for paid fishing, and entity or tax filings if you form a company. Confirm those fees on the AGFC registration page and the Secretary of State fee schedule. They change. ^[9]

How long does six-pack captain take in Arkansas?

Sea time is the clock. A standard OUPV needs 360 days of service. ^[1] On many inland boats under 100 GRT, 46 CFR 10.107 lets 4 hours of work in a 24-hour period count as 1 day, capped at 1 day per calendar day. ^[3] Run 4 honest hours a day and 360 calendar days of that work is about a year. Get out only on weekends and the calendar stretches for years. Do the math on your real hours.

A limited OUPV for a defined local area can be 90 days. ^[1] That is the honest fast path for someone who will only ever run one lake. It is not a national six-pack. Leave that lake and the endorsement does not travel.

After the days are real, the file is medical, TWIC, drug test, first aid, application, then either course completion or REC exams. NMC processing time is not a number I will guess. The National Maritime Center posts current processing times and they move. Check that board. No approval date is promised here.

If you already have the days in a log you can defend, some people finish the remaining paper in a couple of months. Starting from zero sea time on Monday, you are not a captain in June unless you are on the water constantly and you qualify for the 90-day limited. Plan the standard path in years, not weekends.

How much sea time do you need for an Arkansas OUPV?

A standard OUPV endorsement requires 360 days of service under 46 CFR 11.467. ^[1] You also need recency. The credential rules look for recent service under 46 CFR 10.232, so a dusty deckhand year from a long time ago is not enough by itself. ^[16] Read 10.232 and 11.201 with your actual dates in hand. ^[15]

How you prove it is the fight. NMC wants Small Vessel Sea Service forms (CG-719S) or equivalent letters. If you owned the boat, you can document your own time, but you need a story that holds. Registration, dated photos, trip logs, tax filings that show charter activity, marina receipts. Inventing 360 days on a boat you bought last fall is a false statement problem. Don't do it.

Time as a passenger does not count. Time waterskiing with your kids does not count. Time you were actually operating or doing deck work on a vessel underway is the point. If a friend owns a six-pack operation, get a signed letter with dates, waters, vessel size, and the job you held. Vague letters bounce.

For Arkansas inland boats, use the 4-hour day rule only if it actually applies to your vessel and waters under 10.107. ^[3] Don't double-count a 2-hour evening hop as a day. Don't credit 3 days for one long weekend unless the hours and the calendar days are real. NMC readers can add.

Keep copies of everything you send. If NMC asks a question, answer with documents, not a speech.

What is a limited OUPV and does it work on Arkansas lakes?

Yes, a limited OUPV can work if you will stay inside one defined local area and the OCMI will write that limit. 46 CFR 11.467 lets the Coast Guard issue an OUPV limited to a specific local area with 90 days of service instead of 360. ^[1] The area has to be specific. "Arkansas" is not a local area. "Lake Ouachita" or a named reach of the Arkansas River is the kind of description that belongs in the request.

I would use the limited card as a one-lake fishing guide who wanted to get legal without waiting out a full 360. I would not use it planning to trailer from Bull Shoals to the Mississippi. That plan needs the broader inland endorsement, which means the 360-day pile.

Ask NMC and the OCMI in writing how they want the geographic limit phrased before you pay a school that promises "90-day six-pack, run anywhere." Schools oversell this. The regulation is local. The card will say so.

You still need the same medical, TWIC, drug test, first aid, and application fees. The limited path cuts sea days. It does not cut the rest of the file. ^[2][8][12]

Which Arkansas waters actually require a Coast Guard license?

U.S. navigable waters, when you carry passengers for hire. 33 CFR 2.36 is the Coast Guard definition of navigable waters of the United States. ^[14] The Arkansas River navigation system and the Mississippi River are not close calls. Many Corps of Engineers lakes sit on historically navigable rivers. Nobody has a clean public lake-by-lake chart for charter operators. The closest official answer is the OCMI for your water.

Run paid trips on Beaver, Bull Shoals, Norfork, Greers Ferry, Ouachita, Dardanelle, or the river locks, and you either get the federal credential or get a written answer from the Coast Guard. Hoping a lake is "just state water" is how people meet boarding officers without a card.

Buffalo National River is National Park Service water. Commercial work there is a park permit problem on top of whatever manning rule applies. Call the park. Don't lean on a forum post from 2014.

Non-navigable private water is the narrow exception. Even there, AGFC boating rules can still apply to the motorboat. AGFC requires a state boating education card for motorboat operators born on or after January 1, 1986. ^[10] That card is not a captain license.

Dry-state comparisons help only for the add-on paper. Arizona lake operators still hold the same federal OUPV if the water falls under Coast Guard manning. See six-pack captain license in Arizona if you are weighing a trailer program across state lines.

What paperwork does the National Maritime Center want?

The same federal stack everyone else sends. Original officer application, identity and citizenship or permanent-resident proof, TWIC, CG-719K medical, drug test result or CG-719P, first aid and CPR, sea service, fees through the Coast Guard payment process, and exams or an approved-course completion. ^{[6][7][8][12]}

46 CFR 10.221 lets an OUPV go to a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident. Other officer endorsements are pickier on citizenship. ^[7] Age is 18 for this officer endorsement under 46 CFR 11.201. ^[15]

The medical form is where DIY files die. Read 46 CFR 10.302 and the instructions on the CG-719K. ^[12] Color vision, medications, sleep apnea, insulin, seizures. A doctor who shrugs and initials blanks helps no one. If you have a condition, expect a delay. NMC decides what they waive, not me.

OUPVPath publishes a $149 one-time USCG OUPV + Bareboat Kit that stacks the federal forms and sea-service templates. Use it or don't. The regulations are public.

Drug testing is 46 CFR part 16, not a home kit from a drugstore. ^[8] The sample has to run through the DOT chain. A weekend strip-mall panel is often worthless for NMC.

Exams, if you skip an approved course, are Rules of the Road, navigation general, deck general, and the plotter problems for the route you want. Fail windows are real. Study the current NMC exam material, not a 2008 quiz dump.

Do you still need Arkansas boat and business paper after the Coast Guard card?

Yes. The MMC is permission to operate the vessel as a licensed operator. It is not a state business license, a hull number, or a tax account.

Register the boat with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission if it is a state-numbered vessel. Fees and length classes sit on the AGFC boat registration page. Confirm them there. ^[9] Documented vessels (Coast Guard documentation) are a different numbering story and still may need state use paper. Don't mix those up.

If paying clients are fishing, ask AGFC whether a guide license applies to your trips. I will not invent a fee or pretend every sunset cruise needs a fishing guide card. Fishing for pay and sightseeing are different facts. Confirm with the agency that writes tickets.

Forming an LLC is optional for a lot of sole owners and useful for others. Arkansas Secretary of State handles entity filings. Confirm the current filing fee on their fee schedule. Then talk to the Department of Finance and Administration about sales tax and withholding if you will have taxable sales or employees.

Corps lakes often want a commercial activity permit from the project office. That is separate from NMC and AGFC. Call the specific lake. Little Rock District recreation staff can point you to the right project. City privilege licenses exist in places like Little Rock and Hot Springs. Call the city clerk. Annoying. Still cheaper than ignoring it.

The business-setup steps look similar in other inland states. How to start six-pack captain in Colorado is a useful parallel if you are mapping entity and tax chores next to the federal card.

Should you take an approved course or sit the exam at a REC?

If you already know Rules of the Road and you live near a REC, sitting the exam is cheaper. 46 CFR 10.219 charges $45 for the examination piece. ^[2] An approved course costs more and can waive the exam if the school is actually on the NMC approved list. ^[13]

I would take the course after 10 years away from a nav problem, or if my nearest REC is a full day of driving each way. I would sit the exam already running boats for a living, plotting a course without sweating.

Watch the school claims. A course does not create sea time. A course does not skip TWIC, the physical, or the drug test. Anyone who bundles "get licensed this weekend" is selling a weekend, not a credential.

Verify the provider on the NMC training page before you pay. ^[13] Keep the completion certificate. NMC will want it. For a side-by-side of another inland start path, how to start six-pack captain in Alabama walks the same federal exams with different state chores.

Should an Arkansas operator get inland or near-coastal?

Inland, unless you have a concrete plan to run near-coastal waters. Near-coastal study adds work. If your business is Table Rock country to the Mississippi locks, inland covers the water you will actually work. ^[1]

Might you run charters out of Gulf ports later? Near-coastal on the original application can save a raise-of-grade down the road. That is a judgment call. I would not buy it on a hope and a brochure.

Great Lakes is its own box. You do not need it for Arkansas.

The endorsement waters are printed on the MMC. Read the card when it arrives. People assume "six-pack" means everywhere. It means what the endorsement says. If your later plan is a second state with different add-on paper, read that state's guide before you pay for extra route modules. Six-pack captain license in Colorado is another inland example of the same federal stamp.

What do you do after the MMC arrives?

You still have to run the boat like a commercial operator. Carry the credential. Carry the medical certificate. Keep a chemical-testing program if you are a marine employer, including when you are the only crew. 46 CFR part 16 does not vanish after issuance. ^[8]

Renewal is a 5-year cycle. Fees for renewal sit in the same 46 CFR 10.219 table and the evaluation line is lower than original. ^[2] Service or a refresher may be required. Read 46 CFR 10.227 in year four. Don't wait until month 59 and act shocked.

Insurance is not a Coast Guard six-pack issuance requirement. Running paying strangers without liability cover is still a bad business decision. Get a marine insurer who understands six-pack, not a homeowners rider you hope is fine.

OUPVPath is an independent publisher, not a law firm and not a Coast Guard desk. Confirm fees, medical outcomes, and processing with NMC. If you want the kit, it is at /start.

Frequently asked questions

Does Arkansas have its own six-pack captain test?

No. Arkansas does not write or grade a captain license for carrying passengers for hire. The exam, if you sit one, is the Coast Guard OUPV set at a Regional Exam Center or the equivalent through a USCG-approved course. The state boating education card is a separate AGFC requirement for many motorboat operators born on or after January 1, 1986.

Can a lawful permanent resident get an OUPV while living in Arkansas?

Yes. 46 CFR 10.221 lets an applicant for an OUPV officer endorsement be a U.S. citizen or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence. Other officer endorsements are stricter on citizenship. You still need TWIC, the medical file, sea service, and the rest of the NMC stack. Confirm identity documents with NMC before you pay a school.

Do I need a TWIC if I only run an Arkansas lake?

If you need an MMC, you need a TWIC. 46 CFR 10.203 ties the credential to TWIC. A limited OUPV on one lake does not erase that. Enroll through TSA and confirm the current fee when you book. Processing is TSA's clock, not NMC's, so start TWIC early in the file.

Is a six-pack the same as a 25-ton or 50-ton Master?

No. Six-pack is the OUPV endorsement for uninspected passenger vessels under 100 GRT with six or fewer passengers for hire. Master is a different officer endorsement with different service and exam scopes. You do not need Master to run a legal six-pack boat. Buy Master later if a vessel or an inspected route actually requires it.

Can I carry more than six people if some are listed as crew?

Only if those people are actually crew, doing vessel work, not paying to be there. The six-pack cap counts passengers for hire. Calling a paying customer "crew" to seat a seventh rod is a manning violation waiting for a boarding. If you need seven paying seats, you are in a different Coast Guard category.

Do I need a license for free rides with friends?

The federal trigger is passengers for hire on an uninspected passenger vessel. A genuine free ride with no payment to you or a third party is usually not that. The moment the trip is sold, tipped as a commercial ride, or bundled into a paid package, treat it as for-hire. I would not try to hide a business inside "friends."

How do I document sea time on my own boat?

Use CG-719S or an equivalent letter and back it with records NMC can check. Registration, dated photos, logs, marina receipts, and tax filings that match the story help. You may credit your own operating time if it is real. Invented days are a false statement problem. Keep the 4-hour inland day rule honest if you use 46 CFR 10.107.

Where do Arkansas applicants take the Coast Guard exam?

At a Coast Guard Regional Exam Center, unless a USCG-approved course waives the exam. Memphis is the common drive for many Arkansas files, but desks change. Confirm the current REC list on the National Maritime Center site before you travel. Bring the ID and notices NMC tells you to bring. Don't assume walk-in seating.

Do I need an AGFC fishing guide license on top of OUPV?

Maybe, if paying clients are fishing. OUPV is federal manning. AGFC controls fishing and some commercial take. A sunset cruise with no rods is a different fact pattern than a guided bass day. Ask AGFC about guide or commercial licenses for your exact trips and confirm current fees on their license pages. Don't guess from a forum.

How often do I renew a six-pack MMC?

The Merchant Mariner Credential runs on a 5-year cycle. Renewal fees sit in 46 CFR 10.219 and the evaluation line is lower than original. You may need recent service or a refresher under 46 CFR 10.227. Start the file in year four. Medical certificates have their own validity window, so track both cards.

What if I only operate on a private pond?

Coast Guard OUPV manning usually attaches to passengers for hire on navigable waters of the United States. A closed private pond with no navigable connection is often outside that. AGFC motorboat rules can still apply. If money changes hands and the water connects to a river or a Corps lake, get a real answer from the OCMI before you take the first paying trip.

Can bass tournament time count as sea service?

It can count if you were actually operating or doing deck work on a vessel underway, and you can prove the days. Riding as a non-operating partner is weak. A signed letter, logs, and vessel details beat a trophy photo. NMC credits service, not finishes. Don't count a 90-minute blast to a hole as a full day unless the hours rule really supports it.

Is commercial insurance required to get the six-pack license?

No. NMC does not make liability insurance a condition of issuing an original OUPV. Running paying strangers without a marine policy is still a poor business choice. Get an insurer who understands six-pack and your lake or river, not a homeowners rider you hope covers charter guests.

Sources

1. eCFR 46 CFR 11.467 OUPV endorsement: OUPV endorsement service (360 days standard; limited local-area path with 90 days) and inland vs near-coastal limits
2. eCFR 46 CFR 10.219 user fees: Original officer evaluation $100, examination $45, issuance $45; renewal evaluation is lower than original
3. eCFR 46 CFR 10.107 definitions (day): On qualifying smaller vessels, 4 hours of work in a 24-hour period may count as 1 day, not more than 1 day per calendar day
4. U.S. Code 46 U.S.C. § 8903: An uninspected passenger vessel must be operated by an individual licensed by the Secretary
5. eCFR 46 CFR 15.605 credentialed operators: Each uninspected passenger vessel must be under the direction and control of a Coast Guard-credentialed individual; OUPV for vessels under 100 GRT
6. USCG National Maritime Center merchant mariner credential page: NMC is the office that receives MMC applications and publishes process information for original officer credentials
7. eCFR 46 CFR 10.221 citizenship and identity: An OUPV officer endorsement applicant must be a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident
8. eCFR 46 CFR 16.210 pre-employment testing: Marine employers must verify a chemical test for dangerous drugs meeting part 16 before a covered employee starts work
9. TSA Transportation Worker Identification Credential: TWIC enrollment is a TSA program; current fee and appointment rules are set on the TSA TWIC page
10. eCFR 46 CFR 10.302 medical evaluation: Medical certification for an MMC uses the Coast Guard physical standards and CG-719K process
11. USCG NMC training and approved courses: Only Coast Guard-approved courses can be used for exam waiver; verify providers on the NMC training page
12. eCFR 33 CFR 2.36 navigable waters of the United States: Coast Guard definition of navigable waters of the United States used for jurisdiction questions
13. eCFR 46 CFR 11.201 general officer requirements: General original officer endorsement rules including minimum age of 18 and first aid/CPR certificates
14. eCFR 46 CFR 10.232 sea service: Sea service documentation and recency rules used to evaluate OUPV applications