46 CFR 11.444: Mate of Great Lakes and inland vessels service

Last reviewed: October 14, 2026

This section sets the minimum service an applicant needs for a Mate endorsement on Great Lakes and inland self-propelled vessels of less than 1,600 GRT. An applicant may qualify through deck department service, service as Master or OUPV, or service as Mate (Pilot) of Towing Vessels. Paragraph (b) is reserved.

Applies toApplicants for an endorsement as Mate of Great Lakes and inland self-propelled vessels of less than 1,600 GRT.

What it says

  1. An applicant may qualify with two years of total service in the deck department of self-propelled vessels.

    46 CFR 11.444(a)(1)“Two years of total service in the deck department of self-propelled vessels.”

  2. One year of the required deck department service must have been on vessels of 100 GRT or more.

    46 CFR 11.444(a)(1)“One year of the required service must have been on vessels of 100 GRT or more.”

  3. Six months of the required deck department service must have been spent performing bridge watchkeeping duties under the supervision of the Master or a qualified officer on vessels of 100 GRT or more.

    46 CFR 11.444(a)(1)“Six months of the required service must have been while performing bridge watchkeeping duties under the supervision of the Master or a qualified officer on vessels of 100 GRT or more;”

  4. An applicant may instead qualify with one year of total service as Master of self-propelled, sail, or auxiliary sail vessels, or as OUPV of 50 GRT or more, while holding an MMC endorsement as Master of self-propelled vessels of less than 200 GRT or OUPV.

    46 CFR 11.444(a)(2)“One year of total service as Master of self-propelled, sail, or auxiliary sail vessels, or Operator of Uninspected Passenger Vessels (OUPV) of 50 GRT or more while holding an MMC endorsement as Master of self-propelled vessels of less than 200 GRT or OUPV; or”

  5. An applicant may instead qualify with six months of total service as Mate (Pilot) of Towing Vessels on vessels of 100 GRT or more.

    46 CFR 11.444(a)(3)“Six months of total service as Mate (Pilot) of Towing Vessels on vessels of 100 GRT or more.”

Common questions

How much service do I need for a Mate endorsement on inland vessels under 1,600 GRT?

One route is two years of total service in the deck department of self-propelled vessels. Other routes are in paragraphs (a)(2) and (a)(3).

“Two years of total service in the deck department of self-propelled vessels.”

Can Mate (Pilot) of Towing Vessels service count toward this Mate endorsement?

Yes. Six months of total service as Mate (Pilot) of Towing Vessels on vessels of 100 GRT or more qualifies an applicant.

“Six months of total service as Mate (Pilot) of Towing Vessels on vessels of 100 GRT or more.”

How much of the deck service must be on vessels of 100 GRT or more?

One year of the required deck department service must have been on vessels of 100 GRT or more.

“One year of the required service must have been on vessels of 100 GRT or more.”

The text of 46 CFR 11.444

Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR), current as of April 16, 2026 · Read it on eCFR

Requirements for Mate of Great lakes and inland self-propelled vessels of less than 1,600 GRT

(a) The minimum service required to qualify an applicant for an endorsement as Mate of Great Lakes and inland self-propelled vessels of less than 1,600 GRT is—

(1) Two years of total service in the deck department of self-propelled vessels. One year of the required service must have been on vessels of 100 GRT or more. Six months of the required service must have been while performing bridge watchkeeping duties under the supervision of the Master or a qualified officer on vessels of 100 GRT or more;

(2) One year of total service as Master of self-propelled, sail, or auxiliary sail vessels, or Operator of Uninspected Passenger Vessels (OUPV) of 50 GRT or more while holding an MMC endorsement as Master of self-propelled vessels of less than 200 GRT or OUPV; or

(3) Six months of total service as Mate (Pilot) of Towing Vessels on vessels of 100 GRT or more.

(b) [Reserved]

The plain-English explanation on this page was written with AI from the regulation text above and checked automatically before publishing: every quote appears in the text, every number comes from it, and a second model confirmed each statement adds nothing the text doesn't say. Regulation text current as of April 16, 2026. The regulation text governs. RegKnot is not affiliated with the U.S. Coast Guard.