Coxswain grade 1 near coastal

Coxswain grade 1 near coastal is a domestic certificate of competency.

The Coxswain grade 1 near coastal is issued under Marine Order 505 (Certificates of competency — national law) 2013.

What will this certificate allow me to do?

The Coxswain grade 1 near coastal will allow you to command, and operate the engines of, a vessel less than 12 metres long with unlimited outboard engine propulsion, or inboard engines less than 500 kilowatts:

in inshore waters (refer to National Standard for Commercial Vessels Part B—General requirements) or designated waters (under state or territory waterway management legislation)
as a tender or auxiliary vessel within 3 nautical miles of a parent vessel within the exclusive economic zone.

Am I eligible?

To be eligible for a Coxswain grade 1 near coastal certificate you must:

be at least 16 years of age on the certificate issue date.
meet medical, eyesight, sea service and course requirements.

Important disclaimer

These instructions are summary information only. We make decisions about seafarer certificates under Marine Order 505 (Certificates of competency — national law) 2013 and National Standard for Commercial Vessels Part D—Crew competencies. These documents have full details of the eligibility and other requirements for certificate applications.

What do you need to apply for?

New certificate

Revalidation

Endorsements and restrictions

Equivalent certificate

Change your name on your certificate of competency

Replace your lost, stolen or damaged certificate of competency

New certificate

What do I need to do?

To obtain this certificate you will need to:

Meet medical and eyesight requirements

Download the:

1. Eyesight test certificate

The Eyesight test certificate form 542 lets us know that your eyesight meets the necessary standard for working at sea.

If you are colour blind, you will be restricted to working in daylight hours only.

2. Guidelines for the medical assessment of near coastal seafarers

Provide the medical practitioner with the Guidelines for the medical assessment of near coastal seafarers.

Get your eyesight tested by a qualified medical practioner, and get the practioner to complete the Eyesight test certificate for you.

If you have a current AMSA medical (Certificate of medical fitness form 303) you can use this in place of the Eyesight test certificate.

You must submit your completed form as part of your Certificate of competency application form 426.

Within the Certificate of competency application there is a declaration of medical fitness that you must complete. This lets us know that you are medically fit to work at sea.

Provide evidence of sea service

You need to show you have experience working at sea in a deck, or a deck and engineering capacity, on vessels greater than or equal to five metres long. You must have completed either:

30 days on commercial vessels with a completed approved task book
240 days on any vessels without a task book.

You must complete at least half of the qualifying sea service required for the certificate in the five years before the application.

If you have completed a task book you must attach a copy of the seafarer details page to your application.

If at least half of your sea service is not to seaward of sheltered waters, your certificate will be restricted to sheltered waters.

You need to submit at least one of the following as proof of qualifying sea service:

Record of sea service form 771
an approved sea service log book
the on board sea service record from your task book
a letter from the vessel operator, owner, master or chief engineer detailing your sea service.

If you want a task book

You can get a Coxswain Grade 1 task book from us or from some registered training organisations. To order a task book directly from us, use the AMSA chargeable publications order form.

Certificate revalidation

A Coxswain grade 1 near coastal certificate of competency expires five years after it is issued or revalidated. To keep working using your certificate you need to revalidate it every five years.

Meet medical and eyesight requirements

Within the Certificate of competency application form 426 there is a declaration of medical fitness that you must complete. This lets us know that you are medically fit, and that your eyesight meets the necessary standard, to work at sea.

If you are colour blind, you will be restricted to working in daylight hours only.

Provide evidence of sea service

There is no sea service requirement to revalidate a Coxswain grade 1 near coastal certificate of competency.

Provide existing certificates

As part of your revalidation application you must submit a copy of your:

existing certificate of competency
valid HLTAID003 Provide first aid certificate, or equivalent.

Complete and submit a certificate of competency application

You can complete a Certificate of competency application form 426 online or download a pdf version and then complete it.

You need to complete all sections of the form. You must:

respond yes or no to all questions and statements in the application form
complete all boxes (if the information requested is unknown or not applicable insert N/A)
download a pdf version of the form to generate your barcode
print the form
attach copies of all required documents
sign the declaration
submit your application and pay a fee at an AMSA-contracted Australia post outlet
provide proof of identity when you lodge your application.

Endorsements and restrictions

Remove a daylight hours only restriction

If you have a restriction on your certificate you may apply to have the restriction removed.

What do I need to do?

To remove a daylight hours restriction you will need to:

1. Meet medical and eyesight requirements

Within the Certificate of competency application form 426 there is a declaration of medical fitness that you must complete. This lets us know that you are medically fit, and that your eyesight meets the necessary standard, to work at sea.

You must also get your eyesight tested by a qualified medical practitioner, and get the practitioner to provide a certificate or statement stating that you do not suffer any greater abnormality in colour vision than could be tested by the Ishihara Test.

2. Provide existing certificates

You must submit a copy of your:

existing certificate of competency
valid HLTAID003 Provide first aid certificate, or equivalent.

3. Complete and submit a certificate of competency application

You can complete a Certificate of competency application form 426 online or download a pdf version and then complete it.

You need to complete all sections of the form. You must:

respond yes or no to all questions and statements in the application form
complete all boxes (if the information requested is unknown or not applicable insert N/A)
download a pdf version of the form to generate your barcode
print the form
attach copies of all required documents
sign the declaration
submit your application and pay a fee at an AMSA-contracted Australia Post outlet
provide proof of identity when you lodge your application.

Remove a sheltered waters restriction

What do I need to do?

To remove a sheltered waters restriction you will need to:

1. Meet medical and eyesight requirements

Within the Certificate of competency application form 426 there is a declaration of medical fitness that you must complete. This lets us know that you are medically fit, and that your eyesight meets the necessary standard, to work at sea.

2. Provide evidence of sea service

You need to show you have experience working to seaward of sheltered waters in a deck, or deck and engineering, capacity on vessels greater than or equal to five metres long.

You must have completed either:

15 days on commercial vessels with a completed approved task book
120 days on any vessels without a task book.

You must complete at least half of the qualifying sea service required for the certificate in the five years before the application.

If you have completed a task book you must attach a copy of the seafarer details page to your application.

You need to submit at least one of the following as proof of qualifying sea service:

Record of sea service form 771
an approved sea service log book
the on board sea service record from your task book
a letter from the vessel operator, owner, master or chief engineer detailing your sea service.

If you want a task book

You can get a Coxswain grade 1 task book from us or from some registered training organisations. To order a task book directly from us, use the AMSA chargeable publications order form.

Remove a less than 100 kilowatts inboard propulsion restriction

What do I need to do?

To remove less than 100 kilowatts inboard propulsion restriction you will need to:

1. Meet medical and eyesight requirements

Within the Certificate of competency application form 426 there is a declaration of medical fitness that you must complete. This lets us know that you are medically fit, and that your eyesight meets the necessary standard, to work at sea.

2. Complete a training course

Complete the coxswain grade 1 engineering units from the maritime training package at a registered training organisation.

You must submit a copy of your certificate or document that shows you have completed these units with your certificate of competency application.

3. Provide existing certificates

You must submit a copy of your:

existing certificate of competency
valid HLTAID003 Provide first aid certificate, or equivalent.

3. Complete and submit a certificate of competency application

You can complete a Certificate of competency application form 426 online ir download a pdf verson and then complete it.

You need to complete all sections of the form. You must:

respond yes or no to all questions and statements in the application form
complete all boxes (if the information requested is unknown or not applicable insert N/A)
download a pdf version of the from to generate your barcode
print the form
attach copies of all required documents
sign the declaration
submit your application and pay a fee at an AMSA-contracted Australia Post outlet
provide proof of identity when you lodge your application.

Equivalent certificate

If you hold a Coxswain certificate, issued by a state or the Northern Territory, we will give you a Coxswain grade 1 near coastal certificate of competency.

If your Coxswain certificate is restricted to outboard propulsion power, your Coxswain grade 1 certificate of competency will be restricted to less than 100 kilowatts inboard propulsion power and unlimited outboard power. If your Coxswain certificate has any other restriction or an endorsement your Coxswain grade 1 certificate of competency will have the same endorsement or restriction.

What do I need to do?

To get a Coxswain grade 1 near coastal you will need to:

Meet medical and eyesight requirements

Within the Certificate of competency application form 426 there is a declaration of medical fitness that you must complete. This lets us know that you are medically fit, and that your eyesight meets the necessary standard, to work at sea.

If you are colour blind, you will be restricted to working in daylight hours only.

Provide existing certificate

As part of your application for an equivalent certificate you must submit a copy of your:

existing certificate of competency
valid HLTAID003 Provide first aid certificate, or equivalent.

Complete and submit a certificate of competency application

You can complete a Certificate of competency application form 426 online or download a pdf version and then complete it.

You need to complete all sections of the form. You must:

respond yes or no to all questions and statements in the application form
complete all boxes (if the information requested is unknown or not applicable insert N/A)
download a pdf version of the form to generate your barcode
print the form
attach copies of all required documents
sign the declaration
submit your application and pay a fee at an AMSA-contracted Australia post outlet
provide proof of identity when you lodge your application.

Last updated:

Tuesday 24 July 2018