Republic of the Philippines
Department of Transportation and Communications
MARITIME INDUSTRY AUTHORITY
MARINA CIRCULAR NO. 2013-09
Series of 2013TO:ALL SEAFARERS EMPLOYED OR TO BE EMPLOYED ON
SEAGOING SHIPS, MARITIME TRAINING INSTITUTIONS(MTIs), MANNING/CREWING AGENCIES, MARITIMEASSESSMENT CENTERS, SHIPPING COMPANIES AND
ALL OTHERS CONCERNEDSUBJECT:RULESIN THE ISSUANCE/REVALIDATION OFCERTIFICATESOF
PROFICIENCY(COPs)
IN
ACCORDANCE WITH CHAPTERS V AND VI OF THE 1978INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON STANDARDS OFTRAINING AND CERTIFICATION AND WATCHKEEPING,AS AMENDED

Pursuant to Executive Order No. 75 issued on 30 April 2012 and its Implementing
Rules and Regulations, the following rules are hereby adopted:
I.

OBJECTIVE

To provide the rules in the issuance/revalidation of COP in accordance withChapter V (Special Training requirements for personnel on certain types of ships)
and Chapter VI (Emergency, occupational safety, security, medical care andsurvival functions) of the Convention.
II.

COVERAGE

All seafarers serving or intending to serve onboard seagoing ships required to becertificated in accordance with Chapters V and VI of the Convention.
III.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

For purposes of this Circular, the following terms shall be defined as follows:1.

Certificate of Proficiency (COP) refers to a certificate, other than a certificate
of competency issued to a seafarer, stating that the relevant requirements oftraining, competencies or seagoing service in the Convention have been met.

2.

Chemical Tanker refers to a ship constructed or adapted and used for thecarriage in bulk of any liquid product listed in Chapter 17 of the International
Bulk Chemical Code.
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Competency refers to the possession and demonstration/application of theknowledge, understanding and proficiency required of seafarers under theConvention.

4.

Convention refers to the International Convention on Standards of Training,Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) 1978, as amended;

5.

Documentary Evidence refers to the documentation, other than a certificate ofcompetency or certificate of proficiency, used to establish that the relevant
requirements of the Convention have been met.

6.

Enrolment Report refers to the list of trainees officially enrolled to attend aparticular training course in an accredited maritime training institution and duly
signed by the training director of said institution.

7.

Liaison Officer (LO) refers to a regular or organic employee of a shipping
company/agency, manning/crewing agency, accredited maritime professionalorganization and maritime training institutions, authorized and designatedthrough a duly notarized Special Power of Attorney or a Board Resolution,
who shall represent or act for and in their behalf in the filing of application/s forthe issuance of COP/s and other STCW-related certificates of its seafarers.

8.

Liquefied Gas Tanker refers to a ship constructed or adopted and used for thecarriage in bulk of any liquefied gas or other product listed in Chapter 19 of theInternational Gas Carrier Code.

9.

Oil Tanker refers to a ship constructed and adapted and used for the carriageof petroleum and petroleum products in bulk.

10. Party refers to a State for which the Convention has entered into force.
11. Passenger ship other than Ro-Ro ship refers to a passenger ship other than
Ro-Ro as defined in the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea,
1974, as amended.
12. Rating refers to a member of the ship’s crew other than the Master or anofficer.
13. Refresher training refers to the training and assessment for certain modules ofBasic Training to establish continuous demonstration of competence forcertain elements required by Tables A-VI/1-1 and A-VI/1-2 of the STCW Code.
14. Revalidation of Certificate refers to the act of establishing continued
professional competence in accordance with Regulation I/11 or maintaining
the required standards of competence in accordance with Sections A-VI/1 toA-VI/3, as applicable.
2|P a ge15. Ro-Ro Passenger Ship refers to a passenger ship with Ro-Ro spaces or
special category spaces as defined in the International Convention for theSafety of Life and Property at Sea, 1974, as amended.
16. Seagoing Ship refers to a ship other than those which navigate exclusively ininland waters or in waters within, or closely adjacent to, sheltered waters or
areas where port regulations apply, except the following: (a) warships, naval
auxiliaries or other ships owned or operated by a State and engaged only ingovernmental/non-commercial service; (b) fishing vessels; (c) pleasure yachts
not engaged in trade; or, (d) wooden ships of primitive built.
17. Seagoing service refers to a service on board a ship of 500 GT or more or withengine propulsion power of 750kW or more.
18. Training Completion and Record of Assessment (TCROA) refers to the report
where the names of trainees who have completed the training program arelisted and the outcome of their assessment are recorded and certified by thequalified assessor and training director of an accredited maritime training
institution.
19. Updating training refers to the training and assessment conducted for therevised PSSR module in order to align the Basic Safety Training in accordancewith the 1978 STCW Convention, as amended in 2010.
GENERAL PROVISIONS
1.

All seafarers serving or intending to serve onboard seagoing ships required tobe certificated in accordance with Chapters V and VI of the Convention mustsecure COPs pursuant to the rules prescribed under this Circular.

2.

The MARINA shall issue the COP to seafarers under Regulations V/1-1, V/12, VI/1, VI/2, VI/3, VI/4, VI/5, and VI/6 of the Convention.

3.

Masters and Officers who are holders of valid COPs under Table A-V/1-1-2 ofRegulation V/1-1 and Table A-V/1-2-2 of Regulation V/1-2, shall be required,every five(5) years, to provide evidence of having maintained the required
standard of competence to undertake the tasks, duties and responsibilities
listed in Column 1 of the Table of Competence.

4.

All seafarers who are holders of valid COPs under Tables A-VI/1-1, A-VI/1-2 ofRegulation VI/1, Table A-VI/2-1, Table A-VI/2-2 of Regulation VI/2 and Table
A-VI/3 of Regulation VI/3, shall be required, every five(5) years, to provide
evidence of having maintained the required standard of competence toundertake the tasks, duties and responsibilities listed in Column 1 of the Tableof Competence.
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Documentary Evidence of having maintained the required standard ofcompetence to undertake the tasks, duties and responsibilities listed inColumn 1 of Table of Competence shall be as follows:
5.1 Certification and records of drills/trainings conducted on board issued by
the Master that the seafarer has maintained the required standards ofcompetence under Tables A-VI/1-1, A-VI/1-2, A-VI/2-1, A-VI/2-2 and AVI/3; or,
5.2 Certificate of Attendance to a duly approved shorebased refresher
training course.

6.

Refresher training course shall be required of seafarers who have notundergone training on board under Tables A-VI/1-1, VI/1-2, A-VI/2-1, A-VI/2-2
and A-VI/3.

7.

Updating training shall be required of all seafarers to undertake the revised
Personal Safety and Social Responsibility (PSSR) module in order to align theBasic Safety Training in accordance with the Convention.

8.

Retraining shall be required of a holder of any training certificate who has notserved on board for at least a year within five (5) years from the date ofissuance of said certificate.

9.

Training certificates issued by or under the authority of a Party shall berecognized by MARINA for purposes of issuance of COP, provided that theMARINA has ensured that the training was undertaken in compliance with theConvention. On the other hand, training certificates issued by or under theauthority of a non-Party to the Convention shall not be recognized.

10. Pursuant to Section A-VI/6, paragraphs 5 and 9 under the TransitionalProvisions of the Convention, the following shall be adopted in the issuanceof COP.
10.1 Until 01 January 2014, seafarers applying for issuance of COP for
Security Awareness Training who commenced an approved seagoing
service prior to January 1, 2012 shall be able to establish that they meetthe requirements of paragraph 4 of Section A-VI/6 of the 1978 STCW
Convention, as amended, by having an approved seagoing service as
shipboard personnel for a period of at least six (6) months in total during
the preceding three (3) years.
10.2 Until 01 January 2014, seafarers applying for issuance of COP forSeafarers with Designated Security Duties who commenced anapproved seagoing service prior to January 1, 2012 shall be able toestablish that they meet the requirements of paragraphs 6 and 8 ofSection A-VI/6 of the 1978 STCW Convention, as amended, by having
an approved seagoing service as shipboard personnel with designated
4|P a gesecurity duties, for a period of at least six (6) months in total during thepreceding three (3) years.
11.

Those seafarers who have taken the Ship Security Officer (SSO) trainingcourse under the 1978 STCW, as amended in 2008 and have taken themandatory “Anti-Piracy Awareness Training” as per POEA MC No. 02
series of 2010 and POEA Advisory No. 12 series of 2012 shall beconsidered compliant for the issuance of Certificate of Proficiency (COP)
for SSO under the 1978 STCW Convention, as amended in 2010.

12.

Holders of COP in SSO under the 2010 Manila Amendments areexempted from undertaking the training on Security Awareness Training
and Seafarer with Designated Security Duties.

IV.

SPECIFIC PROVISIONS

1.

Applications for issuance of COP under this Circular may be filed at the STCW
Office, MARINA Central Office or at any of the MARINA Regional Offices(MROs).

2.

Applications for issuance of COP under this Circular may be filed by theseafarer or by Liaison Officer/s (LO/s) as defined under the relevant MARINA
Circular.

3.

All seafarer-applicants must comply with the Qualification and Documentary
Requirements stated under “Annex A” of this Circular.

4.

Expedite applications for the issuance of COP may be filed at the STCW
Office, MARINA Central Office or at any of the MARINA Regional Offices uponpresentation of the following additional requirements:
4.1 Letter request from the shipping company/agency, manning/crewingagency, accredited maritime professional organization and maritime
training institutions signed by at least the Chief Operating Officer orOperations Manager thereof or their equivalent;
4.2

Electronic ticket to prove that the seafarer is scheduled to leave or join
the ship within five (5) days from filing;

4.3 Copy of valid Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC) from the Philippine
Overseas Employment Administration (POEA); and,4.4 Copy of valid Contract of Employment from the POEA.
5. Applications for issuance of COP for seafarers on board ships may be allowedin cases of promotion, revalidation/renewal, replacement of lost/damaged COP,or correction of entry/ies in the COP, upon submission of the following:
5|P a ge5.1 Letter request from the shipping company/agency or manning/crewing
agency; and5.2 Certification from the shipping company/agency or manning/crewing
agency, in case of promotion of seafarer/s on board; or,
5.3 Duly Notarized Affidavit of Loss, in case of lost COP.
V.

SCHEDULE OF FEES AND CHARGES

1.

Issuance/Revalidation of COP
Regular Processing-P200.00 / issuance

Expedite Processing-P400.00/ issuance

Replacement/Re-Printing of Lost/
Damaged Certificate-P200.00/issuance3.

Certified True Copy of COP

P100.00 /certificate

VI.

VALIDITY OF CERTIFICATES

1.

COPs issued pursuant to Regulations V & VI of the 1995 STCW Convention
shall be valid until 01 January 2017.

2.

COPs issued pursuant to Regulations V & VI of the Convention shall be valid
at intervals not exceeding five (5) years except those certificates not required
to be revalidated.

2.

-VII. ADMINISTRATIVE SANCTIONS AND PENALTIES
1.

Any shipping company or manning agency shall be liable for false statement
or misrepresentation, fraudulent or spurious or tampered licenses,documents, certificates submitted, or where said shipping company or
manning agency or any of its MARINA accredited LO/s have consented orparticipated in the tampering/misrepresentation or in securing the questioned
licenses, documents, and/or certificates from any source:
1.1 First Violation- P25,000.00

1.2 Second Violation- P50,000.00, without prejudice to thesuspension for one (1) month of theaccreditation of the shipping company
or manning agency.
6|P a ge1.3 Third & Succeeding Violation

2.

- P100, 000.00, without prejudice tothe cancellation and / or revocation ofthe accreditation of the shippingcompany or manning agency.

Any seafarer who shall submit to the MARINA, through the company, any
fraudulent or tampered or irregularly issued licenses, certificates ordocuments shall be liable to pay the following fines:

First Offense
Master Mariner
Chief Engineer
Chief Mate/Second Engineer
Second Mate/Third Engineer
Third Mate/Fourth Engineer
Ratings and Others

P15,000.00P15,000.00
P10,000.00
P8,000.00
P6,000.00
P5,000.00

SecondOffense
P25,000.00
P20,000.00
P15,000.00
P10,000.00
P12,000.00
P8,000.00

Third Offense
P30,000.00
P25,000.00
P20,000.00
P18,000.00
P15,000.00
P12,000.00

The above penalties are without prejudice to any criminal liability under the Revised
Penal Code.
IX. REPEALING CLAUSE
Any rules or regulations which are inconsistent with this Circular are hereby
repealed.
X. EFFECTIVITY
This MARINA Circular shall take effect immediately upon its publication once ina newspaper of general circulation.
Manila, Philippines, 30 August 2013.
BY AUTHORITY OF THE BOARD(SGD) MAXIMO Q MEJIA JR, PhD
Administrator

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SECRETARY’S CERTIFICATEThis is to certify that MARINA Circular No. 2013-09 was approved by the
MARINA Board of Directors pursuant to Board Resolution 2013-01dated
30 August 2013.

(SGD)ATTY. VIRGILIO B. CALAG
Acting Corporate Board Secretary

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