The AMP's Gente de Mar issues three families of licence. National-waters licences cover boats by length or tonnage inside Panama. Yacht titles cover pleasure yachts by tonnage. STCW titles cover ships in international service. Your grade must match the boat's length or tonnage and its service, whether pleasure, passengers, cargo or fishing.
National-waters licences (Licencias de Aguas Nacionales)
These are the licences most charter, tour, water-taxi and private boat operators hold. The AMP lists them under Resolución J.D. 053-2018, with a requirement sheet for each:
| Licence | Limit listed by the AMP | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Marinero | Crew aboard | Deckhand on any boat |
| Operador de lanchas de 2da. clase | Under 12 m; outboard, inboard or remote steering | Small launches, pangas, water taxis |
| Operador de lanchas de 1ra. clase | Cargo and/or passengers, 12 to 20 m | Larger passenger launches |
| Patrón de nave de placer de 3ra. clase | Pleasure craft under 8 m | Small private boats |
| Patrón de nave de placer de 2da. clase | Pleasure craft 8 to 20 m | Most private cruisers and sportfishers |
| Patrón de nave de placer de 1ra. clase | Pleasure craft over 20 m | Larger private yachts |
| Patrón de cabotaje | Up to 100 TAB, or up to 500 TAB | Coastal commercial vessels |
| Patrón de pesca de 2da. / 1ra. clase | Fishing boats up to 12 m / over 12 m | Commercial fishing |
| Operador de remolcador | Up to 500 TAB, renewal only | Tugs |
| Maquinista / técnico marino | Engines up to 750 kW / technical | Engine room |
Length is eslora (length overall). TAB is tonelaje de arqueo bruto, gross tonnage.
What each national-waters grade asks for
Every grade needs an original passport or cédula, a Panamanian medical certificate valid three months, a photo and US$8 in fiscal stamps. The differences, from the AMP requirement sheets:
| Grade | Drug test | Training | Sea time or boat papers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marinero | No | National-waters safety course or four STCW basics | None listed |
| Operador de lanchas 2da. | Yes | National-waters safety course or curso de operador de lanchas | None listed |
| Operador de lanchas 1ra. | Yes | Safety course or STCW basics, plus curso de operador de lanchas | Patente or company letter |
| Patrón de nave de placer 3ra. | No | Safety course or STCW basics, plus 3ra. clase course | None listed |
| Patrón de nave de placer 2da. / 1ra. | No | Four STCW basics, plus the grade course | Patente or company letter |
| Patrón de cabotaje 100 TAB | Yes | Four STCW basics, with or without the cabotaje course | 12 months with the course; otherwise 36 months as marinero or operador 2da., or 24 as operador 1ra. |
Courses must come from an AMP-recognised centre; see captain courses and schools. Sea time and medicals are in sea time, medical and paperwork.
Yacht titles (naves de placer)
For yachts the AMP issues titles by tonnage, on its TIT-F-21 sheets:
- Oficial de yate: yacht mate, the officer below the captain.
- Capitán de yate hasta 200 TAB and hasta 500 TAB.
- Capitán de yate with no stated tonnage limit.
- Ingeniero de yate and jefe de máquina de yate (up to 750 kW, or unlimited) for engineers.
These need an STCW-standard medical (Regulation I/9 and MLC 2006) and the four basic safety courses. The unlimited capitán de yate also lists advanced firefighting, medical first aid, GMDSS, survival craft and radar/ARPA courses.
STCW titles for ships
For merchant ships in international service the AMP issues STCW certificates of competency: officer in charge of a navigational watch (II/1, II/3), chief mate (II/2), master (II/2, II/3), tug master and GMDSS operator, with matching engine-room titles. Promotion follows months at sea set by the AMP's promotion rules; master unlimited, for example, needs at least 36 months as watch officer, or 24 months if 12 of them were as chief mate on ships of 3,000 TAB or more. This is the merchant-navy career, usually through a maritime university. It is not needed to run a day-charter boat.
Pleasure, passengers or cargo: why the service matters
The pleasure-craft grades (patrón de nave de placer, capitán de yate) are written for pleasure craft. The operador de lanchas de 1ra. clase is written for carrying cargo or passengers from 12 to 20 m. For paid trips, which grade the AMP wants depends on the boat's registration and service, and the AMP's page does not settle every case. The commercial side is covered in captain and crew requirements for paid trips; ask Gente de Mar in writing for any boat over 12 m before you hire or apply.
How the grades compare with a USCG licence
There is no official equivalence table between USCG and AMP licences. As a rough guide for readers from Florida: the USCG OUPV and Master licences are set by tonnage, route and passenger count. The AMP grades are set by length for small boats and tonnage above that, and split pleasure from commercial use. Do not assume a 25-ton or 100-ton USCG licence maps to a given AMP grade. The USCG side is in OUPV vs Master licence, and what the AMP does accept from abroad is in using a foreign licence in Panama.
Your practical starting checklist
- Find the boat's length overall and gross tonnage on its patente or survey.
- Decide its service: private pleasure, passengers, cargo or fishing.
- Match both to the AMP grade in the tables above.
- Download that grade's requirement sheet from the AMP Gente de Mar page.
- Ask Gente de Mar to confirm the grade in writing for any commercial boat over 12 m.
Frequently asked questions
What licence do I need for a 10 m private boat?
Patrón de nave de placer de 2da. clase, which covers pleasure craft from 8 to 20 m.
What licence does a water-taxi or panga driver need?
For boats under 12 m, operador de lanchas de 2da. clase, which also needs a negative drug test.
What is the highest yacht licence in Panama?
Capitán de yate with no tonnage limit, which needs a chief mate certificate or equivalent and advanced STCW courses.
Does the licence say which boats I can drive?
Yes. The grade sets the limit, by length for small craft and by tonnage above that. Check it against the boat before every new job.
¿Cuáles son los tipos de licencia de capitán en Panamá?
Licencias de aguas nacionales (marinero, operador de lanchas, patrón de nave de placer, patrón de cabotaje, patrón de pesca), títulos de yate (oficial y capitán de yate hasta 200 TAB, 500 TAB y sin límite) y títulos STCW para buques.
En español: tipos de licencia y sus límites
La AMP clasifica las licencias por eslora, arqueo bruto (TAB) y servicio. Operador de lanchas de 2da. clase: menos de 12 m. Operador de lanchas de 1ra. clase: carga y/o pasajeros de 12 a 20 m. Patrón de nave de placer: 3ra. clase menos de 8 m, 2da. clase de 8 a 20 m, 1ra. clase más de 20 m. Patrón de cabotaje: hasta 100 o 500 TAB. Capitán de yate: hasta 200 TAB, hasta 500 TAB o sin límite. Confirme con la Gente de Mar el grado exacto para una embarcación comercial.
The next question to answer
How to climb the licence ladder. Read Become a boat captain in Panama.
The pleasure-craft grades in detail. Read Licence to drive your own boat.
The captains sub-hub. Read Captains and AMP licences.
Same topic in Florida: coming from the US? Compare OUPV vs Master Credentials.
Official resources
Use the relevant Panamanian authority for current requirements and fees. These resources are the next place to check; a practical recommendation is not an agency determination.
- AMP: Dirección General de Gente de Mar (licence lists and requirement sheets) ↗
- AMP: requisitos patrón de cabotaje hasta 100 TAB (TIT-AN4) ↗
- AMP: requisitos patrón de nave de placer de 2da. clase (TIT-AN7, Res. J.D. 053-2018) ↗
- AMP: requisitos capitán de yate hasta 200 TAB (TIT-F-21) ↗
- AMP: requisitos capitán de yate sin límite (TIT-F-21) ↗
- AMP: requisitos para ascenso, TIT-F-20 (Res. J.D. 076-2020) ↗