Republic of the Philippines
Congress of the Philippines
Metro ManilaTenth Congress
Republic Act No. 8544 February 24, 1998
AN ACT REGULATING THE PRACTICE OF THE MERCHANT MARINE PROFESSION IN THE PHILIPPINES
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled::
ARTICLE I
TITLESection 1. Title. – This Act shall be known as the "Philippine Merchant Marine Officers Act of 1998."
ARTICLE II
DECLARATION OF POLICY AND OBJECTIVESSection 2. Declaration of policy. – It is the declared policy of the State to promote and insure the safety of life and property at sea, protect and serve the marine environment and ecology, and prevent marine pollution and accident at sea by complying with the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers 1978 (STCW '78), as amended, to which the Philippines is signatory.
It is likewise the declared policy of the State to institutionalize radical changes as required by international and national standards to insure that only qualified, competent and globally competitive Marine Deck/Engineer Officers as determined...
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Republic Acts
PHILIPPINE MERCHANT MARINE OFFICERS ACT OF 1998
Republic Act No. 8544
Summary of the Philippine Merchant Marine Officers Act of 1998
Declaration of Policy and Objectives (Sections 2-3):
- Promote safety of life and property at sea, protect marine environment, prevent pollution and accidents by complying with STCW '78 Convention
- Ensure only qualified and competent Marine Deck/Engineer Officers determined through licensure exams can practice the profession
- Govern examination, registration, certification of competency, and regulation of maritime profession practice
Definition of Terms (Section 4):
- "Practice of Merchant Marine Profession" covers application of navigation, seamanship, engineering principles for vessel operations, cargo handling, training, and government maritime roles
- "Merchant Marine Vessel" refers to commercial ships engaged in maritime trade, training vessels, and non-combatant Philippine government vessels
- "Merchant Marine Officer" refers to marine deck or engineer officer
- Definitions of "Merchant Marine Deck Officer" and "Merchant Marine Engineer Officer"
Boards for Marine Deck and Engineer Officers (Sections 5-12):
- Creation of Board of Marine Deck Officers and Board of Marine Engineer Officers
- Composition, qualifications, terms, compensation, vacancy rules for Board members
- Powers and duties of the Boards include regulation, certification, disciplinary actions, standards setting, and reporting
- Boards under supervision of Professional Regulation Commission (PRC)
Examination, Registration and Certification (Sections 13-26):
- Licensure exam required for registration and practice (Section 13)
- Qualifications for exam include citizenship, moral character, medical fitness, relevant education (Section 14)
- Fraudulent application grounds for suspension/revocation (Section 15)
- Exam scope covers navigation, cargo, ship operations, engineering, maintenance, communications (Section 16)
- Passing score of 70% average, 60% minimum per subject (Section 17)
- Ratings reporting, re-examination rules (Sections 18-19)
- Oath required before practicing (Section 20)
- Issuance of Certificate of Registration and Certificate of Competency (Section 21)
- Proper identification on documents (Section 22)
- Grounds for registration refusal (Section 23)
- Grounds for suspension, revocation of certificates (Section 24)
- Reinstatement and re-issuance of certificates (Section 25)
- Certificate renewal requirements (Section 26)
Practice of Marine Deck and Engineer Officers (Sections 27-32):
- Restriction on practice without valid certification (Section 27)
- Recognition of foreign certificates under STCW '78 Convention reciprocity (Section 28)
- Quality standards system subject to external audit per STCW '78 (Section 29)
- Funding provision for implementation (Section 30)
- Integration into national organization for membership benefits (Section 31)
- Code of Ethics adoption (Section 32)
Miscellaneous Provisions (Sections 33-39):
- Transitional rules for previously issued certificates (Section 33)
- Rules and regulations to be adopted by the Boards (Section 34)
- Penal provisions for violations with fines from P20,000 to P100,000 and/or 1 to 6 years imprisonment (Section 35)
- Enforcement by PRC with assistance from other authorities (Section 36)
- Separability clause (Section 37)
- Repealing of inconsistent laws like Presidential Decree No. 97 (Section 38)
- Effectivity 15 days after publication (Section 39)
Declaration of Policy and Objectives (Sections 2-3):
- Promote safety of life and property at sea, protect marine environment, prevent pollution and accidents by complying with STCW '78 Convention
- Ensure only qualified and competent Marine Deck/Engineer Officers determined through licensure exams can practice the profession
- Govern examination, registration, certification of competency, and regulation of maritime profession practice
Definition of Terms (Section 4):
- "Practice of Merchant Marine Profession" covers application of navigation, seamanship, engineering principles for vessel operations, cargo handling, training, and government maritime roles
- "Merchant Marine Vessel" refers to commercial ships engaged in maritime trade, training vessels, and non-combatant Philippine government vessels
- "Merchant Marine Officer" refers to marine deck or engineer officer
- Definitions of "Merchant Marine Deck Officer" and "Merchant Marine Engineer Officer"
Boards for Marine Deck and Engineer Officers (Sections 5-12):
- Creation of Board of Marine Deck Officers and Board of Marine Engineer Officers
- Composition, qualifications, terms, compensation, vacancy rules for Board members
- Powers and duties of the Boards include regulation, certification, disciplinary actions, standards setting, and reporting
- Boards under supervision of Professional Regulation Commission (PRC)
Examination, Registration and Certification (Sections 13-26):
- Licensure exam required for registration and practice (Section 13)
- Qualifications for exam include citizenship, moral character, medical fitness, relevant education (Section 14)
- Fraudulent application grounds for suspension/revocation (Section 15)
- Exam scope covers navigation, cargo, ship operations, engineering, maintenance, communications (Section 16)
- Passing score of 70% average, 60% minimum per subject (Section 17)
- Ratings reporting, re-examination rules (Sections 18-19)
- Oath required before practicing (Section 20)
- Issuance of Certificate of Registration and Certificate of Competency (Section 21)
- Proper identification on documents (Section 22)
- Grounds for registration refusal (Section 23)
- Grounds for suspension, revocation of certificates (Section 24)
- Reinstatement and re-issuance of certificates (Section 25)
- Certificate renewal requirements (Section 26)
Practice of Marine Deck and Engineer Officers (Sections 27-32):
- Restriction on practice without valid certification (Section 27)
- Recognition of foreign certificates under STCW '78 Convention reciprocity (Section 28)
- Quality standards system subject to external audit per STCW '78 (Section 29)
- Funding provision for implementation (Section 30)
- Integration into national organization for membership benefits (Section 31)
- Code of Ethics adoption (Section 32)
Miscellaneous Provisions (Sections 33-39):
- Transitional rules for previously issued certificates (Section 33)
- Rules and regulations to be adopted by the Boards (Section 34)
- Penal provisions for violations with fines from P20,000 to P100,000 and/or 1 to 6 years imprisonment (Section 35)
- Enforcement by PRC with assistance from other authorities (Section 36)
- Separability clause (Section 37)
- Repealing of inconsistent laws like Presidential Decree No. 97 (Section 38)
- Effectivity 15 days after publication (Section 39)