Radio Officer

Find information on training, sea service and other requirements for the Radio Officer certificate, including how to apply and pay for your certificate, and where to find more help.

Your Radio Officer certificate is valid for five years.

With this certificate, you can perform at an operational level the functions and duties of a radio officer on a ship required to participate in the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS), and operate the specialised GMDSS equipment.

Requirements

Before you spend time doing sea service and training, we recommend you check that you can meet the medical fitness and eyesight standards (including for colour vision), and that you understand the fit and proper person requirements.

To get this certificate, you need to prove that you meet all of the requirements. In summary, you need to:

  • be at least 18 years old, medically fit and have good eyesight
  • be of good character and a fit and proper person
  • have completed STCW basic training
  • obtain a maritime general operator’s certificate (MGOC) as a radio operator.

You must also have English conversation, reading and writing skills appropriate to the responsibilities and functions for the level of your certificate, so that you can satisfactorily complete training, pass examinations and discharge your duties.

Each of these requirements and how to prove that you meet them is explained in the full guideline below.

Radio Officer[PDF: 243Kb, 19 pages]

Cost

The application fee for this certificate is $368, which includes goods and services tax (GST)

Application process

This is the application process for this certificate of competency.

Contact us for more help

If you have any questions about seafarer certification, please contact our Personnel Certification team.

Phone:

New Zealand (toll free):
0508 SEACERT or 0508 732 237

Call Personnel Certification now

Email:

seafarers@maritimenz.govt.nz
Tell us what you need help with and remember to include your contact details (email address and phone numbers).