720 - 10/10 - 29 day rule - USA

The Association would like to advise Members of a recent announcement concerning the 29 day rule in the United States.

US law requires that seafarers, including those with the appropriate visa, restrict their stay in the country to 29 days on each visit. This requirement has presented problems to seafarers onboard lightering vessels and others in some exceptional circumstances. A senior immigration official recently stated that the US Customs and Border Protection Agency would use all the discretion at its disposal to mitigate the 29 day rule on lightering vessels.