An update has been made to the Marine Safety Center website to clarify the implications of a type approval certificate’s expiration date.

A BWMS’s Type Approval Certificate (TAC) expiration date indicates the dates between which a BWMS must be manufactured. A type approved BWMS, which is manufactured within the TAC applicability dates, remains in compliance for the lifetime of the system, assuming it is operated and maintained in accordance with the listed Operation, Maintenance, and Safety Manual (OMSM). The TAC to which the BWMS was manufactured and approved should be stored onboard, regardless of the expiration date.  The onboard TAC is only replaced upon modification of the BWMS to comply with a revised TAC.

This blog is not a replacement or substitute for the formal posting of regulations and updates or existing processes for receiving formal feedback of the same. Links provided on this blog will direct the reader to official publications, such as the Federal Register, Homeport and the Code of Federal Regulations. These publications remain the official source for regulatory information published by the Coast Guard.