B1/B2 Visa

[The Other Side]

Hello All.

Can someone explain to me what the B1/B2 Visa is and what it does ?

Pardon my high level of ignorance on this but I've been reading job posts and they all require ENG1 medical, STCW, Various levels of Captain ratings....etc I understand all of these requirements but this required B1/B2 Visa requirement has me confused.

If you will indulge me I'll explain where I'm at and where I'm going.

I am a Canadian Citizen living in Canada. I'm 50 years young and I am currently semi retired, I've been sailing for the past 41 years. I am currently earning the pre requisite certification to become a private or charter yacht Captain in the Caribbean or other. I recently earned my RYA Yachtmaster Certificate of Competence and all associated requirements. I will sort out commercial Cert if required.

My goal as a charter Captain is to lead a private or charter sailing Catamaran or Mono-hull worldwide. In addition to my Nautical Certs which I'm continuously upgrading. Due to Covid-19 shutting down most of the charter industry I decided to make hay in these uncertain times and I'm presently training in Culinary Art/Management, I figured this would be a valuable certification on my Resume to elevate my qualifications and competencies and pitch in in all aspects of Charter operations. The Yachting business is really The People business.

The above mentioned was simple enough, what I'm looking to clarify is the work permits or entry requirements....etc. A simple scenario goes something like this.

1: I apply for a sailing charter Captains position in the BVI's and the employer require a B1/B2 visa. What is the next step ?

2: I apply for a sailing charter Captains position and the vessel is based in the USVI's but the majority of charter days in the BVI's. What is the next step ?

3: I apply for a sailing charter Captains position in the Med, what do I require for Visa's ? Is the B1/B2 in play or is there another ?

I apologies if my questions are rather amateurish but I don't know what I don't know and I make it a rule in life to not assume things. I appreciate any and all feedback.

[Shrew]

https://travel.state.gov/content/tra...t/visitor.html

Visitor Visa

Overview
Generally, a citizen of a foreign country who wishes to enter the United States must first obtain a visa, either a nonimmigrant visa for a temporary stay, or an immigrant visa for permanent residence. Visitor visas are nonimmigrant visas for persons who want to enter the United States temporarily for business

B-1: business
B-2: tourism
B-1/B-2: combination of both business & tourism

Incidentally, these are United States visa. The US wouldn't issue a B1; B2; or B1/B2 visa for the Med since they have no territory there. You would only need these Visas for the USVI or US.

Are they requiring B1/B2 Visa's? An "H-1B: Person in Specialty Occupation" would seem more appropriate, which is in the Temporary Worker Visa category would be more applicable.

[s/v Jedi]

The reason you need the visa, even if you normally get a visa waiver using the ESTA program, is that for entry with a car, boat, camper etc. the visa waiver is not valid.

[Kelkara]

Originally Posted by The Other Side

I am a Canadian Citizen living in Canada.

Canadians do not need a B1/B2 visa to enter the USA for tourism/non-working purposes. Canada is not part of the visa waiver program, since there is no visa requirement to waive - so even if entry is by private boat no visa is required.

If you need a working visa for the USA, then it won't be a B1/B2 visa.

[goboatingnow]

For the Med Canadians do not need a visa , but are limited to 90 days in a rolling 180

Note that during 2021 ETIAS will become operational and apply to any non EU /EEA citizen that normally avails of a visa waiver scheme. This was introduced in response to the US ESTA scheme. Hence you just apply in advance of each journey

[The Other Side]

Ok that’s a lot of different takes regarding answering my questions.

So this is the scenario #1

I’m a Canadian citizen working for an American flagged charter boat owned by an American coupe and sailing out of USVI and the charter grounds is split 25% USVI and 75% BVI. what do I require for a Visa or work permit to be the Captain of that vessel ?

Scenario #2

Same boat flag and owners but the boat is 100% sailing in of BVI waters.

[The Other Side]

What is a Med 90 days in a rolling 180 days ?

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by The Other Side

What is a Med 90 days in a rolling 180 days ?

Normally the amount of time you get in the Schengen area is 90 days out of 180 days

The count is backwards 180 days from the exit date hence the 180 days rolls forward as you stay

[Pandor]

Originally Posted by The Other Side

Ok that’s a lot of different takes regarding answering my questions.

So this is the scenario #1

I’m a Canadian citizen working for an American flagged charter boat owned by an American coupe and sailing out of USVI and the charter grounds is split 25% USVI and 75% BVI. what do I require for a Visa or work permit to be the Captain of that vessel ?

Scenario #2

Same boat flag and owners but the boat is 100% sailing in of BVI waters.

You haven’t thought this through too well. For any U.S. flagged charter boat, you require a US license and citizenship to be master or any deck officer.

[The Other Side]

Originally Posted by Pandor

You haven’t thought this through too well. For any U.S. flagged charter boat, you require a US license and citizenship to be master or any deck officer.

Pandor, Have you read my opening statement ?

None the less thank you for the information provided it will help me navigate to my destination.

[Simi 60]

https://bananasinpyjamas.fandom.com/wiki/B1_and_B2

[sv_pelagia]

There are many job categories covered under the NAFTA2 (USMCA/CUSMA/etc) agreement, which provide for a Canadian to get a TN visa
https://travel.state.gov/content/tra...l-workers.html

Unfortunately, the list of professions does not seem to include yours:
https://www.nafsa.org/_/file/_/amresource/8cfr2146.htm

As a general suggestion, you might consider contacting US immigration and/or experienced (and bona fide) immigration consultants to get a formal answer.

[Dsanduril]

Originally Posted by The Other Side

Ok that’s a lot of different takes regarding answering my questions.

So this is the scenario #1

I’m a Canadian citizen working for an American flagged charter boat owned by an American coupe and sailing out of USVI and the charter grounds is split 25% USVI and 75% BVI. what do I require for a Visa or work permit to be the Captain of that vessel ?

Scenario #2

Same boat flag and owners but the boat is 100% sailing in of BVI waters.

Originally Posted by Pandor

You haven’t thought this through too well. For any U.S. flagged charter boat, you require a US license and citizenship to be master or any deck officer.

The USVI (and American Samoa and Guam) are outside the customs territory of the United States (this is why even US vessels have to clear in/out when sailing between USVI and PR) and thus exempt from the requirements of the Jones Act that would require at least three-quarters of any paid crew to be US citizens.

To the OP's original question, I suspect the requirement is to show that you can enter the US at will, multiple times, over an extended period, without having to deal with waivers or visas. As a Canadian citizen you should be able to do just that, but not having been in that boat myself I'd suggest confirming with CBP. If you can get it in writing then you have something to show to potential employers to indicate you have an alternative to their B1/B2 requirement.

[The Other Side]

Originally Posted by Dsanduril

The USVI (and American Samoa and Guam) are outside the customs territory of the United States (this is why even US vessels have to clear in/out when sailing between USVI and PR) and thus exempt from the requirements of the Jones Act that would require at least three-quarters of any paid crew to be US citizens.

To the OP's original question, I suspect the requirement is to show that you can enter the US at will, multiple times, over an extended period, without having to deal with waivers or visas. As a Canadian citizen you should be able to do just that, but not having been in that boat myself I'd suggest confirming with CBP. If you can get it in writing then you have something to show to potential employers to indicate you have an alternative to their B1/B2 requirement.

Thank you for moving my query forward, I appreciate your heuristic advise. I'll clarify your idea with CBP next week and advise.

Thank You

The Other Side

[Montanan]

Originally Posted by The Other Side

Ok that’s a lot of different takes regarding answering my questions.

So this is the scenario #1

I’m a Canadian citizen working for an American flagged charter boat owned by an American coupe and sailing out of USVI and the charter grounds is split 25% USVI and 75% BVI. what do I require for a Visa or work permit to be the Captain of that vessel ? First you would be an employee, your employer is responsible for compliance with all laws of employment and business activities. They must be able to answer such simple questions with complete knowledge, if they can't then they are what one would call being clueless and ignorant which raises red flags all around. Under such an arrangement wherein the vessel is conducting trade from a US port to a US port, the Jones Act rules come into play, wherein the boat and the crew need to be of American build and citizenship. Many details, recommend you Google doing business in the USA for USA trade as a non-USA citizen or a non-USA permanent resident. If you are contemplating residing and / or doing business in the USA, it behooves you to learn ALL the requirements and it goes beyond behooves, it goes to being a necessity. A forum blog post will not provide you with complete and full disclosure and knowledge thereto.
Starting references:
https://www.maritimelawcenter.com/ht...nited%20States.
https://travel.state.gov/content/tra...t/visitor.html

Generally, the Jones Act prohibits any foreign built or foreign flagged vessel from engaging in coastwise trade within the United States. A number of other statutes affect coastwise trade and should be consulted along with the Jones Act. These include the Passenger Services Act, 46 USC section 289 which restricts coastwise transportation of passengers and 46 USC section 12108 restricts the use of foreign vessel to commercially catch or transport fish in U.S. waters.

Recommend that you read 46 USC section 289 and other pertinent parts of the CFR.

The essential term that has given rise to various interpretations of what constitutes "coastwise trade". The federal courts have given a very wide interpretation of the term. Essentially the term applies to a voyage that beginning at any point within the United States and delivering a type of commercial cargo to any other point within the United States.

Various cases have extended the definition of merchandise to include anything of a commercial value including dredged materials used for land fill. The federal district courts have ruled that the transportation of sewage sludge is not "merchandise" because it is a valueless commodity.


The Passenger Services Act provides the legislation that controls the operation of passenger vessels in coastwise trade. The difficult issue has always been what constitutes a "passenger".The general definition has been any person other than the ship's master, a crew member or any person engaged in the ship's business. The "for hire" issue involves any consideration flowing from the passenger to the ship owner, charterer, agent or any person involved in the ship. The consideration has been construed to be using a company yacht for entertaining customers or clients to develop "business goodwill". Carried to its logical conclusion would require any vessel unless used solely for personal pleasure to be registered for coastwise trade and inspected.

It does not appear to be the Coast Guard's policy to go to this extreme. It is reasonable to assume that any vessel that transport passengers on a regular or irregular basis must be inspected and licensed for coastwise trade.

Please note that under new regulations, there are different categories of vessels subject to inspection, which include: "passenger vessels"; "small passenger vessel"; "offshore vessels"; and "uninspected passenger vessels".

Scenario #2

Same boat flag and owners but the boat is 100% sailing in of BVI waters.
. BVI laws apply as to immigration and doing business. Review them in similar detail with reference to their published registry of law.

Comments above.