Nauti Test ProIndependent guide · Marlins English tests
In short: Marlins sells the test as a licence code — list price USD 23 for the Seafarers and Cruise tests, USD 40 for Offshore, at the time of writing — and an approved test centre adds its own fee. The code is valid for 12 months, you have 36 hours to finish once you start, and the certificate prints no expiry date: your employer decides how old a result it accepts.
Checked on Marlins' public pages and help centre in September 2026. Marlins can change any of it, so each row links to the page it came from.
| Question | What Marlins publishes |
|---|---|
| Who sells the test | Marlins, through its Test Platform at marlinstests.com: an account buys licence codes by card; companies can pay by invoice from 100 tests. source |
| Where you take it | At a Marlins Approved Test Centre (supervised, ID checked), online with AI proctoring (sold to business accounts) or online unsupervised, with a "standard" certificate. source |
| What it costs | List price per licence: USD 23 (Seafarers), USD 23 (Cruise Ship Staff), USD 40 (Offshore Workers), with volume discounts. A test centre adds its own fee, which Marlins does not control. source source |
| Licence validity | 12 months from purchase; once a test is started it must be finished within 36 hours. source |
| Certificate validity | The certificate shows the test date and no expiry date. When asked, Marlins suggests accepting a result for 4 or 5 years — but each company or flag state decides. source |
| Retakes | Up to the company or flag state. Marlins recommends no more than 3 attempts in 24 hours. source |
| Checking a certificate | Enter the licence code (16 or 20 characters) on the marlinstests.com home page; two green ticks mean an Approved Test Centre. source |
| Source and date | Marlins Test Platform and help centre, read in September 2026. The price article was last updated by Marlins in April 2023 and was still online. |
There is no exam date to book. Marlins sells licence codes — a 16- or 20-character code that opens one test on its platform, in a crewing office, on board, in a centre or at home. What changes is who supervises you, and that decides which certificate you get (source):
A centre inspected by Marlins. You show photo ID and sit the test under exam conditions, watched throughout. It issues the approved certificate — the one flag states such as the UK MCA ask for, and the format the companies that recruit through manning agencies expect; Marlins says the standard certificate is not accepted by the MCA and by some companies.
At home, with a webcam and a microphone; the session is recorded and reviewed. These licences are sold to business accounts, so your employer or agency arranges it. The certificate carries an "AI Proctored" stamp.
Anyone can register and buy a licence. No ID check, and the result is a standard certificate that some employers and flag states do not accept. Marlins itself advises an individual seafarer to go to a centre instead.
To find a centre, use Marlins' own directory: Marlins Approved Test Centres. It has a country filter and, at the time of writing, lists around 200 centres in about 50 countries, each with its contact details and services (the written tests, sometimes the TOSE). Some centres accept only their own candidates — crewing agencies testing the crew they recruit — so read the entry before you travel.
No centre near you? Marlins' help centre says to ask your employer what other proof of English it accepts (source). The AI-proctored route exists for this case, but only a company account can buy it.
Two prices get mixed up online. The first is the licence price Marlins charges on its platform, published in its help centre (source). At the time of writing, a single licence is:
| Test | Single licence |
|---|---|
| ICS Marlins English Language Test for Seafarers | USD 23 |
| Marlins English Language Test for Cruise Ship Staff | USD 23 |
| Marlins English Language Test for Offshore Workers | USD 40 |
Volume discounts start at two licences and go down to USD 12 (Seafarers, Cruise) and USD 34 (Offshore) at 3,000 or more. Cards in US dollars or pounds sterling; bank transfer from 100 tests (source · source). Marlins last updated that article in April 2023 — check it before you budget.
The second price is what an Approved Test Centre charges you to sit the test there. Marlins does not set it: each centre prices its own administration, and fees vary by region (source). So the honest answer to "how much is the Marlins test in the Philippines, India or Ukraine" is ask the centre: you pay the centre's own fee.
Who pays? Marlins' platform is built for companies: an account buys a batch of licences and allocates a code to each candidate (source). Whether your agency covers the fee is between you and them — ask before you pay for anything yourself.
The Marlins test can be taken at home — with a condition. The remotely proctored version needs a webcam and a microphone; the software watches with facial recognition, audio sampling and screen capture, and gives the recording a confidence rating that the test administrator reviews before the certificate is released (source). Photo ID is checked (source).
The condition: proctored licences are sold to business accounts. An individual seafarer cannot buy one; the employer or manning agency does. If you register on your own, what you get is the unsupervised test and a standard certificate — Marlins' help centre says this format may not be accepted by some employers and flag states, and recommends a centre in person (source).
| Route | What you need to know |
|---|---|
| Approved Test Centre | Photo ID, exam conditions, a supervisor present throughout. Approved certificate with a text watermark, the navy ATC logo and space for the centre's stamp. Accepted by the UK MCA and by the companies and flag states that require supervision. source |
| AI proctored (at home) | Webcam, microphone and a company-bought licence. Recorded session reviewed by the administrator; certificate with an "AI Proctored" stamp. source |
| Unsupervised (at home) | Any registered account can buy it. No ID check, no supervision; standard certificate without the ATC features, which Marlins describes as suitable for a company's internal use. source |
Whichever route, Marlins describes the same procedure — photo ID, exam conditions — on the same platform; what changes is who supervises you (source). If your connection drops, the same code lets you resume within the 36-hour window.
A licence code is valid for 12 months from purchase. Once it has been used to open a test, the test must be completed within 36 hours, after which it expires (source, updated by Marlins in February 2026). Those 36 hours are a window, not a timer: the test has no time limit, only a "recommended maximum time" of 60 minutes for Seafarers and Offshore and 30 minutes for Cruise Ship Staff (source).
Your name is typed before the test and cannot be corrected once it has started and the certificate is printed (source). Check the spelling against your passport or seaman's book first.
The certificate carries no expiry date — only the date you completed the test. Marlins explains why: a person's English changes over time, so how often a seafarer should be retested is left to the company or the flag state. When one of them asks for guidance, Marlins suggests accepting a certificate for 4 or 5 years after the test date (source).
So the "valid for 2 years" you read on agency sites is not a Marlins rule. It may be that agency's rule, or a cruise line's — and then it is the rule that counts for you. What is wrong is presenting it as an expiry printed on the certificate. Before you retest, ask the company that wants it how old a result it accepts.
The score works the same way: there is no pass mark. The company or authority that asked for the test decides whether your percentage is enough (source); Marlins only publishes the minimums it recommends per rank, from 45 % for an OS to 85 % for a Master (source) — see Marlins test score by rank.
Yes. Marlins publishes no waiting period: how soon a candidate may retest is at the discretion of the flag state and the company, with one recommendation — no more than three attempts within 24 hours (source). Each attempt is a new licence, paid for again.
If a centre or an agency tells you to wait a month, that is their policy, not Marlins' — and still the one you follow with them. And three attempts in a day is a ceiling, not a plan: the retake that works is the one you prepare for — see how to pass the Marlins test.
Marlins verifies certificates online, free and without an account. On the marlinstests.com home page, enter the licence code printed on the certificate — 16 or 20 letters and digits, no spaces, every 0 a zero — in the "check certificate validity" box and click Verify (source · source).
Then compare every detail on the paper with the record shown — a forged certificate can differ in a single digit of the score. A lost copy is no reason to retest: the administrator can download it again as a PDF (source).
The licence is per test, so buy the right one. Your employer normally says which; if not, the sector decides. Formats from Marlins' own description (source):
| Test | Format | Who it is for |
|---|---|---|
| Seafarers | 85 questions · 60 min | Deck, engine and ratings on merchant ships — the one flag states such as the UK MCA recognise |
| Cruise Ship Staff | 50 questions · 30 min | Hotel department of a cruise ship: guest services, housekeeping, restaurant, bar, galley, shops, spa |
| Offshore Workers | 85 points · 60 min | Oil and gas and offshore wind: rigs, platforms, supply and construction vessels |
The minutes are Marlins' recommended maximum, not a limit; Offshore counts points because its one Reading task is worth several. Some employers also ask for the Test of Spoken English (TOSE), an interview with a trained assessor graded in six levels: it is arranged through a centre — the ones that offer it are marked in the directory — and Marlins recommends a level per rank, from Elementary for an AB to Upper Intermediate for a Master (source).
A licence, a centre fee and a day of travel are cheap next to a contract lost on the Listening section. Marlins offers a free practice version on its platform, no licence code needed (source); use it to see the screens. Then train the skills:
Yes, in two ways. Marlins sells an AI-proctored version: you need a webcam and a microphone, the session is recorded with facial recognition, audio sampling and screen capture, and the test administrator reviews it before the certificate is released. Those licences are sold to business accounts, so your employer or agency arranges it. An individual can also register on marlinstests.com and buy an unsupervised test, but that gives a standard certificate that some employers and flag states do not accept; Marlins' help centre recommends an Approved Test Centre in person instead. (Marlins help centre, proctored tests and individual seafarer articles, read September 2026.)
Marlins does not publish a per-country price. Its help centre lists the licence price it charges on its platform — at the time of writing (September 2026), USD 23 for the Seafarers and Cruise Ship Staff tests and USD 40 for Offshore Workers, in an article last updated in April 2023 — and says Approved Test Centres set their own fees, which vary by region. The price you pay in Manila, Mumbai or Odesa is the centre's fee, so ask the centre: Marlins' directory at marlins.co.uk/approved-test-centres lists each one with its contact.
Not as a Marlins rule. The certificate shows the test date and no expiry date; when companies or flag states ask, Marlins suggests accepting a result for 4 or 5 years, and says each of them decides how often a seafarer should be retested (Marlins help centre, "How long is a Marlins certificate valid?", read September 2026). If an agency or a cruise line asks for a test less than two years old, that is its own policy — and then the one you have to meet.
No expiry date is printed on it, only the date the test was completed. Marlins leaves the validity period to the employer or the flag state and, when asked, recommends 4 or 5 years. Check with the company that wants the certificate before paying for a new test.
Yes. There is no pass mark in the test itself — the company or flag state sets the score it needs — and Marlins publishes no waiting period: how soon you retest is at their discretion. Marlins only recommends a maximum of three attempts in 24 hours. Every attempt needs a new licence, so it is paid for again. (Marlins help centre, retake and pass-or-fail articles, read September 2026.)
On the marlinstests.com home page, in the "check certificate validity" box, enter the licence code printed on the certificate (16 or 20 letters and digits, no spaces; zeros are digits, not the letter O) and click Verify. Two green ticks mean the test was taken at a Marlins Approved Test Centre; one tick means it was taken on the platform but not at a centre; anything else means it is not valid. Then compare every detail on the paper — name, date, test, score — with the record shown, because a forged certificate can differ by one digit. No account is needed.
Marlins does not say; it depends on your employer. Its platform is built for companies: an account buys a batch of licences and allocates a code to each candidate, and only business accounts can buy the AI-proctored version. Many crewing agencies cover the fee or send candidates to a centre; others ask you to pay the centre yourself. Ask your agency before buying a licence on your own — the unsupervised test you would buy as an individual may not be the certificate they accept.
36 hours from the moment the licence code is used to open the test; after that the test expires. The code itself is valid for 12 months from purchase. Within those 36 hours there is no timer — Marlins recommends a maximum of 60 minutes for the Seafarers and Offshore tests and 30 minutes for Cruise Ship Staff — and if your connection drops you can resume with the same code. (Marlins help centre, test credits article updated February 2026, read September 2026.)