What to bring when a Filipino seafarer renews the SIRB seaman's book

This guide is a different piece from this morning's article: Two Merchant Ships Reported Sunk Near Hormuz — 15 October 2026.

A seaman's book is the record a Filipino seafarer carries of who they are and where they have sailed. The book many crew still call the SIRB is the Seafarer's Identification and Record Book. MARINA now issues that record as a Seafarer's Record Book (SRB), and, for ships on international voyages, a separate Seafarer's Identity Document (SID). Renewing it is a MARINA appointment with a paper list. It is not a payment you make to a manning agency to get a ship.

Read the controlling text yourself: Memorandum Circular No. MD-2024-01. Then read Advisory No. 2026-24 for where the appointment is booked, and Advisory No. 2025-10 for what an unexpired SIRB still is. If a recruiter's checklist disagrees with those pages, follow the pages.

1. What you are renewing

Circular MD-2024-01 defines the SRB as the document formerly known as the SIRB. MARINA issues it as the record of sea service for Filipino seafarers on ships of 35 gross tonnage and above, and on fishing vessels of 50 gross tonnage and above. Fishermen or fish workers on fishing vessels of 3 gross tonnage and above that are authorised to operate in international waters are also covered for an SRB.

The same circular says a seafarer who will sail in international trade is issued an SID as well. The SID is the identity document under ILO Convention No. 185. The circular's definition uses it for proof of identity at the border, including shore leave, transit and transfer. An SRB and an SID are not the same booklet. Advisory 2025-10 says they are issued separately.

Two limits matter before you queue. Seafarers on ships below 35 gross tonnage, and on fishing vessels below 50 gross tonnage, are outside this circular and are pointed to a separate one. Fishermen on vessels of 3 gross tonnage and above that operate only in Philippine waters are exempt from the SRB and the SID under this circular. The circular also does not apply to warships, naval vessels, naval auxiliaries, or other ships owned or operated by the Philippine government and used only for governmental, non-commercial service. If your boat sits under those lines, do not force this checklist. Open the circular that MARINA names for that size of ship.

Filipino seafarers on international voyages must hold a valid SRB and a valid SID. Seafarers on ships in Philippine domestic waters are not required to hold an SID. For a seafarer who will join a ship in international waters, the circular says a valid SID is a prerequisite for the SRB application. A cadet or cadette below 18 may be issued an SRB or an SID for shipboard training only. Everyone else covered by the circular is at least 18.

2. Check the date in the old book before you apply

Do not book a slot because a group chat said every SIRB is already dead. Advisory 2025-10 says a valid SIRB remains a valid identity document until the date of its expiry, and that licensed manning agencies, shipping companies, shipowners, port State control and other authorities should recognise it as such. The circular says the same thing in its general provisions: a valid SIRB continues to serve as a valid identity document.

The appointment site at sidsrb.marina.gov.ph puts a practical line on top of that. If your SIRB is valid for more than six months, the site says you do not need to apply for an SRB and an SID yet. The valid SIRB continues as your identity document and as the record of your sea service. If the SIRB is valid for six months or less, is already expired, or needs replacement because it is lost, damaged, or the pages are used up, the site tells you to go on and apply.

Write the expiry date on a piece of paper before you open the app. If the book has more than six months left, you are not late. If it is inside six months, expired, lost, damaged, or full, start the appointment. An unexpired book is still the book Advisory 2025-10 describes until the date printed in it. The six-month line is about when the appointment site tells you to convert, not a claim that a book with seven months left is already void.

The circular sets the validity of a new SRB at ten years and a new SID at five years. Those are the periods printed for the documents this circular issues. They are not a reason to throw away an SIRB that has not reached its own expiry date.

3. Book the appointment in the eGovPH app

From 13 May 2026, Advisory 2026-24 says the MARINA Online Appointment System is accessible through the eGovPH app only. Every appointment for issuance, renewal, or replacement of the SID and the SRB is processed exclusively through that app. Download it from the App Store, Google Play, or AppGallery, or start at the page the advisory names: e.gov.ph.

The circular itself still names the appointment system at sidsrb.marina.gov.ph. Use that site for the reminders and the six-month rule printed on it. Use the eGovPH app for the booking, because that is what Advisory 2026-24 requires from 13 May 2026. If you already held a confirmed appointment from before that date, the advisory says you go to the MARINA processing centre named on the appointment, either the central office in Manila or the regional office the appointment states. You do not re-book that old slot from scratch unless the centre tells you the slot is no longer valid.

After you have a slot, the advisory says to appear at the processing centre you selected one hour before the time on the appointment, with the documents complete and ready. The appointment site adds its own conditions, and they are strict. The applicant must appear in person. Failure to appear forfeits the slot and the processing charges already paid, in favour of the government. The circular says the same thing in another sentence: non-appearance forfeits the application, except for emergencies caused by medical or health issues. The circular does not list, in the lines used here, which medical paper that exception requires. Ask the processing centre what it will accept. Do not invent a medical certificate and hope.

The site also says the applicant must wear or bring a collared shirt, and that an applicant for an SRB must bring one documentary stamp. Supplying incorrect information when you schedule the appointment forfeits the slot and any processing charges already paid. Read the name and the email you type. The site says they cannot be edited once submitted.

The site states a standard processing time: within three working hours after data capturing in step 2, under normal working conditions. That is a processing time, not a promise that the book is in your hand the same morning if the office is down or your papers are short. If the screen shows a different time on the day you book, believe the screen.

4. Papers for a new SRB or SID

Section VI of MD-2024-01 is a table. Use the row for the application you are actually filing. For a new SRB and/or SID, the table lists:

• A birth certificate on security paper (SECPA), or a passport, or an identification certificate issued by the Bureau of Immigration for a dual citizen.
• A marriage contract, for a married woman.
• A valid NBI clearance.
• A certificate of completion for Basic Training, or a certificate of proficiency for Basic Training.
• Documentary stamps, for an SRB only.

Bring the originals named in that row. If you already hold an SIRB, an SRB, or an SID, bring that document too. The reissuance row asks for the old book where it applies, and a later line in the same section says that a person who already holds a valid SRB and is applying for an SID, or the other way around, presents the valid document and submits a photocopy of it on appointment day.

There is a training trap in the general provisions. A holder of Basic Training who has not been onboard for at least one year within the last five years, counted from the date of the training certificate or from the date of last disembarkation, must take the full Basic Training course again. The exception in the circular is an applicant with at least one year of experience in those five years as an instructor for Basic Training or for other maritime-related safety courses. If your certificate is old and your sea service is thin, do not book the slot and discover this at the window. The appointment site says that incomplete requirements forfeit the slot and the processing charge already paid. Those charges are not refundable and not transferable.

The circular does not, in the lines above, set a photograph size, a medical-clinic name, or a peso figure for the NBI clearance. If the window or the app asks for a photograph or another paper that is not in the row you are using, ask the centre which item it is applying and where that item is written. Do not pay a person outside the centre to "complete" a paper the circular does not name.

5. Papers when the book is expired, lost, damaged, or full

Reissuance is the path for an expiring, lost, or damaged SRB or SID, and the appointment site uses the same idea when the pages are used up. The reissuance row of the table includes:

• The old SIRB, SRB, or SID, where it applies.
• A marriage contract, for a married woman.
• A valid NBI clearance.
• A Basic Training certificate of completion, or a certificate of proficiency for Basic Training.
• A certificate of sea service, or the sea-service entries in the previous SRB or SIRB.
• A duly notarised affidavit of loss, if that is the reason.
• Documentary stamps, for an SRB only.

Open the PDF and match the row. Do not rely on a photographed list from 2018, and do not rely on a list a fixer typed into a chat. The 2024 circular is the issuance rule. Advisory 2026-24 changes where you book. It does not replace the table.

Sea service has to be readable. The circular says every seafarer covered by it must make sure the entries in the SRB are filled in and signed by the master, or by the authorised company representative, on embarkation and before disembarkation. The sample layout in the circular has columns for the vessel's name and official number, the place of registry, the gross tonnage, the rank, the dates and places of embarkation and disembarkation, and the signature. If the printed name of the master is absent, the circular says the signature will suffice. If those lines in the old book are blank, get the certificate of sea service the reissuance row allows, signed by the authorised company representative, before you pay MARINA for the appointment. That payment is the MARINA charge in section 8. It is not a fee to the agency.

A lost book needs the notarised affidavit the row names. A book that is only expiring does not become a lost book because someone told you an affidavit is "safer." File the application that matches the facts. Wrong information on the appointment forfeits the slot.

6. If the seafarer is still onboard

You do not have to be in Manila to start a reissuance while you are still on the ship. General provision 6 of the circular says reissuance of an expiring, lost, or damaged SRB or SID while onboard is applied through the appointment system and filed by a duly authorised representative of the shipping company or the manning agency. MARINA restated that sentence in its 12 March 2026 notice. The notice also tells companies to read item 1 of the specific provisions, which is the documentary table.

The onboard row of that table asks for a letter from the company or agency, the POEA-approved employment contract, a crew list signed by the master, a clearance of no pending case or unpaid penalty from MARINA's central legal service or the regional legal unit, an affidavit by the seafarer confirmed by the master, a notarised company affidavit of undertaking, and documentary stamps for an SRB. The circular still says "POEA-approved employment contract" in that row. Bring the approved contract the circular names. If the centre now accepts the current DMW-approved contract in that slot, the centre will say so. Do not guess, and do not pay a third party to "convert" the contract into something else.

There is a separate expedite path in Section VI, item 2, for a seafarer who has a confirmed airline ticket, or whose embarkation date falls before the confirmed appointment. The circular says that application is filed by a duly licensed manning agency or shipping company, not by a relative with a Facebook account. The extra papers are a letter from the authorised company representative on the company letterhead and the company email, a confirmed e-ticket or an embarkation letter for a ship already in a Philippine port, an approved POEA contract or a notarised company contract or a certificate of employment, and a confirmed appointment. The web address for that company filing is printed in the circular. Use the address in the PDF. Do not use a shortened link someone messages you.

The family does not become the onboard filer by holding the seafarer's passport. The filer the circular names is the company's authorised representative, with the company papers above. Ask the agency, in writing, who that representative is, which office the appointment uses, and what the reference number is. Keep the reply.

7. What the family ashore can do, and what it cannot

A regular appointment is personal. The seafarer appears. A spouse, parent, or sibling cannot sit the appointment in the seafarer's place. The medical or health emergency exception is in the circular, and it is narrow. It is not a standing permission for the family to process the book while the seafarer is on leave in the province.

The family can still do the work that keeps the appointment from being wasted. Gather the originals in the correct row. Put the old book, the NBI clearance, the Basic Training certificate, the sea-service pages, and the documentary stamp in one folder. Photograph them for the family's own file, then keep the photographs off social media. Write down the appointment reference, the office, the date, and the time. On the day, the seafarer arrives an hour early, in a collared shirt, with that folder.

Claiming a book that is already released is different from filing. The circular says the SRB or SID may be claimed in person or by a duly authorised representative, if an authorisation letter is submitted with a photocopy of the seafarer's identification and a photocopy of the representative's identification. A family member with those two photocopies and the letter can collect the released book. They still cannot file the application itself unless they are the company representative on the onboard path.

If the book is not collected, the circular says an SRB or SID still unclaimed six months after the scheduled release date is void. The seafarer then has to apply again for a new one. That is a second appointment and a second charge. Put the release date in the family folder the day you hear it, and do not leave the book at the centre.

If contact with the seafarer stops while an onboard reissuance is in progress, the family asks the manning agency which representative filed it and for the appointment reference. The family does not pay the agency a fee to "follow up," to "reserve the slot," or to "facilitate" the book. A follow-up is a question. It is not a sale.

8. The MARINA charge is not a placement fee

MARINA's circular has a fee schedule in Section VII. Read that table in the PDF, and read the amount on the official payment screen, before any money moves. This guide does not restate a peso figure, because the figure you pay is the one on that table and on that screen for your row: new, renewal, expedite, or onboard. The appointment site is plain about the money once it has been paid to MARINA. Processing charges for the SRB or SID are not refundable and not transferable. An incomplete folder, a no-show, or wrong information on the booking forfeits the slot and those charges in favour of the government.

That MARINA charge is the cost of the seafarer's own book. It is not a fee paid to a manning agency for recruitment or placement. The implementing rules of the Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers, Republic Act No. 12021, draw the line. Recruitment or placement fees, and related costs including visas, may not be collected from seafarers or their families. The costs the rules allow a seafarer to bear are narrow: the medical certificate, the seafarer's record book, and a passport or a similar personal travel document. The text is in the signed IRR. Paying MARINA, through MARINA's own screen, for your own book sits in that narrow list. Paying an agency, a fixer, or a chat account to get you the job, or to "process" the book for you, does not.

Calling the agency's demand a reservation, a slot, a facilitation, or a processing payment does not make it lawful. An official-looking receipt from the agency does not make a placement fee lawful either. The 10 October guide on this site walks through the licence check and the same rule: how a Filipino seafarer checks a manning agency. Use it if someone is asking for money and also offering a ship. This page is only the book.

If an agency or a stranger asks you or your family for a placement fee, do not pay it. Report the request through the channels published on dmw.gov.ph. Keep the agency name, the person's name, the amount, the stated purpose, and the date. Do not pay a further fee to a social-media account that offers to recover the money or to book the MARINA slot "faster."

Official questions go to the offices printed on the documents, not to a personal number. Advisory 2026-24 prints MARINA at the MARINA Building, 20th Street corner Bonifacio Drive, 1018 Port Area, Manila, telephone (632) 8523-9078, and oadm@marina.gov.ph. The appointment site prints mds@marina.gov.ph. A different number in a message is not either of those offices.

A seafarer who is watchlisted, or whose SRB or SID is suspended, is disqualified from issuance until MARINA Legal Service at the central office, or the regional office that entered the watchlist, issues a legal clearance. The circular says that. It does not, in the provisions used here, name a shortcut an agency can sell you. Ask that legal office what the clearance requires.

9. On the day, and the week after

The night before, check four things against the row you are filing. The old book or the affidavit of loss. The NBI clearance, still valid. The Basic Training certificate, and whether the five-year sea-service rule in the circular forces a new course. The documentary stamp, if this is an SRB. Then check the appointment: the office, the hour, the name spelling, and the collared shirt.

At the centre, hand over what the row names. If the evaluator asks for a paper that is not on your row, ask which line of MD-2024-01 it comes from. If you cannot see that line, pause. A payment made on an incomplete filing is the payment the appointment site says is forfeited.

When the book is released, read the sea-service pages before you leave the counter. The next contract depends on those lines being signed at embarkation and before disembarkation. Photograph the biodata page and the expiry date for the family folder. Store the book with the passport, not in a checked bag you will not see for a day.

If you are joining soon and the released book has not arrived, the expedite path is the company's filing under Section VI, not a cash payment to a processor at the gate. Show the company the confirmed ticket or the embarkation date, and ask them to file with the papers the circular lists. Keep their letter. If they ask you to pay them a placement fee for doing it, refuse and report that demand to DMW.

Before you leave the house

You should be able to answer six questions. Is the old SIRB still more than six months from expiry, or is it time to apply? Are you filing a new issue, a reissuance, or an onboard reissuance? Does your ship fall inside this circular, or under the separate rule for smaller ships? Is the appointment in the eGovPH app, at the office named on the slot, an hour before the time? Are the papers the ones in your row of the MD-2024-01 table? Has anyone asked you to pay a manning agency for the book or for the job?

If someone has asked for a placement fee, do not pay it. Report it to DMW. If another answer is unclear, open the circular or the advisory and read the line, or ask the processing centre. A familiar agency name is not the MARINA appointment.

This guide is general information for Filipino seafarers and their families. It does not issue a book, confirm a slot, or certify an agency. The circular, the advisories, and the appointment screen control.