A master who knows the river should not have to pay for a pilot.
Argentina has opened its pilotage exemption regime. A master who has completed ten inbound and ten outbound transits of a leg within the preceding three years may now dispense with the pilot on that leg — entirely or in part — saving thousands of dollars on every transit.
Decree 690/2026 replaced a regime that had stood for thirty-four years.
Published in the Official Gazette on 31 July 2026 and in force from 1 August, it repealed Decree 2694/1991 and amended Decrees 817/92 and 572/94. Article 18 is the one that matters to a shipowner.
“Los capitanes o patrones independientemente de su nacionalidad y la bandera del buque, que efectúen de manera regular los trayectos sujetos a la obligación de llevar a bordo un práctico […] podrán optar por prescindir de los mencionados servicios, total o parcialmente, cuando acrediten haber efectuado dentro de los TRES (3) años precedentes y sin interrupciones superiores a los SEIS (6) meses, DIEZ (10) viajes de ida y DIEZ (10) viajes de regreso en los mencionados trayectos.”Decree 690/2026, Article 18 — replacing Article 17 of Decree 817/92
Masters and skippers of any nationality, on vessels of any flag, may apply. The Argentine Coast Guard — Prefectura Naval Argentina — must decide within five business days, and if it neither rejects the filing nor raises observations within that period, the certificate is granted automatically.
The full text and both annexes are published by the Official Gazette: Decree 690/2026. Annex II, Chapter 4, paragraph 4.07 governs the certificate itself.
Five conditions. All of them must hold.
- Ten inbound and ten outbound transits Of the complete leg, within the three years preceding the application.
- No interruption longer than six months The record of transits must be continuous. A gap of more than six months breaks it.
- At least three transits in the last year Recent familiarity with the waterway, not merely historical.
- Served as Master, Skipper, River Officer or Second Skipper Transits performed in any other capacity do not count towards the total.
- English, where the officer is not a Spanish speaker The requirement follows language, not nationality: a Spanish-speaking foreign master is exempt.
| Argentine master | Foreign master | |
|---|---|---|
| Evidence of transits | The sworn declaration alone is sufficient. The Coast Guard verifies against its own records. | The declaration must be accompanied by documentation from the competent authority of the master’s State of nationality, the vessel’s flag State, or the relevant jurisdiction. |
| Where the work is | Assembling and reconciling the transit record. | The same, plus obtaining the foreign attestation, its apostille and a sworn translation — and judging which of the three admissible authorities is realistically obtainable. |
“Toda falsedad o negligencia en la declaración jurada […] dará lugar a la cancelación de la habilitación del capitán.”Decree 690/2026, Article 18
The master signs under penalty of losing their licence, on a declaration covering twenty voyages going back three years. That is why this service exists: not to fill in a form, but to make sure every transit declared can be evidenced before anyone is asked to sign.
Four steps, and the file stays yours.
Fleet screening
We reconstruct the transit calendar of your vessels on each leg from AIS records, and tell you which legs are worth pursuing — before you commit to anything.
Matching masters to transits
AIS shows that the vessel sailed, never who was in command. You provide crew lists and discharge book records; we reconcile them against the calendar, transit by transit.
Review and documentation
A specialist in Argentina verifies every item against the decree and raises observations where the evidence is thin. Nothing goes forward until it holds.
Filing
The sworn declaration is issued in Spanish for filing with the Coast Guard, together with the complete indexed and paginated file. The statutory period is five business days.
Published, and charged per certificate.
The certificate is granted to a master for a leg. A master certified on two legs holds two certificates; a vessel with three masters in rotation needs three.
Certificate filing
per master, per leg · payable in advance
Screening, reconciliation of the transit record, specialist review, and the complete file ready to be filed. Foreign masters are quoted above the floor, because obtaining and legalising the foreign attestation is where the work multiplies.
Watch — optional
per certificate
A certificate lapses on its own. The six-month interruption rule and the three-transits-a-year rule keep running after it is granted, so a master who stops sailing the leg quietly stops qualifying. Watch tracks the record and warns you before that happens.
South Grove Trading
A Delaware company, operating on the Parana River and the River Plate.
The exemption regime came into force on 1 August 2026. Everyone working under it — ourselves included — is working under a rule that is weeks old. What we offer is not a track record under the old regime: it is precision under the new one. Every requirement we apply is cited to its article and paragraph, and the source texts are linked above so you can check them yourself.
Filing is made by the master, the shipowner, or whoever they designate — a route the decree provides for expressly. We act under that designation.
Tell us your vessels.
Send the IMO numbers and we will come back with the transit picture for each leg, and which of your masters are worth putting forward.
There is no charge for the initial screening and no account to create. If we take the work on, you receive an access link by e-mail.