Shore Leave Pass Rules Revised 2026: What Seafarers Need to Know

If your ship is calling an Indian port and you’re planning to step ashore, there’s a new set of rules you need to know before you head down the gangway. A mid-2026 circular changed the daily hours, validity period, and extension terms for Shore Leave Passes — and getting caught out by the new timing window is an easy, avoidable mistake.

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The circular, correctly identified

The rules come from DGS Circular No. 38 of 2026, dated July 15, 2026, issued by the Directorate General of Maritime Administration (DGMA) — the authority formerly known as DG Shipping, renamed under the Merchant Shipping Act 2025. It’s available via DGMA’s circular listing at dgma.gov.in, under the 2026 circulars for that period. If you want to check the exact wording that applies to your situation, that listing is the place to look for the original document.

What actually changed

Shore Leave Pass (SLP) rules govern when and how a crew member on a foreign-going or coastal vessel can go ashore while their ship is in an Indian port. Circular No. 38 of 2026 revises three specific aspects of these rules.

1. Daily timing window: 0600 to 2345

An SLP is now valid for use only within a fixed daily window — 0600 hours to 2345 hours. In plain terms, if you’re planning to go ashore, your movement needs to fall within this roughly 17.75-hour window each day. Outside these hours, the pass isn’t valid for that purpose, so plan your shore trips — meals, calls home, sightseeing, whatever the reason — to comfortably fit inside this window rather than cutting it close to either end.

2. Validity capped at 7 days

An SLP’s overall validity is now capped at 7 days. If your ship’s port stay or your personal shore leave arrangement runs longer than a week, the pass itself won’t automatically cover that entire period — you’ll need to look at an extension rather than assuming the original pass remains valid indefinitely.

3. Extensions available, but at a fee

If you need shore leave access beyond the 7-day cap, the circular allows for an extension, available at a fee equivalent to the TLP (Transit Landing Pass) fee. This means extending an SLP is not free — budget for it if you know in advance that your stay in port, or your need for shore access, will run past a week.

4. Category-specific rules for Indian vs. foreign crew

The circular also sets out rules that distinguish Indian crew from foreign crew categories. The exact practical difference this makes — in terms of documentation, sponsorship, or additional requirements — is the kind of detail that can vary by port and by the specific circumstances of the vessel and crew member, so it’s worth confirming directly with your ship’s agent, manning company, or the port’s immigration/customs authority rather than assuming the same process applies uniformly to everyone onboard.

Why this matters if you’re currently sailing or about to join

Shore leave is one of the most immediate, day-to-day welfare issues for anyone working aboard a ship calling Indian ports — it’s often the only break from shipboard routine during a port call, whether that means a proper meal ashore, picking up essentials, or simply a change of scenery after weeks at sea. Rules that quietly change the hours you can use your pass, or add a fee for extensions you didn’t budget for, are the kind of thing that catches people off guard exactly when they’re looking forward to getting off the ship.

A few practical takeaways:

• Check your pass’s stated validity window before you go ashore — don’t assume the old, more open-ended rules still apply.
• If your port stay is going to run longer than a week, ask your agent or ship’s management about the extension process and fee in advance, rather than discovering it at the gangway.
• If you’re a foreign national serving on a vessel that calls Indian ports, confirm with your manning agent whether any category-specific documentation or process applies to you under the revised rules, since the circular explicitly separates Indian and foreign crew treatment.
• Keep this in mind when planning family visits or meeting friends ashore during a port call — arriving to find your pass window has already closed for the day is an entirely avoidable disappointment.

What hasn’t changed

The circular doesn’t appear to eliminate shore leave or make it harder to get an SLP in the first place — it revises the operating parameters (hours, validity length, extension terms, and crew-category distinctions) rather than the basic right to apply for shore leave while your vessel is in an Indian port. If you’ve been ashore under the old rules before, the core process of obtaining a pass likely remains broadly familiar; it’s the fine print around timing and duration that’s different now.

Where to get the specifics for your situation

Because port-level implementation of a circular like this can vary — different ports, agents, and shipping companies sometimes apply the letter of a circular slightly differently in practice — the most reliable thing to do before you’re due into an Indian port is to ask your ship’s agent or manning company directly how the revised SLP rules are being applied at that specific port. That conversation, close to your actual port call, will save you more trouble than trying to work out edge cases in advance from the circular text alone.

FAQs

What are the new Shore Leave Pass hours under the 2026 rules? Under DGS Circular No. 38 of 2026, an SLP is valid for use only within the daily window of 0600 to 2345 — seafarers should plan shore visits to stay within these hours.

How long is a Shore Leave Pass valid for now? The circular caps SLP validity at 7 days. If you need shore access beyond that, an extension is available, at a fee equivalent to the TLP (Transit Landing Pass) fee.

Do the new SLP rules apply differently to Indian and foreign crew? Yes. DGS Circular No. 38 of 2026 sets out category-specific rules that distinguish Indian crew from foreign crew, so the exact conditions can differ depending on your nationality — check with your ship’s agent or port authority for the specifics that apply to you.

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