(a) Newly-hired vessel employees may be granted entry to secure areas of the vessel for up to 30 consecutive calendar days prior to receiving their TWIC provided all of the requirements in paragraph (b) of this section are met, and provided that the new hire is accompanied by an individual with a TWIC while within the secure areas of the vessel. If TSA does not act upon a TWIC application within 30 days, the cognizant Coast Guard COTP may further extend access to secure areas for another 30 days. The Coast Guard will determine whether, in particular circumstances, certain practices meet the condition of a new hire being accompanied by another individual with a TWIC.

(b) Newly-hired vessel employees may be granted the access provided for in paragraph (a) of this section only if:

(1) The new hire has applied for a TWIC in accordance with 49 CFR part 1572 by completing the full enrollment process, paying the user fee, and is not currently engaged in a waiver or appeal process. The vessel owner or operator or Vessel Security Officer (VSO) must have the new hire sign a statement affirming this, and must retain the signed statement until the new hire receives a TWIC;

(2) The vessel owner or operator or the VSO enters the following information on the new hire into the Coast Guard's Homeport website (https://homeport.uscg.mil):

(i) Full legal name, including middle name if one exists;

(ii) Date of birth;

(iii) Social security number (optional);

(iv) Employer name and 24 hour contact information; and

(v) Date of TWIC enrollment;

(3) The new hire presents an identification credential that meets the requirements of § 101.515 of this subchapter;

(4) There are no other circumstances that would cause reasonable suspicion regarding the new hire's ability to obtain a TWIC, and the vessel owner or operator or VSO have not been informed by the cognizant COTP that the new hire poses a security threat; and

(5) There would be an adverse impact to vessel operations if the new hire is not allowed access.

(c) This section does not apply to any individual being hired as a Company Security Officer (CSO) or VSO, or any individual being hired to perform vessel security duties.

(d) The new hire may not begin working on board the vessel under the provisions of this section until the owner, operator, or VSO receives notification, via Homeport or some other means, the new hire has passed an initial name check.