MSHA certification requirements come from two federal regulations, 30 CFR Part 46 and 30 CFR Part 48, and they set the minimum training every miner must complete before working at a mine. Depending on the operation, that means 24 to 40 hours of instruction, documented on MSHA Form 5000-23 and kept available at the mine site. Which part applies, how many hours are required, and who can deliver the training all depend on the type of mine and the commodity being produced.
Which Regulation Applies to Your Mine
Everything about a miner’s certification starts with identifying the right rule.
30 CFR Part 46 covers surface operations producing sand, gravel, surface stone, surface clay, colloidal phosphate, or surface limestone, along with related materials such as marble, granite, sandstone, slate, shale, and cement.1eCFR. 30 CFR Part 46 – Training and Retraining of Miners Engaged in Shell Dredging or Employed at Sand, Gravel, Surface Stone, Surface Clay, Colloidal Phosphate, or Surface Limestone Mines Under Part 46, the operator writes and manages its own training plan without submitting it to MSHA for approval.
30 CFR Part 48 applies to all underground mines and their surface areas, and to surface operations producing any commodity not listed under Part 46, including coal and most metals. Part 48 training plans must be submitted to the MSHA district manager for approval before training begins.2eCFR. 30 CFR Part 48 – Training and Retraining of Miners
Site context can override commodity. A crusher operating at a Part 48 mine site requires Part 48 training for every worker there, even if the same crusher at a standalone site would fall under Part 46.3Mine Safety and Health Administration. Compliance Guideline for MSHA’s Part 46 Training Regulations Getting the classification wrong can lead to a withdrawal order that halts work until every miner is trained under the correct standard.
Minimum Training Hours
The required hours are floors. Operators can always train beyond them, but not below.
Part 46 Surface Operations
New miners need at least 24 total hours of training. A minimum of 4 hours must be finished before the miner starts any work duties, covering the work environment, hazard recognition, emergency procedures, and the health and safety aspects of the assigned task. The remaining hours are due within 90 calendar days of the start date.4eCFR. 30 CFR 46.5 – New Miner Training Until the full 24 hours are complete, the new miner must work where an experienced miner can observe them.
Part 48 Surface Mines
New miners also need 24 hours. At least 8 of those hours must be finished before the miner is assigned to work duties, and the balance must be completed within 60 days.5eCFR. 30 CFR 48.25 – Training of New Miners, Minimum Courses of Instruction, Hours of Instruction
Part 48 Underground Mines
Underground work carries the heaviest upfront requirement: 40 hours, all completed before the miner is assigned to any work duties. Approximately 8 of those hours must occur at the actual mine site, and the remaining instruction should take place in conditions that closely resemble underground working environments.6GovInfo. 30 CFR 48.5 – Training of New Miners, Minimum Courses of Instruction
Annual Refresher Training
Every miner, under both Part 46 and Part 48, must complete 8 hours of refresher training each year. Refresher content covers updated hazard information, regulatory changes, and a review of emergency procedures.
MSHA Form 5000-23: The Training Certificate
MSHA Form 5000-23 is the official training certificate used by both Part 46 and Part 48 operations, available through the MSHA website or from an authorized instructor.7Mine Safety and Health Administration. MSHA Form 5000-23 Instructions Small errors can delay a miner’s site access or draw a citation during an inspection, so accuracy matters.
The form captures:
- Full name of the person trained, printed clearly.
- Type of training, checked from five categories: new miner, newly hired experienced miner, annual refresher, new task, and hazard training.8Mine Safety and Health Administration. Instructions for Completing MSHA Form 5000-23
- Type of operation: coal, metal, or nonmetal, and surface or underground.
- Mine name, MSHA mine ID number, and training location; contractor operations enter the contractor ID instead.
- Subjects covered, useful when refresher training is spread across multiple sessions.
- Dates of each training session and the duration of instruction.
The person designated in the training plan as responsible for health and safety training must sign the form, certifying that the miner received the indicated instruction.9Mine Safety and Health Administration. Instructions for Completing MSHA Training Form 5000-23 That signature carries legal weight; falsifying it triggers criminal liability under the Mine Act.
The miner may sign and date the form to acknowledge training, but the miner’s signature is not mandatory.8Mine Safety and Health Administration. Instructions for Completing MSHA Form 5000-23 For new task training, both the instructor and the miner initial each task entry.
One requirement is easy to miss and often cited: the instructor must give the miner a copy of the completed training certificate at the end of training.10Mine Safety and Health Administration. Certificate of Training Miners who leave a job can also request copies of their training records.
Who Can Deliver the Training
Instructor rules diverge sharply between the two parts.
Under Part 46, training must be delivered by a competent person designated by the operator, meaning someone with the ability, training, knowledge, or experience to teach in their area of expertise.11Mine Safety and Health Administration. Instructor Training Workshop – Part 46 No formal certification process exists. The operator makes the determination. Training must be given in a language the miners can understand.
Under Part 48, instructors must be approved by MSHA. Approval typically requires an application to the MSHA district manager, documentation of at least three years of mining experience, and completion of an instructor training course. The district manager makes the final determination based on the applicant’s verified experience, and completing the course does not guarantee approval.2eCFR. 30 CFR Part 48 – Training and Retraining of Miners
Experienced Miner Status and Changing Mines
Certifications don’t simply transfer from site to site. The training required at a new mine depends on the miner’s experience level and how recently they were trained.
A miner reaches “experienced” status after completing new miner training and accumulating 12 months of mining experience. Once both conditions are met, MSHA treats that status as permanent. Surface experience counts only toward surface miner status, and underground experience counts only toward underground status.12Mine Safety and Health Administration. Compliance Guide for MSHA’s Modified Regulations on Training and Retraining of Miners
When an experienced miner starts at a new mine, the operator must provide experienced miner training on site-specific hazards, emergency procedures, and other required topics. There is generally no minimum hour requirement, with one exception: if the miner has been away from mining for five or more years, the operator must provide at least 8 hours of experienced miner training before work begins.12Mine Safety and Health Administration. Compliance Guide for MSHA’s Modified Regulations on Training and Retraining of Miners
A miner who has not yet reached experienced status faces a different rule. If new miner training was completed within the last 36 months, they receive experienced miner training at the new site. If more than 36 months have passed, they must complete the full new miner training program again.12Mine Safety and Health Administration. Compliance Guide for MSHA’s Modified Regulations on Training and Retraining of Miners
Where Certificates Live and How Long They’re Kept
Under both Part 46 and Part 48, completed training certificates must be available at the mine site for inspection by MSHA, miners, their representatives, and state agencies. Training plans are submitted to the MSHA district manager under Part 48, but the training certificates themselves stay at the mine site, the same as under Part 46.13eCFR. 30 CFR 48.9 – Records of Training If the certificates aren’t physically at the mine, the operator must be able to produce them quickly by fax, email, or similar means.
Retention periods differ slightly:
- Part 46 records for currently employed miners must be kept for the duration of employment, except annual refresher records, which only need to be retained for two years. After a miner leaves, all records must be kept for at least 60 additional calendar days.14eCFR. 30 CFR 46.9 – Records of Training
- Part 48 certificates for current employees must be kept at the mine site for two years, or for 60 days after the miner’s employment ends, whichever applies.15eCFR. 30 CFR 48.29 – Records of Training
Penalties for Noncompliance
Training violations are among the easiest for inspectors to identify and the most expensive to resolve after the fact. The Federal Mine Safety and Health Act authorizes civil penalties of up to $50,000 per violation at the statutory level.16Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 30 USC 820 – Penalties After inflation adjustments, the maximum stands at $90,649 per violation as of 2025, and flagrant violations can reach $332,376.17Mine Safety and Health Administration. What Is the Impact of the Inflation Adjustment Act on MSHA’s Civil Penalties
When an inspector finds a miner on site who has not received required training, the inspector issues a Section 104(g) order. That order declares the untrained miner a hazard, requires immediate removal from the mine, and bars a return until MSHA confirms the proper training has been completed.18Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 30 USC 814 – Citations and Orders Beyond stopping the affected worker’s production, a 104(g) order often prompts a broader review of the operation’s training records.
Knowingly falsifying a training certificate is a criminal offense under the Mine Act, punishable by a fine of up to $10,000, imprisonment for up to five years, or both.19Mine Safety and Health Administration. Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 Every Form 5000-23 carries a printed warning about that criminal liability.