Foreign License Conversion | Step by Step Guide
To covert your foreign pilot license into a FAA License, the FAA will need to verify the authenticity of your foreign license and medical certificate. Regardless of what license you hold or how many hours you have flown in a foreign country, the FAA will only allow you to convert to the maximum of a FAA Private Pilot License. Foreign license conversions can take up to 90 days.
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Important: Do not make any travel arrangements or schedule any checkride dates until a valid verification letter has been obtained from the Airmen Certification Branch.
Follow the following steps to convert your foreign license into an FAA license:
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Preferred Method: IACRA
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Make full page legible color copy of your passport, foreign pilot license and medical certificate.
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Go to the IACRA website and register for an account.​
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Create your account using exact information from your official documentation e.g., your passport.
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Upload the documentation in the field provided.
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Submit the documentation.
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Mail or Email Form 8060-71:
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Complete the form 8060-71.
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Make full page enlarged copies of your foreign pilot license and foreign medical certificate.
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Submit the completed form 8060-1 and copes of your documents (as mentioned above) to the FAA, using either of the following methods:
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Mail:
Department of Transportation,
Federal Aviation Administration, Airmen Certification Branch,
PO. Box 25082, Oklahoma City,
OK 73125,
United States of America.​
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E-Mail:
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Important: The personal information you provide the FAA and recorded on. your home country's pilot license (i.e., your first name, middle name, last name, date of birth, city and country of birth) should match exactly as shown on your passport.
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Call your country's civil aviation authority and confirm that the request has been received. If your country's civil aviation authority does not respond to the FAA's request for verification, the FAA will resend the request after 30 days for a total of four times, after which the FAA will cancel the request and you will have to submit a new request.
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You can find the contact information for your country's civil aviation authority by clicking this link.​
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After you have received a letter of verification by the FAA, make your travel arrangements and reach out to us to schedule your appointment with a Designated Pilot Examiner (DPE).
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The appointment with the DPE is not a test. The DPE will interview your to verify your identity and documents and they can issue you a temporary pilot's license immediately.
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The DPE will charge you a fee for it. A reasonable estimate of the cost associated with the DPE is $500.
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You will need to present the following documents to the Designated Pilot Examiner:​
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Proof of IACRA enrollment i.e. your IACRA number.​
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FAA verification letter of authenticity.
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2 copies of your passport.
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2 copies of your foreign pilot's license.
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2 copies of your medical certificate.
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Your Pilot logbook.
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Ensure that you have received at least a Class 3 medical certificate before your appointment with the Designated Pilot Examiner.
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Please note that the temporary pilot license is only valid for 6 months. You will need to apply for a renewal at least two months before the expiration of the temporary pilot's license.