Good news

The change is not just for new FAA aircraft registrations. Any registration that was valid on January 23, 2023, will automatically be extended to a total of seven years. Note: This extension is not for an additional seven years. For example, a registration issued in June 2020 that would have expired on June 30, 2023, under the old rule would now be valid until June 30, 2027, not June 30, 2030.

Another change is that the temporary authority to operate the aircraft on a second copy of the FAA Aircraft Registration Application (AC Form 8050-1, previously the pink copy) is now good for up to 12 months instead of 90 days. This temporary registration can still be cut short by the new registration being granted or the registration application being denied. Previously, the FAA Registry had to issue frequent extensions to the old 90-day temporary registrations, which contributed to its backlog.

Registrations didn’t used to expire at all. In 2010, the FAA changed the rules to require renewals every three years. Fast forward to 2022, and the aircraft registry had a processing backlog of more than six months. This is a long time to be grounded if you missed your registration renewal deadline and had to apply for a new registration. Keep in mind that while the seven-year period is now the default, there is no change to the rules regarding events such as a change in ownership that may trigger a requirement for a new aircraft registration application.

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AOPA’s Pilot Protection Services knows that your pilot and medical certificates mean everything to you. Our trusted attorneys and medical certification specialists are here to protect them when things don’t go as planned. We’re proud to help 72,000 AOPA members stay in the air.