Aircraft Registration FAQs

• The number appearing above your name on your renewal notice
• A valid credit card and its billing address
  • Online payments for EXACT renewal amount ONLY
• If you are a DEALER – STOP! Do NOT use the Online Aircraft Registration Renewal site.
  • You must annually email or mail your completed “Idaho Dealership Registration & Inventory” form to the Division of Aeronautics.
  • Please include additional fees with your payment for the number of Aircraft Decals that you need.

• Complete the Aircraft Registration form in order to register your aircraft in Idaho along with the calculated fee.
  • Aircraft Registration Application Form (PDF)
• If you have purchased an aircraft previously located in Idaho, the Registration Certificates and Decals are not transferrable, and must be removed from the aircraft. They are now considered null and void.
• New credentials will be mailed to you after receipt of your application and accompanying payment.

• Three cents (3¢) per pound of the manufacturer’s maximum certified gross weight authorized in the aircraft specification or type certificate data sheet of said aircraft issued by the Federal Aviation Administration. In the case that your aircraft does not have a manufacturer’s maximum certified gross weight, please use maximum takeoff weight as indicated in your Pilot’s Operating Handbook. This also includes kit planes and home-builds.
• In no case will the fee be less than twenty dollars ($20) on one aircraft.
• In no case will the fee exceed six hundred dollars ($600) on one aircraft.
• Aircraft registration is in lieu of personal property taxes. (Not to be confused with State Sales Tax).
• Idaho does not require registration of UAS/Drones at this time.

Annual renewal payments are due by Dec. 31st each calendar year for the upcoming registration year.

Newly purchased, acquired, or imported aircraft into Idaho should be registered within 30 days upon arrival by submitting the Aircraft Registration Application along with your registration payment.

For your protection, we do not accept credit card payments on any forms via e-mail.

We accept the following:

• Cash, check, or credit card presented over the counter or via US Postal Service. Remember to include the top portion of your Renewal Notice or Registration Application.
• Credit card over the telephone, or
• Credit card on-line through our automated payment system.

As required by law, (Regulation 14 CFR 91.207) pilots with a 406 MHz ELT must register their ELT to allow an expeditious identification of a false alert. As the agency responsible for Search and Rescue in the state, Aeronautics STRONGLY encourages all pilots to upgrade to the 406 MHz ELT, as the transmitted power is 50x greater than the old 121.5/ 243 beacons. Search and Rescue is notified within 10 minutes of activation and location is much more accurate. It’s equally as important to ensure the unit is registered through NOAA! (see website links for this form)

Any year/model of aircraft can be retro fitted and equipped. If installed and registered properly, the use of this ELT can save time, money, and maybe a life by shortening the time needed to locate the aircraft and/or reducing the need to conduct a full search. The 406 MHz ELT’s set off an audible alarm, so if accidentally tripped, you can shut it off prior to a false Search and Rescue procedure taking place.

To find your existing 406 MHz Hex Code number the ELT locater is typically behind the rear bulkhead section of the aircraft, and consist of 15 digits. The last five digits are typically FFBFF. The code is on the locater/ELT itself.

Not Required to Register are Single seat/place aircraft, helicopters, gyroplanes, balloons, gliders, airships, trikes, powered parachutes, etc. are exempt.

Any changes to your personal information or status of the aircraft need to be submitted on the “Status Change” form and submitted to our registration office.

• Aircraft Registration “Status Change” Form

Every aircraft operating within this state shall be registered with the department prior to or during each annual registration year (Jan. 1 to Dec. 31) in which the aircraft is operated within the state. Idaho Code 21-114

Per Idaho Code 21.114: Any person carrying on or conduct the business of buying, selling, or dealing in aircraft.

The annual fee to be paid by a dealer or manufacturer shall be forty dollars ($40.00) for the Dealer registration certificate and one dollar ($1.00) for each identifying decal issued to such manufacturer or dealer.

• Dealer Registration & Inventory/Application Form

A registration certificate will be issued. You can purchase any number of decals. If you have multiple airplanes for sale and more than one at a time will be flown for sales demonstration purposes, you need one decal for each aircraft that is flying.

The Dealer Registration Certificate shall be kept at the main office of the manufacturer or dealer. The identifying decal must be carried for all sales demonstration flights and can be placed upon the left side of the aircraft upon a window nearest to the rear of the aircraft. The decal does not have to be affixed to the aircraft and can be transferred from one aircraft to another for demo purposes.

Dealer decals are not transferrable to the new owner when the aircraft is sold. Please advise any new Idaho aircraft owner to register their plane and ELT beacon.

By reporting your inventory, you are letting us know what airplanes you hold for sale. Those aircraft held as dealer inventory are not required to pay the annual registration fee until they are purchased.

The Dealer should make Idaho buyers aware of the fact that there is an aircraft registration fee due upon purchase of the plane. Reporting your inventory also helps us keep the list of aircraft going to the County Assessors clean as dealer inventory is not sent to the assessor.

• Dealer Registration & Inventory/Application Form

Upon expiration of the dealership registration, ALL aircraft in the possession of the dealership must be registered with the state immediately at the current fee rate. If the dealership is not the owner of the aircraft, the owner is liable for the registration of the airplane. You have the responsibility to notify the individual owners of any aircraft you are in possession of. If the registration fee is not paid, they will be included on the list to the County Assessor.

The Division of Aeronautics receives FAA aircraft registration records. These records do not differentiate between an individual and a business. For this reason, you WILL receive a notice from our office each time these FAA Records are pulled. Simply complete the Dealer Registration/Application with your inventory listed to let us know the status of the aircraft in your possession, or the “Status Change” form for any sale that has taken place in order for our office to remove the aircraft from your inventory.

• Dealer Registration & Inventory/Application Form

• Aircraft Registration “Status Change” Form

Aeronautics receives funding from two sources: aviation fuel tax and aircraft registrations. This funding enables our department to maintain 31 backcountry airstrips, provide grants for airport upgrades, support the search and rescue program, and provide funding for educational programs.

The aircraft registration fee is in lieu of a personal property tax. Per Title 21-114, a non-airworthy aircraft OR aircraft that does not fly in Idaho for more than 90 cumulative days during the year is not required to be registered but may, at the owner’s discretion, be registered in lieu of personal property tax assessment.

Idaho Code 39.04.05 requires a list of all aircraft not registered annually (to include non-airworthy aircraft) be submitted to the proper county assessor’s office for inclusion of personal property tax assessment in November of each year. Once this list is generated in the system, it cannot be retracted. Payments for the current registration year are not accepted after the first Monday in November of the current registration year.

The Idaho State Sales Tax office is a separate department within the state. You may reach them at 208-334-7660 for sales tax information. Our division funding is NOT Connected with the state tax office(s).

• Complete the “Status Change” form, submit to the Division of Aeronautics.
  • Aircraft Registration “Status Change” Form
• Provide a copy of the Bill of Sale, completed in full (available as FAA Form AC 8050-2).
• Remove your Idaho registration decal from the aircraft, as they are NOT Transferable.
• Notify the FAA (form AC8050-1B) or you will continue to receive renewal payment notices from us.

If your aircraft is registered with the FAA to an address in Idaho, you will receive annual notices from our office and you will need to notify our office each year of the actual status and/or location of your aircraft.