FAR 21.47 — Type Certificate Transfers
FAR 21.47 explains how a type certificate can be transferred or licensed, including FAA notification requirements and rules when the State of Design changes.
FAR 21.47 governs how a type certificate (TC) — the FAA's approval of an aircraft, engine, or propeller design — can be transferred or licensed to another person. While most student pilots won't deal with this directly, it's important context for understanding how aircraft designs move between manufacturers and across borders.
Key points:
- A TC holder may transfer the certificate outright or make it available to others through licensing agreements.
- For a transfer where the State of Design stays the same, the transferor must notify the FAA in writing beforehand, including the TC number, the transferee's name and address, and the anticipated transfer date.
- For a transfer where the State of Design changes, the transfer is only allowed if the U.S. has an import/export agreement with that other State of Design. The transferor must notify the FAA in advance with the TC number; the transferee's name, address, and country; and the anticipated date.
- Before executing or terminating a licensing agreement, the TC holder must notify the FAA in writing with the TC number, licensee's name and address, the extent of authority granted, and the anticipated date.
Operationally, this ensures the FAA always knows who is responsible for a certificated design's continued airworthiness.
Five FAA-written-style questions. Instant explanations, every answer cites its source — no account needed.
You are flying VFR in Class E airspace at 8,500 feet MSL during the day. What are your minimum visibility and cloud clearance requirements?
Q1Can a type certificate holder transfer the certificate to someone else?
Q2What must a transferor tell the FAA before transferring a type certificate when the State of Design stays the same?
Q3What additional condition applies when transferring a type certificate to a person under another State of Design?
How 14 CFR §21.47 lets you transfer or license a type certificate
Under 14 CFR §21.47, an FAA type certificate can be transferred or made available to another person through licensing agreements — but the transferor must notify the FAA in writing before the transfer, and a cross-border transfer is allowed only when the United States has an agreement with the other State of Design (verified 2026-07-23). The regulation buries four separate notice triggers across its paragraphs; the table below collapses them into one view.
| Event that triggers notice | Paragraph | Who notifies / when | What the written FAA notice must contain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transfer within the same State of Design | §21.47(b) | Transferor (current TC holder)Before the transfer | The type certificate number, the name and address of the transferee, and the anticipated date of the transfer. |
| Transfer to or from a different State of Design | §21.47(c) | TransferorBefore the transfer — allowed only if the U.S. has an agreement with that State of Design | The type certificate number; the name, address, and country of residence of the transferee; and the anticipated date of the transfer. |
| Executing a licensing agreement | §21.47(d) | Type certificate holderBefore executing the agreement | The type certificate number, the name and address of the licensee, the extent of authority granted the licensee, and the anticipated date of the agreement. |
| Terminating a licensing agreement | §21.47(d) | Type certificate holderBefore terminating the agreement | The type certificate number, the name and address of the licensee, the extent of authority granted the licensee, and the anticipated date of the agreement. |
A domestic transfer only needs advance written notice. A transfer to or from a person under a different State of Design is barred unless the United States has an agreement with that State of Design (§21.47(c)) — the notice then also carries the transferee’s country of residence.
§21.47 transfers an aircraft or engine design credential, not a person’s flying privileges. A pilot certificate is issued to a named airman under 14 CFR Part 61 and cannot be handed off, sold, or licensed to anyone else.
The current text of §21.47 has been in force since April 14, 2010 — not October 16, 2009, the publication date printed in the source note under the regulation. Only one of the two amendments listed there changed a requirement; the other renamed the office you file with.
| Amendment | Published | Effective | What it did to §21.47 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amdt. 21-9274 FR 53368Production and Airworthiness Approvals, Part Marking, and Miscellaneous Amendments | October 16, 2009 | April 14, 2010 | SubstantiveRevised §21.47 in full. This is the rule that created today’s structure: advance written notice before a transfer, the separate State-of-Design paragraph barring a cross-border transfer without a U.S. agreement, and notice before executing or terminating a licensing agreement. |
| Amdt. 21-10183 FR 9162Aviation Safety Organization Changes | March 5, 2018 | March 5, 2018 | Terminology onlyTerminology only. The FAA’s Aircraft Certification Service reorganization struck “the appropriate aircraft certification office” from §21.47(b), (c) and (d) and replaced it with “the FAA.” The rule states it imposes no new obligations — who you notify changed name, not what you must file. |
No deadline is attached to the notice. A commenter in the 2009 rulemaking asked the FAA to cap how far in advance a transfer must be reported; the agency declined, holding that transfer time varies with the scope of the certificate and that “predetermined time limits could restrict the process” (74 FR 53368, date_retrieved 2026-07-23).