Aviation Maintenance Technician Requirements 2026: FAA Rules

What are the FAA aviation maintenance technician requirements?

14 CFR 65.71 sets four conditions for the mechanic certificate:

You’re at least 18 years old
You can read, write, speak and understand English. If you can’t and you work outside the United States for a US air carrier, your certificate can be endorsed “Valid only outside the United States”
You’ve passed all the prescribed tests within 24 months
You meet the rules for the rating you want, including the experience in 14 CFR 65.77

The experience rule has two routes. You show an authenticated document from an FAA-certificated Aviation Maintenance Technician School (AMTS), or documentary evidence the FAA accepts of at least 18 months of practical experience appropriate to the rating, or at least 30 months doing the duties of both ratings at the same time.

How the 24-month window works →FAA-certificated schools →

What you don’t need

The FAA’s FAQ settles three points:

No general education requirement. The FAA notes that some employers want a high school diploma or a General Educational Development (GED) pass, and the FAA says most 147 schools ask for one to enroll
No medical certificate
No disqualifying disability, unless it affects the eligibility rules. If it might, the FAA says to contact your local Flight Standards District Office (FSDO)

Some employers set their own physical or medical rules, the FAA adds. The FAA’s overview of the profession, Advisory Circular (AC) 65‑30B, describes the work as moderate to heavy physical activity.

What aircraft mechanics do →

How long does it take to become an aircraft mechanic?

It depends on the route. At a 147 school, the FAA estimates 18 to 24 months, depending on the ratings. Through experience, the minimum is 18 months for one rating or 30 months for both. Working longer hours doesn’t shorten it: the apprenticeship page shows how the FAA counts the months.

Then you test. You can’t take the knowledge tests until you meet the experience rule, unless you’re a school student testing early, and you must pass every test within 24 months.

Getting your experience on the job →Military experience →

If you have a foreign license

A license from another country doesn’t convert. The FAA says you must meet its eligibility rules and pass its tests. If you’re neither a US citizen nor a resident alien and you apply outside the United States, 14 CFR 65.3 lets the FAA issue the certificate only when it’s needed for the operation or continued airworthiness of a US-registered civil aircraft. Certification services outside the United States also carry the fee in part 187 (14 CFR 65.11). Your foreign experience can count: the FAA’s AC 65‑30B says one way to show it is to list experience in 50% of the subject areas in the mechanic Airman Certification Standards (ACS) for the rating. If you can’t come to a Flight Standards District Office (FSDO), you can ask an FAA International Field Office (IFO) to arrange an interview with a visiting inspector. All IFOs are in the United States, and AC 65‑30B says there’s no guarantee it can happen.

The FAA’s mechanic FAQ ties the 50% to part 147 appendices B to D. Those appendices were removed when part 147 was rewritten in 2022, and the 2026 edition has none. AC 65‑30B (2023) ties the 50% to the ACS, so use the ACS list and confirm it with your inspector.

The repairman certificate

The FAA also issues a repairman certificate, which works only for your employer. Under 14 CFR 65.101 you must be 18, qualified for the specific job, employed by a certificated repair station, commercial operator or air carrier, and recommended by that employer, with 18 months of practical experience in the job or formal training the FAA accepts, and the same English rule as mechanics. You apply on FAA Form 8610‑3. Experience as a light-sport repairman with a maintenance rating can count toward the mechanic certificate, AC 65‑30B says.

Sources: GovInfo · FAA and 2 more. Checked November 2026.

Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.

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