Import acceptance
Export airworthiness documentation review for import acceptance
This review checks that the export airworthiness documentation received with an aircraft will actually carry it through import acceptance on the new register. It is run for the importing party as the acceptance package is assembled, before the receiving authority is asked to accept. It examines the export certificate of airworthiness, the special conditions the importing authority attached, and the status summaries and supporting records the certificate rests on. You receive an export evidence package mapped to the acceptance questions, a gap list where the export documentation falls short of the receiving requirements, and a document request set for the records still owed.
When this review is needed
- An aircraft arrives with an export certificate of airworthiness that has to underpin acceptance on the new register.
- The importing authority attached special conditions that the export documentation must show as satisfied.
- The status summaries referenced on the export certificate need checking against the underlying records.
- A prior export was completed under conditions the current receiving authority does not recognize.
The problem
An export certificate of airworthiness is a snapshot, and the importing authority's special conditions ride alongside it as separate obligations that are easy to overlook. The certificate references status summaries the importing team may never have reconciled to source, so a document that reads as complete can rest on figures that do not match the AD or LLP records. When the special conditions are not clearly closed, acceptance stalls while the receiving authority waits for evidence the seller assumed was already handled.
What gets reviewed
- The export certificate of airworthiness and the statements it carries
- Importing-authority special conditions checked against the evidence that closes each
- Status summaries referenced on the certificate reconciled to the underlying records
- Supporting records for AD, LLP, and configuration that the export rested on
- Export documentation gaps measured against the receiving authority's requirements
- An export evidence package indexed to the import acceptance questions
Scope this review
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What gets validated
- The export certificate of airworthiness is current and applies to the serial number presented
- Each importing-authority special condition is matched to evidence that closes it
- Status summaries on the certificate reconcile to the AD, LLP, and configuration records
- Supporting records the export rested on are present and retrievable in the package
- Any condition the receiving authority still holds open is flagged with the evidence owed
Evidence normally required
- The export certificate of airworthiness and its attachments
- The importing authority's special conditions and export application
- Status summaries for AD, LLP, and configuration referenced on the certificate
- The underlying records supporting those summaries
- The receiving authority's import acceptance requirements
Common discrepancies
- An importing-authority special condition with no evidence in the package that it was met
- A status summary on the export certificate that does not reconcile to the AD records
- A supporting record referenced on the certificate but missing from the delivered file
- An export completed under a condition the current receiving authority does not accept
What is at stake
If the export documentation does not satisfy the receiving authority's conditions, acceptance is held until the missing evidence is produced, and the aircraft sits on the ground earning nothing. Special conditions left open can require work to be redone or re-evidenced after arrival, and by then the exporting party has little incentive to help close them.
How the work runs
Read the conditions
Pull the export certificate and every importing-authority special condition attached to it.
Reconcile the summaries
Check the status figures on the certificate against the AD, LLP, and configuration records.
Close the conditions
Match each special condition to the evidence that closes it and flag what is missing.
Assemble the package
Build the export evidence package for acceptance and request the records still owed.
What the buyer receives
- An export evidence package mapped to the receiving authority's acceptance questions
- A gap list where the export documentation falls short of the receiving requirements
- A document request set for the special-condition evidence and supporting records still owed
Who uses the output
- Continuing-airworthiness teams closing the importing authority's special conditions
- Asset managers tracking whether export documentation threatens the acceptance date
- Records staff assembling the supporting evidence the receiving authority will require
How the work fits into the transaction or program
The review sits at the seam between export and import, testing whether the documentation produced for departure actually satisfies arrival. Its gap list feeds the acceptance package alongside the AD, modification, and program checks, and the closed special conditions become part of the file the new operator retains.
Start with a single asset
Confirm the status list matches the underlying evidence.
Jurisdiction-specific considerations
Export certificates and their special conditions are issued by the departing authority but written to the importing authority's requirements, and FAA, EASA, and TCCA each frame those conditions differently. The review reads the conditions against the receiving authority's actual acceptance criteria rather than assuming the export certificate settles them.
Regulatory limits
The review assembles and reconciles export documentation so the receiving authority can accept the aircraft. It does not issue or revalidate an export certificate, close a special condition on the authority's behalf, or make an airworthiness determination.
What this review does not cover
- Applying for or issuing an export certificate of airworthiness
- Performing maintenance to satisfy an open special condition
- Any airworthiness or acceptance decision reserved to the authority
Specific to this review
- Importing-authority special conditions ride alongside the export certificate as separate obligations, and an unclosed condition stalls acceptance even when the certificate itself is valid.
- The export certificate references status summaries rather than reproducing the records, so a valid certificate can rest on figures that were never reconciled to source.
- Once the aircraft has arrived, the exporting party has little leverage to help close an open condition, so the evidence is chased while the aircraft is still on the departing register.
Sources
U.S. Government (eCFR). Export airworthiness approval requirements and special requirements of an importing authority.
U.S. Government (eCFR). Records an owner or operator must keep, including total time in service, current status of life-limited parts, and AD compliance.
European Union / EASA. EASA design and production certification, STCs, ETSO authorizations, and EASA Form 1 release.
International Civil Aviation Organization. International standards for the airworthiness of aircraft and the framework states use for type and continuing airworthiness.
Frequently asked questions
Isn't the export certificate of airworthiness enough on its own for import?
The certificate is necessary but not sufficient. It carries importing-authority special conditions and references status summaries that have to reconcile to the records. The review confirms those conditions are closed and the summaries hold before acceptance.
Relevant glossary terms
Related pages
Where this fits
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