Registry change
Registration-transfer records review
A registration-transfer records review checks an aircraft's records against the requirements of a new state of registry before the registry changes. It is used when an asset moves from one authority's register to another, whether on sale, lease, or restructuring. It examines configuration and approval basis, AD applicability under the new authority, and whether component release evidence will be accepted on the receiving register. You receive a register-readiness gap list, an applicability view of directives under the new authority, and the evidence each gap needs to clear de-registration and re-registration.
When this review is needed
- An aircraft is moving from one authority's register to another and re-registration is planned.
- A sale or lease requires the asset to be placed on a different state of registry.
- The receiving authority's AD applicability differs from the current one.
- Modification approvals granted by the current authority need confirming for the new register.
The problem
A register change makes a new authority the judge of records that were built for the old one. Configuration approved by one authority may need an equivalent basis on the new register. The applicable directive set can change because the receiving authority issues or mandates its own. Component releases that were routine on the old register may not be accepted on the new one. These differences surface during de-registration and re-registration, when there is little room to recover missing evidence.
What gets reviewed
- Configuration and the approval basis for modifications under the new authority
- Airworthiness Directive applicability and status as the receiving authority will read it
- Authorized release certificates and their acceptability on the new register
- The airworthiness review or equivalent currency relevant to re-registration
- Type-design conformity and any differences the new authority recognizes
- Records the de-registering authority requires to release the asset
Scope this review
Tell us the asset, the event, and the evidence in scope, and we will outline a focused first engagement.
Send a representative, redacted record set and we will scope the review.
What gets validated
- Each modification carries an approval basis the receiving authority will recognize or accept
- AD status is mapped against the directive set applicable on the new register
- Component releases are evaluated for acceptance under the receiving authority
- Airworthiness review or equivalent currency is sufficient for re-registration
- Installed configuration reconciles with the type design the new register expects
- De-registration documentation requirements are identified and complete
Evidence normally required
- Current configuration and modification status with approval references
- AD status report under the current authority
- Release certificates for installed components
- The most recent airworthiness review or equivalent documentation
- The receiving authority's registration and import expectations
Common discrepancies
- A modification approved under the old authority with no equivalent basis for the new register
- Directives applicable on the new register that were not mandatory on the old one
- Release certificates that the receiving authority will not accept as presented
- Configuration on the aircraft that does not match the type design the new register expects
- Insufficient airworthiness review currency to carry through re-registration
- Missing documents the de-registering authority requires before release
What is at stake
A registry change held up by document gaps strands the asset between two registers, where it may not be operable and the transaction tied to it cannot complete. The cost of resolving configuration or applicability issues climbs sharply once the aircraft is off one register and not yet on the next.
How the work runs
Read the receiving requirements
Establish what the new authority expects on configuration, directives, releases, and airworthiness currency for re-registration.
Restate AD applicability
Map the aircraft's directive status onto the set the receiving authority applies and identify newly mandatory actions.
Check approval basis
Confirm each modification has an approval basis the new register will recognize or note where an equivalent is needed.
List for the registry
Produce the readiness gap list for both de-registration and re-registration with the evidence each item requires.
What the buyer receives
- A register-readiness gap list keyed to the receiving authority's requirements
- An AD applicability view restated for the new register
- A configuration and approval-basis summary with the evidence each open item needs
Who uses the output
- Owners and lessors coordinating de-registration and re-registration
- Continuing-airworthiness teams preparing the asset for the new authority
- Transaction stakeholders timing the registry change to the deal
How the work fits into the transaction or program
The review runs ahead of the registry change so configuration and applicability gaps are known before the asset comes off the current register. It feeds the re-registration package and coordinates with any import or export airworthiness step the move also requires.
Start with a single asset
Start with a single tail and expand once the workflow is proven.
Aircraft-specific considerations
Modification history drives most registry-change findings. An aircraft carrying field approvals or supplemental type certificates accepted on one register may need an equivalent approval basis recognized by the new authority before that configuration is acceptable.
Jurisdiction-specific considerations
Each authority maintains its own applicable directive set and its own view of acceptable release evidence. A clean AD status on the current register does not guarantee a clean status on the new one, because the receiving authority applies its own mandatory actions.
Regulatory limits
The review reports records readiness for a registry change. It does not de-register, register, or re-register the aircraft, issue a certificate of airworthiness, or determine applicability on an authority's behalf. Those acts remain with the authorities involved.
What this review does not cover
- Filing de-registration or registration with any authority
- Issuance of a certificate of airworthiness or airworthiness review
- Negotiation of the underlying sale or lease
Specific to this review
- A change of state of registry hands records built for one authority to a different authority that judges them on its own terms.
- The applicable directive set can change with the register, because the receiving authority issues and mandates its own directives.
- An asset can be stranded between two registers if de-registration completes before the receiving authority is satisfied, which is why readiness is checked first.
Sources
U.S. Government (eCFR). Type certificates, STCs (Subpart E), TSO authorizations (Subpart O), PMA (Subpart K), and export airworthiness approvals (Subpart L).
U.S. Government (eCFR). The legal basis for issuing and enforcing Airworthiness Directives on U.S.-registered products.
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. Continuing airworthiness, maintenance records, CAMO responsibilities, and the airworthiness review process in the EASA system.
International Civil Aviation Organization. International standards for the airworthiness of aircraft and the framework states use for type and continuing airworthiness.
Frequently asked questions
Does a clean AD status carry to the new register?
Not automatically. The receiving authority applies its own set of mandatory directives, so status is restated against that set and any newly applicable actions are identified before re-registration.
Relevant glossary terms
Related pages
Where this fits
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We will walk through your current state, the records or evidence involved, and a scoped first engagement.
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