Source: https://corporatejetinvestor.com/articles/an-introduction-to-aircraft-registration-in-the-us219/
Timestamp: 2019-01-21 06:37:16
Document Index: 662229455

Matched Legal Cases: ['§44102', 'art 91', 'arts 121', 'art 91', 'art 91', 'art 91', 'art 135', 'art 135', 'art 135']

An introduction to aircraft registration in the US | Corporate Jet Investor
By Rebecca Hawkins April 3, 2018 10:48
According to Jeffrey Towers at TVPX and Scott McCreary at McAfee & Taft, Private aviation usage, for both business and pleasure, continues to grow. Part of the growth may be attributed to an increasing demand for long-range international travel.
There are several advantages to registering an aircraft in the US. The FAA is widely respected for its easy, secure and inexpensive processes for filing aircraft title transfer, registration and security documents. There is also a long history of court decisions and other legal precedents regarding the processes for registering and cancelling aircraft from the FAA, as well as the validity, priority and enforceability of security interests in aircraft. The US was also one of the first countries to adopt the Cape Town Treaty, thus providing the additional comfort and assurance that interests properly created and registered under the Cape Town Treaty will be recognised in other Contracting States. The clarity of applicable law and long history of legal precedents for enforcing rights of owners and lenders for US-registered aircraft appeals to aircraft lenders, lessors and borrowers.
The FAA provides an efficient system for owners and lenders to file documents and now accepts documents bearing appropriate digital signatures, which simplifies and expedites the closing process. There is a large pool of internationally-recognised aviation attorneys and other professionals in the US available to assist aircraft owners and lenders. Many parties also take comfort in the fact that the FAA, as part of the US government, has the resources and wherewithal to properly oversee and enforce its rules and obligations as an aircraft registry. Finally, there is ample evidence that registration with the FAA helps to preserve the value of a business aircraft, both because the FAA’s standards for aircraft operations and maintenance are among the highest in the world and because the US is the most active market for
Who may register aircraft in the US?
To register an aircraft in the US, the owner must be a citizen of the United States, with few exceptions. The definition of a “citizen of the United States” (US Citizen(s)) is provided in 49 U.S.C. §44102(a)(1)(A), and is limited to: (i) an individual who is a US Citizen; (ii) a corporation or LLC formed in the US, but only if: (A) the president and at least two thirds of the board of directors or managing officers are US Citizens, (B) the corporation or LLC is under the actual control of US Citizens, and (C) at least 75% of voting interests are held or controlled by US Citizens; and (iii) a partnership in which all of the partners are individual US Citizens. This citizenship test applies to not only the applicant for registrations, but also to its parent, and its parent’s parent, etc, until one reaches the actual individual owners. Finally, individuals who are resident aliens (ie permanent legal residents of the US) may register their aircraft in the US. This means that all individuals who are not US Citizens or resident aliens and many business entities do not satisfy the definition of US Citizens and may not register an aircraft in the US in their name. For example, non-US business entities, US corporations or LLCs that fail the management, control or voting interest tests, partnerships that include individuals who are not US citizens and partnerships that include corporations or other business entities as partners, will fail the citizenship tests. Finally, the FAA has opined that an aircraft may not legally be registered in the name of a US Citizen who is in effect merely serving as an agent or nominee.
What options are available to non-US Citizens who wish to register in the US?
Fortunately, there is a very common structure available to non-US Citizens who wish to register their aircraft with the FAA. US law allows aircraft registration through an owner trust, often called a non-citizen trust or NCT. The terms of the NCT arrangement must comply with the FARs and published FAA requirements. The trustee must be a US Citizen as defined by the FAA, but a non-US Citizen may hold all the beneficial ownership in the trust. The non-US Citizen beneficiary may legally operate the aircraft under an operating agreement or operating lease and will hire the flight crew, pay all expenses and be responsible for all maintenance. Additionally, the non-US Citizen has the right to base and operate the aircraft anywhere in the world, as freely as any other owner of a US-registered aircraft. All the tax attributes associated with the ownership and operations of the aircraft pass through to the non-US Citizen beneficiary. Finally, the beneficiary has power to direct the trustee to terminate the trust.
There are two other less common structures that a non-US Citizen might utilise to register an aircraft with the FAA. First, a corporation that fails the voting interest test already described, but otherwise meets all the other elements of the citizenship test, may use a voting trust. The voting trust is entered into among the applicant corporation owning the aircraft, an independent voting trustee, and the non-US Citizen shareholder holding the voting stock in the applicant corporation. In a voting trust, the voting trustee will hold the non-citizen of the voting interest of the corporation in trust for the benefit of the non-citizen shareholder. The voting trust structure is less popular than the owner trust structure, because many non-Citizen owners do not meet the management elements of the citizenship test.
Second, a non-citizen corporation may register its aircraft in the US if the aircraft is based and primarily used in the US (ie at least 60% of its flight hours every six months are within the US). However, the non-citizen corporation must form a US corporation and actually base the aircraft in the US. The corporation would further need to report its flight operations to the FAA every six months upon request and would be in violation of the registration requirements if it were to operate the aircraft outside of the US for more than 40% of it total flight time in any six-month period. This exception only applies to corporations and does not apply to individuals or other business entities. For these reasons, the “based and primarily used” exception is not frequently used.
What is the FAA’s current position on owner trusts?
The aviation industry has utilised NCTs for many years and the FAA has provided a great deal of guidance as to the their validity and proper use. In June 2013, the FAA issued a Notice of Policy Clarification for the Registration of Aircraft to US Citizen Trustees in Situations Involving Non-US Citizen Trustors and Beneficiaries. The Policy Clarification confirms that a properly documented NCT meets FAA regulatory requirements for valid registration of an aircraft. The Policy Clarification also provides a proforma NCT trust agreement acceptable to the FAA and further clarifies the FAA’s expectations as to what sort of information and disclosures the FAA may request from parties utilising an NCT.
Of note in the Policy Clarification, the FAA confirms that any party utilising an NCT must file with the FAA all documents legally affecting a relationship under the trust, such as any aircraft operating agreement between the trustee and beneficiary. The Policy Clarification also requires that within two business days a trustee (and thus the trustor or end operator of the aircraft) must be able to provide the FAA with the following information:
• the identity of the person normally operating, or managing the operations of, the aircraft
• where that person currently resides or has its principal place of business
• the location of maintenance and other
• where the aircraft is normally based
Within five business days, the trustee must be able to respond to FAA requests for more detailed information about the aircraft and its operations, including
• information about the operator, crew and aircraft operations on specific dates
• copies of maintenance and other aircraft records
• the current airworthiness status of the aircraft
In the event of an emergency, the trustee must be able to respond to such inquiries more quickly than the timelines specified above.
What are the operating requirements for US-registered business aircraft?
Initially, one must determine which Federal Aviation Regulations (the FAR) will govern the operation of the aircraft. The FARs applicable to operating a US-registered aircraft can be complex and parties should engage competent US counsel and technical advisors to be certain they comply with US law.
Generally, FAR Part 91 governs the operation of aircraft with a passenger seating configuration of less than 20 seats and a maximum payload capacity of less than 6,000 pounds when they are operated non-commercially. FAR Parts 121, 125, and 135 apply to commercial operations where there is some form of compensation, such as charter flights, or where the aircraft exceed a certain seating or payload capacity. FAA rules and interpretations as to which operations are considered commercial or for compensation are complex and often restrictive. For instance, the FAA has confirmed that a company formed solely to operate an aircraft and which has no other business or purpose is by definition a charter company that may not legally operate under FAR Part 91.
FAR 91.501 provides a narrow set of exceptions under which a person may share the use of certain airplanes and receive compensation for that use, yet continue to operate under Part 91. The FAA strictly construes FAR 91.501 and will not permit its use in instances where a proposed operation should be conducted under one of the other FARs, such as 121 or 135, or if the proposed operation is not clearly covered under FAR 91.501. Therefore, any charges that a company makes or compensation a company receives for the use of its airplane must be carefully tailored to comply with
Part 91.501.
The limitations of FAR 91.501 do not normally apply to those situations where a party properly “dry leases” an airplane to another person for business or personal use. An aircraft owner/operator is also free to engage a third-party management company to provide aviation services. Care should be taken to make certain the owner/operator, rather than the management company, remains in operational control of the aircraft and the flights are within the scope of the business of the owner/operator which is not air transportation.
Sometimes parties prefer to operate the aircraft under FAR Part 135 so as to avoid the legal and regulatory liability associated with operational control, and/or to further allow third party use of the aircraft and payment for such use. This is most often accomplished by placing the aircraft with, and dry leasing to, an existing Part 135 certificated operator. Proper consideration should be given to any potential tax or cabotage issues that may arise as a result of operating under Part 135.
There are many factors that should be considered when choosing an aircraft registry, and no one registry is always a perfect solution. As with most other aspects of aircraft ownership and operation, proper planning is the key to a successful outcome. In addition to thoroughly analysing the intended uses of the aircraft to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including those of the applicable aircraft registry, other issues such as taxes and rules for importing and exporting aircraft should always be assessed in advance.
For many years, the FAA has been considered the gold standard for aircraft registration by many owners, lessors and lenders. These parties take great comfort that their rights and interests in the aircraft are properly perfected and can reasonably predict how those rights and interests will be recognised if there is a dispute. NCT structures help parties comply with US registration requirements. The airworthiness and maintenance standards for operating and maintaining a US-registered aircraft are well defined and are considered by most to help maintain the value and promote the marketability of the aircraft.
For many reasons, after careful planning, the FAA is often the registry of choice for aircraft owners, lenders and lessors, and owner trusts are a simple and broadly accepted method for non-US Citizens to benefit from US aircraft registration.
Name: Scott D McCreary
Company: McAfee & Taft
Email: scott.mccreary@mcafeetaft.com
Phone Number : +1 405 552 2367
Name: Jeffrey Towers
Company: TVPX
Email: jtowers@tvpx.com
Phone Number : +1 978 610 1234