Flying abroad

Converting a Canadian licence abroad

The reality of interchangeability of flight crew licenses between Contracting States has not yet been achieved; however, a citizen of a Contracting State who holds a valid flight crew license issued by that State would normally be eligible for some recognition of experience or credits for the issue of an equivalent Canadian license. The Personnel Licensing Handbooks outline specific credits.

Canada is an ICAO member country, which means that the pilot’s licenses issued by Canadian flight schools are recognized in any of these countries: http://www.icao.int/icao/en/members.htm. This doesn’t mean that you can fly in all of these countries with a Canadian license, but it does mean that your license can be readily converted to the standards of any of these countries.

Private License

If you have all the necessary flight experience, other countries usually require nothing more than a check-flight and a valid medical to convert a private license.

Commercial License

The commercial license usually requires a written test on local air-laws and a short flight test in order to convert a Canadian license to another country.

ATPL License

The effort required to convert your Canadian ATPL license to be useable in another country depends on the country in question, and your experience.
Some countries require that you complete all of the IFR, Multi-Engine, and ATPL written and flight tests, while other countries require you simply to pay a fee. Contact the local aviation authority for more information.