Part 107 Renewal: Recurrent Training and Recency

Your Part 107 remote pilot certificate does not expire. The FAA says it is permanent unless the Administrator revokes it. What runs out is recency: to act as remote pilot in command, you must have completed qualifying training or passed the initial knowledge test within the previous 24 calendar months (14 CFR §107.65). For most pilots, the way to renew is a free online FAA course.

Does a Part 107 certificate expire?

No, and that is why many pilots never think about renewal until it matters. The certificate is one thing, and your currency to use it is another.

The FAA counts in calendar months, from the month you passed the knowledge test or completed your last training. Check the month, not the exact day.

How to renew Part 107 with free recurrent training

1. Create or log in to an account on the FAA Safety Team site, FAASafety.gov.
2. Take the Part 107 Small UAS Recurrent course (ALC-677). It costs nothing, and the FAA states it is open to any Part 107 certificate holder, regardless of your current recency. The course page says completing it satisfies the 24-month recency requirement.
3. If you also hold a Part 61 pilot certificate with a current flight review, the FAA lists a separate free course instead, ALC-515. The Part 61 shortcut post covers how those pilots get the certificate in the first place. The FAA does not publish how many of its 481,760 certificate holders are current.
4. Keep proof of completion somewhere you can find it in two years.

Passing the initial knowledge test again also satisfies §107.65(a), but for a pilot who already holds the certificate, the free course is the practical route.

What happens if your recency lapses?

The certificate stays valid, but you may not act as remote pilot in command until you meet §107.65 again. Because the FAA opens ALC-677 to certificate holders regardless of recency, a lapse does not send you back to the initial exam. You complete the recurrent course and you are current again.

Do not confuse this clock with another 24-month figure. A passing knowledge test report is generally valid for 24 calendar months for completing your certificate application, and the test day checklist covers that. It is separate from the 24 months of operating recency described here.

Who is eligible to hold the certificate?

Passing the test is not the same as holding the certificate. 14 CFR §107.61 sets the eligibility requirements: at least 16 years old, able to read, speak, write and understand English (with limited FAA-determined exceptions), and in a physical and mental condition to safely operate a small UAS. Meeting these and passing the initial aeronautical knowledge test makes someone eligible. §107.63 covers how the certificate is issued once eligibility and the test result are confirmed through the FAA's process.

Eligibility is not only about age, language and the test. Prior offenses involving alcohol or drugs, or refusing a required drug or alcohol test, are separately relevant to whether someone can hold or keep the certificate, whatever their test score.

What to practice for the exam

Work through dates. Given a pilot who passed in one month, decide whether they are current in another, and separate the certificate (permanent) from recency (24 calendar months). The handbook covers eligibility, issuance and recency in UA.I.C.K3, and the two-week study plan shows where this sits among the regulations topics.

To get the exact date for your own window, use the Part 107 renewal date calculator, which counts calendar months the way AC 107-2A does.

Getting the certificate in the first place is covered step by step in how to get your Part 107 license.