Keeping the FAA Happy When Registering an Aircraft Owned by an LLC

A Limited Liability Company (“LLC”) provides personal liability protection to its owners, as well as the tax and management flexibility. Both of these advantages have resulted in the increased use of LLC’s for aircraft ownership. However, in order for the FAA to accept an application for aircraft registration submitted by an LLC, the aircraft owner needs to comply with the registration requirements of 14 C.F.R. Part 47.

One of those requirements is that the LLC must meet the U.S. citizenship requirements of 14 C.F.R. § 47.3. One of the ways to prove to the FAA that the LLC does, in fact, satisfy those requirements is to submit a “Statement in Support of Registration by a Limited Liability Company” (“LLC statement”). Although this isn’t the only way to prove citizenship to the FAA, it is one of the most common methods.

In the LLC statement, the LLC must identify its members and confirm whether each of its members is a U.S. citizen. However, if one of the members is another LLC, the FAA will require an additional LLC statement for that member LLC identifying its members and confirming that those members are also U.S. citizens. The idea is that the FAA wants to drill down to identify which of the individuals involved are U.S. citizens and then determine whether the LLC qualifies as a U.S. citizen under 14. C.F.R. § 47.2. If that second (or third, if necessary) LLC statement isn’t filed, the FAA will not register the aircraft until it either receives the LLC statement(s) or it receives other proof (usually organizational documents for the LLC) showing the citizenship of the members.

When all of the LLC’s individual or entity members are U.S. citizens, then the LLC will be considered a U.S. citizen. If all of the individuals or entity members are not U.S. citizens, in order for the LLC to be satisfy the citizenship requirement, 2/3 of its officers/managers satisfy U.S. citizenship AND whether 75% of the voting interest of the LLC is controlled by individuals or entities meeting U.S. citizenship requirements.

Another item on the LLC statement indicates whether the LLC is managed by its members or managers. Whatever answer is provided, that information needs to match the information provided by the LLC on the application for registration. For example, if the LLC statement indicates that the LLC is managed by its members, then the individual who signs the application for registration should indicate his or her title as “member” or “managing member.” On the other hand, if the LLC statement indicates that the LLC is managed by managers, then the individual signing the application should indicate his or her title as “manager” or some variant that includes the word manager (e.g. chief manager, chief financial manager etc.). If the LLC statement and the application for registration do not match, the FAA will reject the application.

Additionally, although an LLC may also be managed by officers, if the individual signs the application for registration as an officer (e.g. president, vice-president, treasurer etc.) the LLC statement will not be sufficient for the FAA to determine whether that individual has the appropriate authority. In that case, the FAA will reject the application unless it also receives the LLC’s operating agreement or some other documentation evidencing the officer’s authority to sign on behalf of the LLC.

Applying for registration of an aircraft with the FAA on behalf of an LLC can be tricky. The aircraft owner(s) using an LLC to own an aircraft need to carefully dot the “i’s” and cross the “t’s” to ensure that the FAA will accept the LLC’s application and register the aircraft. Understanding the LLC statement and the FAA’s requirements can help you avoid some of the “gotcha’s” that can cause problems for an aircraft owner trying to register an aircraft with the FAA using an LLC.

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