Before you can fly your aircraft in Canada, the aircraft must be registered and it must display a mark. The mark must be visible and displayed on the exterior of the aircraft.
An aircraft mark is the sequence of letters in the form C-G???, C-F???, or C-I???.
To get an aircraft registration mark, you can:
- have a mark assigned at the same time you apply for aircraft registration
- reserve a system generated mark before applying for registration, or
- reserve a special mark before applying for registration
Reserving a mark doesn’t mean that you have registered your aircraft.
On this page
- Existing mark
- Reserving a mark
- Renewing a reservation of a mark
- Relinquish a mark reservation
- Exchange a mark
- Documents you need to apply to reserve a mark
- Fees and service standards
- How to apply
Existing mark
If the aircraft already has a Canadian registration mark, you don’t need to apply for a mark. The mark follows the aircraft. You can’t remove the old mark from the aircraft unless you get written permission from Transport Canada.
Reserving a mark
Reserving a mark doesn’t mean that you have registered your aircraft. You must apply for aircraft registration.
If you haven’t reserved a mark before applying for registration, we will assign the next available mark.
System generated mark
The system will randomly select and reserve a mark for you. The mark will consist of a series of four letters starting with either “F” or “G”. For ultra-light aeroplanes, the series will start with “I”.
Special mark
You can pick from a list of available marks which consist of a series of four letters starting with either “F” or “G”.
For ultra-light aeroplanes, you can pick from a list of available marks which consist of a series of four letters starting with “I”.
You can search the list of available marks.
You should identify your first and second choice in case your preferred mark isn’t available when your application is processed.
Marks that may cause confusion or be offensive are not available for reservation.
A mark reservation is not guaranteed until you receive a confirmation letter from Transport Canada.
Renewing a reservation of a mark
The reservation of a mark or of a special mark is valid for 12 months. It’s your responsibility to renew the reservation of a mark before it expires. We will not send you a reminder.
If you renew before it expires, the renewal date will be 12 months from the previous expiry date.
If you let your mark reservation expire, you will not be able to renew, and you will need to re-apply. In this case, to reserve the same mark again, you will need to apply for a special mark.
Relinquish a mark reservation
A reserved mark can’t be transferred, but you can choose to relinquish a reserved mark at any time before it expires. No refund will be issued.
Relinquishing a mark places the mark back in the national pool of available marks.
Any other applicant can then ask to reserve this specific mark by submitting a new application and paying the fee for a special mark.
Exchange a mark
You can request to exchange a mark on an existing Canadian-registered aircraft. You can’t remove the old mark from the aircraft without written authorization from Transport Canada. You can’t fly your aircraft again until it is marked and registered with the new mark.
Documents you need to provide to reserve a mark
Document format requirements
Make sure you have electronic copies of the required documents before you start your application. All documents must be clear and easy to read. Files must be smaller than 10 MB in size and be PNG, GIF, JPG, JPEG, TIF, TIFF or PDF file types.
All documents must be in English or French. If the original documents are in any other language, you must provide a translation. Be sure to include a copy of the document in its original language, along with the translation.
Proof of identity
To reserve a mark, you must provide proof of identity.
- For an individual: a valid Canadian government-issued ID that proves name, age, and Canadian citizenship or permanent residency. Examples include:
- a provincial birth certificate
- the photo page of a Canadian passport
- the photo page of an Aviation Document Booklet, or
- a permanent resident card (front and back)
- A driver’s licence is not acceptable since it doesn’t show citizenship.
- For an entity: a certificate of incorporation or formation and a document that gives signing authority to the person who is applying. Examples include:
- Resolutions of the Directors, or
- Corporate Annual Return
Fees and service standards
Actual processing times can vary depending on the complexity and completeness of the request.
Time is counted by working days and starts once we receive a complete application and all the required documents and fees.
|
Service |
Fee |
Service standard |
|---|---|---|
|
Reserve a system generated registration mark |
10 working days |
|
|
Reserve a special registration mark |
10 working days |
|
|
Renew a reserved system generated mark or special registration mark |
10 working days |
Learn more about the Service Fees Act.
How to apply
Reserve or renew a mark
- Gather the documents you need to provide
- Go to the application for Reservation of Aircraft Registration Mark (you will need to login or create a myTC account)
- Follow the prompts to complete and submit your application and payment
Relinquish a mark reservation
To relinquish a mark reservation, send an email request to a Transport Canada Centre indicating that you wish to no longer hold the mark reservation.
A new applicant can then reserve this mark by submitting a new application and paying the full fee.
Exchange a mark
To exchange a mark, send an email request to a Transport Canada Centre to get specific instructions.
Other ways to submit or pay for your application
If you need help to submit and/or pay for your application online, contact your closest Transport Canada Centre.