Getting licensed

US amateur licenses
License classes	Technician, General, Amateur Extra
Exam format	Multiple choice, from a published question pool
Passing score	74 percent
Morse code test	None since February 2007
Practical details
Who gives the exam	Volunteer Examiners, in person or online
FCC fee	$35 application fee (since 2022), plus any exam session fee
License term	10 years, renewable
Age limit	None

Getting licensed is the first step into amateur radio. In the United States the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issues three classes of license, each earned by passing a multiple-choice exam. There is no Morse code test, no age limit, and no need to own a radio before you sit the exam.

The three license classes

Technician

The entry license. The exam has 35 questions drawn from a public pool of about 400, and you need 26 right answers (74 percent) to pass. A Technician has full privileges on every amateur band above 30 MHz, which covers the popular 2-meter and 70-centimeter bands, local repeaters, satellites and more. Technicians also get a slice of HF: voice and CW on part of the 10-meter band, and CW on parts of 80, 40 and 15 meters.

General

The second exam is also 35 questions, and passing it opens up most of the HF bands, where worldwide contacts happen. For many hams the General license is the goal, because it adds 20 meters, 40 meters and the other long-distance bands with only modest extra study.

Amateur Extra

The top class. The exam is 50 questions and goes deeper into electronics, antennas and regulations. It adds the remaining small segments of the HF bands that are reserved for Extras, and shorter, more distinctive call signs become available.

The older Novice and Advanced classes stopped being issued in 2000. People who hold them can still renew.

How the exam works

Exams are run by Volunteer Examiners (VEs), licensed hams accredited by a Volunteer Examiner Coordinator such as the ARRL VEC or the W5YI group. Sessions are held at clubs, hamfests and libraries, and since 2020 many are held online over video. You can take more than one exam in a session: pass Technician and you may try General the same day at no extra charge.

Every question that can appear on the exam is published in advance, with its answer. That makes studying unusually predictable:

Download or buy the current question pool for the class you want. Pools are revised every four years.
Study with a license manual or a free practice-test site. Most people are ready for Technician after two to four weeks of casual study.
Take practice exams until you score consistently in the 80s or better.
Register for a session, bring photo ID, and pay the session fee if there is one.

Register for an FCC Registration Number (FRN) before the exam. VEs now require it, and it takes five minutes online.

Before and after the exam

Before the exam, get an FCC Registration Number (FRN). It is a free ten-digit number issued through the FCC's online Commission Registration System (CORES), and it identifies you in every FCC record from then on. Volunteer examiners ask for it on the application form, and using it means you don't have to write your Social Security number on exam paperwork. Register with an email address you check regularly, because that is where the FCC will write to you. The application form signed at the session (NCVEC Form 605) includes an RF safety certification: by signing, the applicant states that they have read and will comply with §97.13(c) of the FCC's rules on RF radiation safety and the amateur section of the FCC's OET Bulletin 65, so read it before signing.

After you pass, the VE team gives you a Certificate of Successful Completion of Examination (CSCE) and sends your paperwork to its coordinator, which files the application with the FCC, usually within a few days. The FCC then emails a link with instructions for paying the $35 application fee. Payment is due within 10 calendar days of the application being given a file number. If the window is missed the application is dismissed, but the coordinator can refile it without a new exam while the CSCE is still valid. Once the fee is paid and the license is granted, a second email arrives with a link to the official license, and the new call sign appears in the FCC's Universal Licensing System. A new ham may transmit as soon as it does. An existing licensee who upgrades can use the new privileges right away by adding /AG (General) or /AE (Extra) to the call sign until the upgrade appears in the database.

Keep your record current. A license runs for ten years. Under Part 97 the FCC must have your correct mailing and email address, and a license can be suspended or revoked if FCC correspondence can't be delivered, so update the record in the Universal Licensing System whenever you move or change email. See License renewal for renewing before the license expires.

Other countries

Every country licenses its own amateurs. The United Kingdom has Foundation, Intermediate and Full licenses; Canada has Basic and Advanced certificates; Australia has Foundation, Standard and Advanced. Most countries have dropped Morse testing since the ITU made it optional in 2003. Under the CEPT agreement, licensed amateurs from many countries may operate while traveling in others without a separate license, and the US has reciprocal arrangements with Canada and many other nations.

References

Getting Licensed, American Radio Relay League.
Amateur radio licensing in the United States, Wikipedia.