How much does your Amateur Radio license cost in your country?

[RidingDownUnder]

G’day fellow Ham Radio enthusiasts.
I’m interested in hearing how much do you pay for your Ham licence per year in your country.

Also what is the maximum number of years can you renew your license for.

Can we all keep it to US dollars so it’s easier to compare.

In Australia our Ham license fee’s are USD$35.17 per year. According to my license renewal form I only have the option to pay for 1 year.

 

[belvdr]

Here's the US:

Personal Service and Amateur Application Fees

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www.fcc.gov

 

[jwt873]

In Canada there is no fee for obtaining the operator's certificate. To get a call sign, it's a one time $60 fee.. It's yours for life, there are no renewals. Amateur Certification — Fact Sheet

Prior to 2000, we we had to pay $24 --every year-- per call sign to renew our license.

 

[wwhitby]

Here's the US:

Personal Service and Amateur Application Fees

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www.fcc.gov

Its also now tied to the inflation rate, and reindexed every two years, so look for the cost of a license to go up in 2025.

 

[wd9ewk]

In Canada there is no fee for obtaining the operator's certificate. To get a call sign, it's a one time $60 fee.. It's yours for life, there are no renewals. Amateur Certification — Fact Sheet

Prior to 2000, we we had to pay $24 --every year-- per call sign to renew our license.

When a new ham obtains an amateur certificate, the initial call sign is free. It comes with the certificate. Additional call signs, or changing call signs without a change in your province/territory (i.e., requesting a call with a two-letter suffix), requires a C$ 60 fee to ISED.

The link you referenced spells out when the C$ 60 fee is - and isn't - charged:

A fee is not required for the issuance of an Amateur Radio Operator Certificate in accordance with the following:

• to issue an initial station call sign and Amateur Radio Operator Certificate with Basic Qualification;
• to issue a replacement certificate due to loss or damage;
• to issue a replacement certificate with a new call sign, due to a change in address to a new province or territory; and
• to issue a replacement certificate as a result of obtaining an additional qualification such as Morse code, or Advanced.

A fee of $60.00 is required for the issuance of an Amateur Radio Operator Certificate in accordance with the following:

• to change an existing call sign (including changing to a two letter call sign);
• to issue a call sign to the station of a club or other organization;
• to issue an amateur radio operator an additional station call sign; and
• to issue a special event or special prefix station call sign.

Separate from the C$ 60 fees to ISED, accredited examiners are allowed to charge a fee to write the exams - similar to what VE groups do in the US. I did not pay a fee to write my Basic and Morse exams in 2002, but paid a fee (which went to the club sponsoring the examiner - I forget how much the exam fee was) when I wrote the Advanced exam in 2003. Exam fees are permitted, per section 5.3 of the RIC-1 document:

RIC-1 — Guide for Examiners Accredited to Conduct Examinations for Amateur Radio Operator Certificates

The fee I paid for my Advanced exam in 2003 is the only fee I have paid for my Canadian amateur license/certificate. That will probably remain the case into the future. I don't see a need for additional call signs, and I'm OK with not having a shorter call up there - especially since I don't live in Canada.

73!

 

[jwt873]

Good to hear from a newer ham I got my ticket -way- before the 2000 rules were instituted.

Missed the free license when passing the exam part. And yes, volunteer examiners can charge a fee.

Thanks for clearing it up!

 

[wd9ewk]

Good to hear from a newer ham I got my ticket -way- before the 2000 rules were instituted.

Missed the free license when passing the exam part. And yes, volunteer examiners can charge a fee.

Thanks for clearing it up!

No worries! As for "a newer ham"... I obtained my original US license in 1977.

The rule changes in Canada starting around 2000, when I was still going up to Vancouver once or twice a year, was when I started thinking about getting a Canadian call. The "Basic with Honours" wasn't a thing when I went to write my Basic exam in 2002, so HF access still required a 5wpm Morse exam. When I went for that, the examiner didn't have a working code oscillator for the sending part of the exam. He was apologetic about that. I had an FT-817 with me, so I offered to use that as an "oscillator" with its side tone but not transmitting. That worked, and I passed the sending exam with ease.

The Canadian Advanced exam I wrote in 2003 was the toughest amateur licensing exam I have encountered. The US Advanced exam in the late 1980s was hard, requiring 3 attempts before I passed that. Only needed one try on the Canadian Advanced exam, but I spent a lot of time studying for that. I knew I could only write that exam in Canada.

A few weeks after writing the Canadian Advanced exam, I decided to go for the Extra exam down here. Had to study a bit, as the exam evolved from when I attempted it in the 1980s, but passed it at a local hamfest to have the highest level of licenses in both the US and Canada - and, hopefully, never need to write any more amateur licensing exams.

73!

 

[mrweather]

I passed my Basic exam in 1999 so I was still under the old regime and had to pay for my station licence. For one year!

There has been talk on and off over the years of RAC taking over administration of amateur radio licencing in Canada but nothing yet.

 

[RidingDownUnder]

Thanks for all your comments which I found interesting.
Here is a more precise rundown on how much VK ham’s pay to take a exam, fee’s for a new license and fee’s for renewals. Plus fee’s to pick your own call or the next available callsign.

It’s calculated in AUD$, so reduce the amounts to 75% to transfer to US$.

At the moment the Australian dollar is worth around.75cents US.

Volunteer Examiners of Australia (VEA) Inc

Administering Examinations for Australian & US Amateur Radio Licencing

vea.org.au

 

[SA4MDN]

Zero for life

 

[morfis]

UK.
No fee for licence if administered online. £20 (they don't use dollars) if done by post.
Details have to be confirmed online every 10 years.
Licences don't expire (they sort of do now!) but recently it's become possible to apply for licences which were never issued or where the previous 'owner' has been dead for some period of time.

The Radio Society of Good Buddies Ltd. are responsible for the exam charges and these vary upon 'level'.
People can charge for training courses but generally don't.

So I suppose potentially it could cost £60 if you did all three levels and applied for the callsigns by post each time.

Perhaps of more significance to people outside of the UK: Reciprocal licences must be done via post so always incur the £20 cost.

I haven't used my US amateur licence for years so haven't attempted to renew it since around 1986