Pilot Medical Certificate Classes and BasicMed

This guide focuses on airplane students and private pilots, with higher classes shown for comparison. It explains qualification rules, not whether a particular medical condition or medication is acceptable. Connect pilot qualification with aircraft condition through the airworthiness requirements hub; both must be resolved for a flight.

Which pilot medical certificate classes do you need?

Use the privileges exercised on the flight, rather than the highest pilot certificate in your wallet.

The following summarizes common operations under 61.23(a) and (d). Durations run to the end of the stated month after the examination month; certificate limitations or special-issuance conditions can restrict use.

The ATP row is an overview, not a complete airline staffing rule. Section 61.23(a) also specifies certain ATP second-in-command and Part 121 age-60 operations requiring first class. Gliders, balloons, sport privileges and some instructor operations have exceptions outside this article's ordinary airplane scope.

How do you calculate the medical expiration date?

Identify the examination date, age on that date and the operation, then apply the relevant row of 61.23(d).

For a standard third-class example, a pilot examined on November 5, 2026 at age 39 has the 60-month period for student/private operations: through November 30, 2031. Turning 40 the next month does not retroactively substitute the shorter row. A pilot already 40 at that examination uses 24 months, through November 30, 2028.

These are calendar-month calculations, not 60 or 24 blocks of 30 days. Use the examination date shown on the medical, not the date you opened MedXPress or first used the certificate. Always check the actual certificate's limitations; the standard table does not override a shorter authorized period. See 61.23(d).

Fictional November 5, 2026 examinations illustrate standard third-class student/private duration. These are arithmetic examples, not medical eligibility findings or certificates issued to the author.

Does a first-class medical become useless after six or twelve months?

Not necessarily: its remaining usability depends on the privileges you intend to exercise.

A first-class medical issued after an examination at age 45 has a six-month period for the ATP-PIC operation shown in the table, a twelve-month period for commercial airplane privileges, and a twenty-four-month period for student/private privileges. That does not mean the document is reissued or literally changes class. 61.23(d) assigns different durations to different operations.

For an examination on November 5, 2026 at age 45, those standard periods end May 31, 2027; November 30, 2027; and November 30, 2028, respectively. A commercial certificate holder making an ordinary private-privilege flight need not use the commercial-operation duration solely because that person holds the higher pilot certificate. The flight must actually fit the privileges claimed, and health and certificate limitations still apply.

How do you get an FAA medical certificate?

Use the FAA's MedXPress application process and an authorized Aviation Medical Examiner, or AME.

The FAA's medical application guide explains how to apply, find an AME and prepare the required records. Submit accurate medical history and bring the application confirmation information and requested documentation to the examination. Discuss uncertain history, conditions or medication questions with the AME before relying on assumptions about issuance.

A routine visit to your family physician is not, by itself, an FAA medical examination by an AME. BasicMed has a different state-licensed-physician process. Nor is the medical certificate your student pilot certificate or a solo endorsement. The student pilot limitations guide explains those separate permissions.

Who can use BasicMed instead of an FAA medical certificate?

Only someone who meets the prior-medical, driver's-license, health and other conditions can use BasicMed.

Under 61.23(c)(3), you must hold a valid U.S. driver's license, comply with its medical restrictions and have held an FAA medical certificate at some point after July 14, 2006. That most recent medical may be expired, but cannot have been suspended or revoked. The most recent special-issuance authorization cannot have been withdrawn, and the most recent medical application submitted to the FAA cannot have been completed and denied.

A brand-new student who has never held an FAA medical cannot skip that prior-medical requirement by completing a course and physical. A qualifying student who already has the required medical history may use BasicMed under 61.89(d), but all student restrictions remain, including no passengers. BasicMed does not create passenger privileges for a student.

Medical conditions that may affect flight require physician care and treatment as specified in 61.23(c)(3). Certain conditions also require the special-issuance process in 68.9. Discuss individual applicability with an AME or the FAA; a short list in a study guide cannot decide eligibility.

Which two BasicMed deadlines must stay current?

Both the medical education course and comprehensive medical examination must meet their own recency requirements.

Current 61.23(c)(3)(i) requires a qualifying course during the preceding 24 calendar months, and a comprehensive medical examination during the preceding 48 calendar months. Completing one does not renew the other.

The examination follows the FAA Comprehensive Medical Examination Checklist, or CMEC. The individual completes the required portion, and a state-licensed physician conducts the examination and completes the physician portion under 68.5 and 68.7. The physician need not be an AME for this BasicMed examination. The course has separate requirements under 68.3.

Keep the completed checklist and course-completion certificate available in your logbook as required by 61.113(i)(3). Set separate reminders based on each completion date; the longer examination interval does not extend an overdue course. The FAA BasicMed overview links the checklist and available courses.

These independent requirements come from current 61.23(c)(3). Having current dates does not replace prior-medical eligibility, physician requirements or operating limits.

What aircraft and flights are allowed under BasicMed?

The aircraft, people aboard and every portion of the flight must remain within the applicable BasicMed conditions.

Use the current limits in 61.113(i), rather than older summaries that still use a six-occupant or 6,000-pound aircraft limit.

VFR and IFR are possible within BasicMed, provided the pilot has the applicable rating, proficiency/currency and other required qualifications. The medical alternative supplies none of those by itself. The FAA overview confirms VFR/IFR use; the regulation controls the precise conditions and permitted operations.

A seven-occupant aircraft authorization and six-passenger limit describe different things. Removing seats or carrying fewer people does not automatically make an otherwise ineligible aircraft qualify. Likewise, operating below 12,500 pounds today does not change an excessive maximum takeoff weight.

This is a study screen for the conditions summarized above, not a complete eligibility checklist or approval for a particular aircraft or flight.

Does an unexpired medical mean you are fit for today's flight?

No: current paperwork does not override the prohibition on flying during a disqualifying medical deficiency.

61.53 addresses known or reasonably known medical conditions and, for medical-certificate operations, medication or treatment that prevents meeting the required standard. Its driver's-license provisions also prohibit unsafe operation under the applicable medical-deficiency rule. A course certificate, a favorable calendar date or BasicMed eligibility is not a medication clearance. Get individual advice from an AME or treating physician when health or treatment changes; do not use this article to change treatment or decide that a symptom is safe for flight.

Check yourself

Frequently asked questions

Is BasicMed a fourth class of FAA medical certificate?

No. It is a conditional alternative to holding a medical certificate for qualifying operations. A signed checklist and course completion do not become a first-, second- or third-class medical certificate.

Can a first-time student start with BasicMed and no previous FAA medical?

No. The prior-medical requirement still applies: you must have held the qualifying FAA medical after July 14, 2006 and meet all other conditions. A course and physician examination do not erase that requirement.

Does turning 40 shorten a medical issued when I was 39?

The standard duration table uses age at the examination. A later birthday does not retroactively change that row, although an actual limitation, special-issuance condition or medical deficiency can affect continued use.

Can BasicMed authorize six passengers for a student pilot?

No. The BasicMed passenger ceiling does not expand a student's privileges. Student PIC operations remain subject to 61.89, including the prohibition on carrying passengers, even when the student's medical qualification uses BasicMed.

Sources and review

Last reviewed November 5, 2026. Current eCFR provisions and FAA guidance were checked for this draft. The linked regulations control detailed applicability; individual medical decisions belong with appropriately qualified professionals.

• 61.23: classes, operation-specific durations, age at examination and BasicMed eligibility/recency.
• 61.113(i), 61.89(d) and 61.53: operating limits, students and continuing fitness.
• 68.3, 68.5, 68.7 and 68.9: BasicMed course, examination, checklist and special-issuance requirements.
• FAA BasicMed overview and FAA medical application guide: official process and supporting resources.

What should you study next?

Return to the airworthiness requirements hub, review student pilot limitations, and connect readiness with a preflight weather briefing checklist.

Practice pilot-qualification concepts on FirstSolo.ai. Identify the operation, the applicable medical path and every relevant condition before choosing an answer. FirstSolo.ai is solely a study tool and does not issue FAA endorsements or medical approvals.