Aviators: FAA Accepting Only Electronic Medical Certificates After October 1, 2012

Cessna Mustang

If your FAA medical certificate is coming up for renewal or you are in the process of becoming a pilot, the FAA just announced that as of October 1, 2012,  it will no longer accept paper applications and everyone will be required to complete the application online.

According to the Federal Register public announcement on March 8, 2012, "The Federal Aviation Administration is providing public notice regarding its intent to discontinue use of the paper version of FAA Form 8500-8, the application form used to apply for FAA medical certification. Maintaining FAA Form 8500-8 for applicants to complete manually is burdensome not only in terms of the cost involved, but also in terms of the complex logistics and use of Agency resources involved. This burden becomes all the more compounded when the form must be revised, reprinted, and redistributed (worldwide). The FAA launched an on-line FAA Form 8500-8 application known as ``FAA MedXpress'' beginning in 2007. Since 2007, ``FAA MedXpress'' has evolved considerably, streamlining FAA medical certification into a much more efficient and seamless process, thereby rendering the paper process both redundant and obsolete. Discontinuing print of FAA Form 8500-8 will save considerable resources and improve the efficiency of the airman medical certification process. "


View the complete Federal Register announcement here>>:


http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-03-08/html/2012-5655.htm


To complete your medical certificate online via FAA MedXpress click here>>:


https://medxpress.faa.gov/

While we can't give you a medical certificate, we can handle your aircraft registration quickly and easily at one of our FooteWork offices. Come see us! Clear skies!