AME Licence Requirements in Canada: Standard 566 Explained for Apprentices

The rules for getting a Canadian Aircraft Maintenance Engineer licence are in CARs Part IV, Subpart 3, and in Airworthiness Manual Chapter 566, usually just called Standard 566. Here's what it asks for, in plain language.

The six things you have to prove

Transport Canada lists six requirements, each backed by documents:

1. Citizenship: any country of citizenship is accepted.

2. Age: at least 21 years old when the licence is issued.

3. Training: basic training for the rating you want.

4. Knowledge: shown through examinations.

5. Experience: documented aviation maintenance experience.

6. Skill: a record of maintenance tasks you've performed.

The ratings and what they cover

Rating	Scope (Standard 566.03(8))
M1	Non-turbojet aircraft built to Chapters 522, 523, 523-VLA, 527 and 549 and equivalent standards. Transport Canada describes this as gliders, small piston-powered and small turboprop aircraft.
M2	All aircraft not included in M1, excluding balloons (for example, aircraft built to 525 and 529).
E	Aircraft electronic systems: communication, pulse, navigation, auto flight, instruments, and the electrical elements of other systems.
S	Aircraft structures.
Balloons	Balloons.

Holders of either an M1 or M2 rating also have maintenance release privileges for all turbine-powered helicopters and SFAR 41C aeroplanes. An AME who holds both M1 and M2 won't be issued an E or S rating, because those privileges are already covered.

Training and experience, by rating

Rating	Basic training	Total experience	Specialty	Civil
M1	1000 hours aircraft maintenance theory	48 months	12 months	6 months
M2	1000 hours aircraft maintenance theory	48 months	12 months	6 months
E	1000 hours electronics theory	48 months	12 months	6 months
S	550 hours aircraft structures theory	36 months	24 months	6 months
Balloons	Acceptable balloon maintenance course	120 hours

A few things that catch apprentices out:

• Training credit: total experience can be reduced by one month for each 100 hours of approved basic training, up to 50% of the total. It doesn't apply to specialty or civil experience, or to the balloon rating.

• Specialty and civil experience are part of the total, not added on top. For M1, that means 48 months total, 12 of them on the kind of aircraft the rating covers and 6 in civil aviation.

• What doesn't count: maintenance of ultra-light, advanced ultra-light, amateur-built or owner-maintained aircraft doesn't earn experience credit.

Skill: the task record

You have to show a record of maintenance tasks performed. Transport Canada publishes task records for M1/M2, E, S and Balloon. You don't need it complete before you write the REGS, but it must be done within your 12-month approval window.

Exams

• Technical exams: apply to applicants whose basic training wasn't from a TC-approved training organization. Graduates of an approved program usually get knowledge credit.

• Regulatory requirements exam (REGS): required for every rating. Transport Canada's AME regulations exam (REGS), described in TP 14038, is 50 multiple-choice questions with 4 choices each, and you need 70% to pass, with a 3-hour time limit. Balloon applicants write a shorter subset.

More on the exam: AME REGS exam format and how and when to book it.

Putting it together

1. Finish approved basic training.

2. Build experience and keep your logbook and task record current.

3. At all but 6 months of the total experience, apply on form 24-0083.

4. Pass the REGS within the 12-month approval.

5. Complete the skill requirement and the rest of your experience.

6. The licence is issued once you meet every requirement (and you're 21+). Transport Canada lists 40 working days for processing.

Check yourself, then get the full course

Are you REGS-ready? Take the free 10-question check: ten of the most frequently tested topics from the AMEReady practice exams. Score 7/10 or better and you're on track for the 70% pass mark. Take the free 10-question check

The AME CARs Crash Course was built by Dan Kennedy, a Transport Canada licensed M1/M2 AME since 2016. It covers all ten Parts of the CARs, with 10 video lessons, 83 review questions and 5 full 50-question practice exams (333 practice questions in all), a CARs Quick Reference Index, a certificate of completion, and 90 days of self-paced access.

Founding price: $49 CAD for the first 50 apprentices, then $79.

Pass-or-Extend Guarantee: Score 70%+ on our practice exams, and if you don't pass the REGS exam, send us a copy of your failed exam result and get another 90 days free.

Start the AME CARs Crash Course

Always check Transport Canada's current guidance before booking your exam.

Sources

• Canadian AME Licensing General Information: https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/licensing-aircraft-maintenance-engineers-ames/obtaining-aircraft-maintenance-engineer-ame-licence/canadian-ame-licensing-general-information

• Standard 566: https://tc.canada.ca/en/corporate-services/acts-regulations/list-regulations/canadian-aviation-regulations-sor-96-433/standards/airworthiness-chapter-566-aircraft-maintenance-engineer-ame-licensing-training-canadian-aviation-regulations-cars

• Standard 566 Appendix A (Table of Requirements): https://tc.canada.ca/en/corporate-services/acts-regulations/list-regulations/canadian-aviation-regulations-sor-96-433/standards/airworthiness-manual-chapter-566-aircraft-maintenance-engineer-ame/airworthiness-chapter-566-appendix-table-requirements-canadian-aviation-regulations

• Appendix A, AME Licence Rating M1 and M2: https://tc.canada.ca/en/aviation/reference-centre/airworthiness-notices/appendix-ame-licence-rating-m1-m2-aircraft