On 21 February 2024, the Venezuelan Civil Aviation Authority (the “INAC”) updated the regulation governing permits for the operation of foreign General Aviation Aircraft in Venezuela. The new set of rules were published in the Official Gazette No. 42.823 (the ‘New Regulation’). It repealed the earlier regulation published in the Official Gazette No. 41.185 of 03 July 2017 (the ‘Repealed Regulation’).
1. What’s New
a. More Option for Operational Permits
The New Regulation introduces four extra operational permits with validity periods of 7, 15, 30, and 180 days. These are besides the existing permits of 90 and 365 days specified in the Repealed Regulation. As a result, foreign private aircraft operators have now more options as they can apply for operational permits for periods ranging from 7 to 365 days.
i. The 7-Day Permit
The 7-day permit is the entry-level permit. It replaces the 72-hour permit contained in the Repealed Regulation.
Under this permit, foreign private aircraft can enter and remain in the country for a period of seven calendar days. However, the New Regulation restricts this permit to a maximum of two per month. They must be non-consecutive and non-cumulative. The total is limited to six per year.
Applicants can process this permit online.
ii. The 15-Day Permit
This is one of the new operational permits that the New Regulation introduces along with the 30-day and 180-day permit.
Under this permit, foreign General Aviation aircraft can enter the country and remain for a period of 15 calendar days. During this time, foreign GA aircraft operators can perform domestic flights between controlled airports.
Unlike the 7-day permit, applicants must request this permit in person. They can also request it through a local representative. However, they must empower this delegate by way of a notarised and apostilled Power of Attorney before INAC.
If any of the documents required for the application is in a foreign language, applicants must arrange their translation into Spanish. A locally certified official translator must perform the translation.
Applicants can request this 15-day permit every two (2) months counted from the date that the aircraft effectively leaves the country. This is without prejudice for the foreign private aircraft operator to requesting a 90-day operational permit upon its expiration.
iii. The 30-day, 90-day and 180-day permit
Under these permits, foreign GA aircraft can enter and remain in the country for 30, 90 or 180 days. During this time, they can operate domestic flights within controlled airports.
Similar to the 15-day permit, applicants must request this permit in person. They can also be represented by a local agent. However, applicants must their delegates by way of a notarised and apostilled Power of Attorney before INAC.
Foreign GA aircraft operator can only apply for the 30-day permit every 90 days. They must count this period from the date the aircraft leaves the country. For the 90-day permit, they can apply every eight months. And for the 180-day permit, they can submit an application every one year. The above is without prejudice for the foreign GA operator to requesting the 90-day, 180-day and 1-year permit, respectively, immediately after the expiration of the relevant permit.
iv. The 1-year permit
Under this permit, foreign private aircraft can enter and remain in the country for 1-year. During this time, they can fly domestically within controlled airports in the country.
Unlike the other permits, INAC conditions the granting of this permit upon the obtaining of a Temporary Admission certificate from the Venezuelan customs authority.
Upon its expiration, foreign GA aircraft operators can renew this 1-year permit for a further year. This is conditioned upon the renewal of the expiring Temporary Admission, or on the obtaining of a new one for the same period (one year) from the Venezuelan customs authority.
b. Domestic Flights Allowed
The New Regulation allows foreign private aircraft operators to fly within controlled airports in the country under all operational permits. This includes the 7-permit. Flights to La Tortuga Airport, however, remain restricted.
The New Regulation also allows foreign private aircraft owners to operate domestic flights into Venezuela’s main touristic destinations such as Canaima, where Angel Falls sits, and Los Roques, one of the most beautiful archipelagos in the world. The Repealed Regulation prohibited domestic flights to these destinations by foreign private aircraft.
c. Reduced Fees
The New Regulation also revised the cost of permit fees. For example, It reduced to USD$1.860,00 the USD$25.000 fee for the 1-year permit under the Repealed Regulation. It also reduced to USD1.422 the USD$35.000 fee for its 1-year renewal. Furthermore, it lowered the fee for the 90-day permit from USD$5.000,00 to USD$450,00, whilst for the new permits of 15, 30 and 180 days, it set the fees in the amount of USD$120, USD$230 and USD$900,00, respectively.
Finally, although the fee for the entry-level permit was already -and still is- free of charge, the New Regulation increased it to 7 days instead of the 72-hour set forth in the Repealed Regulation.
d. New Grace Period Introduced
The New Regulation introduced a new grace period not contained in the Repealed Regulation. This grace period allows foreign GA operators to extend their operational permit for up to three (3) days once the operational permit obtained has expired. The fee for this grace period is USD$80,00 per each day of stay.
2. Final Remarks
The New Regulation represents a more friendly policy toward owners and operators of foreign private aircraft in Venezuela in terms of costs and operational flexibility.
The significant reduction of fees, the widening of the operational permit options, and the opening of the country’s main touristic destinations to the operation of foreign private aircraft are all measures intended to increase the number of operations by foreign GA aircraft in Venezuela and so, the collection of overflight, airport, and service fees inherent to said operations.
This initiative goes together with other measures adopted by the Venezuelan government for this purpose such as, for example, the extension of the runway of Los Roques Airport (SVRS) to allow for the landing of larger aircraft.
The New Regulation will not only be welcomed by foreigners wishing to visit the country with their private jets, but it will also represent new ways for Venezuelan nationals owning foreign private aircraft to bring their machines into the country and operate them at a lower cost and for longer time whilst avoiding nationalisation.
Finally, the permits contained in the New Regulation are without prejudice of the restrictions imposed by the US Department of Transportation (‘DoT’) through Order 2019-5-5 issued on 15 May 2019 and the Venezuelan INAC’s NOTAM A0006/24 dated 16 January 2024, to all direct flights between the United States and Venezuela.
Should you need further information regarding this regulation, please do not hesitate to contact us.