I’m attempting to gain my US licence and it seems that I’ve inspired a few others to do the same. There’s a few prerequisites that need to be in place before you can sit the exam so I thought I would do a quick and dirty guide for what you need:
Federal Registration Number (FRN)
You need to get a FRN number from the FCC. You do this via the FCC Commission Registration System (CORES) and the Universal Licensing System (ULS). Here’s a guide on how to do it:
https://www.fcc.gov/new-users-guide-getting-started-universal-licensing-system-uls
Don’t forget to make a note of your FRN!
US postal address
There are several ‘mail forwarding’ services that will give you a US based address. I have chosen to use USA2Me service because there is only a small set up fee and no ongoing monthly charge.
I am using the Basic service. Any mail received is photographed (envelope only) and displayed via an online dashboard. You can choose to have each mail item discarded, forwarded via post to your UK address or open and scanned to email (charges apply).
You need to complete a form online, print and sign then scan and upload to their system, scan 2 forms of ID (I did my UK driving licence and passport), scan the front and back of the payment card you use to pay the setup fee (I put some tape over the first 12 card number and the CVV code on the back) and then record a short video clip of you stating your name, address and USA2Me account number. All of this is uploaded via their system once you have created an account. It took one day for my account to be set up and ready to use.
I think that is it! I’ll update anything else on this page so check back every so often to see.
