To be the registered owner of an aircraft registered with the Isle of Man Aircraft Registry, you must qualify under the Air Navigation (Isle of Man) Order 2015, as amended.
The Registry have provided the legislative details below and also a list of qualifying countries and territories. This information is also available to download in Registry Publication 2 – Qualified Ownership.
Please contact us as early as possible if you are considering registering an aircraft with us or changing the owner of an aircraft that is already registered in the Isle of Man. This will enable us to guide you through the process and make the experience as seamless as possible.
1. Only the following persons are qualified to hold a legal or beneficial interest by way of ownership in an aircraft registered in the Isle of Man or in a share in such an aircraft—
- The Crown in right of the Isle of Man, the United Kingdom or any part of the United Kingdom;
- Commonwealth citizens;
- Nationals of any EEA State or Switzerland;
- British protected persons;
- Bodies incorporated in some part of the Commonwealth or having their registered office, central administration or principal place of business in a part of the Commonwealth; or
- Undertakings formed in accordance with the law of the Isle of Man, an EEA State or Switzerland and having their registered office, central administration or principal place of business within the Isle of Man, an EEA State or Switzerland.
2. If an unqualified person resides or has a place of business in the Isle of Man and holds a legal or beneficial interest by way of ownership in an aircraft or in a share in an aircraft, the Department may register the aircraft in the Isle of Man if it is satisfied that the aircraft may otherwise be properly registered.
3. If an aircraft is chartered by demise to a person qualified under paragraph (1) the Department may, whether or not an unqualified person is entitled as owner to a legal or beneficial interest in the aircraft, register the aircraft in the Isle of Man in the name of the charterer by demise if it is satisfied that the aircraft may otherwise be properly so registered.
4. Subject to this Part, an aircraft registered under paragraph (3) may remain registered during the continuation of the charter.
NOTE
For aircraft awaiting commercial lease and sale only, in addition to the above, also:
- Bodies incorporated in or having their registered office, central administration or principal place of business in Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region); Japan; People’s Republic of China; United States of America.
- Undertakings formed in accordance with the law of and having their registered office, central administration or principal place of business within Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region); Japan; People’s Republic of China; United States of America.
The “Commonwealth” as defined in the Air Navigation (Isle of Man) Order 2015 (as amended).
“Commonwealth” means the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, the countries mentioned in Schedule 3 to the British Nationality Act 1981 and all other territories forming part of Her Majesty’s dominions or in which Her Majesty has jurisdiction and “Commonwealth citizen” is to be construed accordingly;
Akrotiri | Ghana | Rwanda |
Anguilla | Gibraltar | Saint Lucia |
Antigua and Barbuda | Grenada | Samoa |
Australia | Guyana | Seychelles |
Bahamas, The | India | Sierra Leone |
Bangladesh | Isle of Man | Singapore |
Barbados | Jamaica | Solomon Islands |
Belize | Kenya | South Africa |
Bermuda | Kiribati | South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands |
Botswana | Lesotho | Sri Lanka |
British Antarctic Territory | Malawi | St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha |
British Indian Ocean Territory | Malaysia | St Kitts and Nevis |
British Virgin Islands | Maldives | St Vincent |
Brunei | Malta | Tanzania |
Cameroon | Mauritius | The Gambia |
Canada | Montserrat | Tonga |
Cayman Islands | Mozambique | Trinidad and Tobago |
Channel Islands | Namibia | Turks and Caicos Islands |
Cyprus | Nauru | Tuvalu |
Dhekelia | New Zealand | Uganda |
Dominica | Nigeria | United Kingdom |
Eswatini | Pakistan | Vanuatu |
Falkland Islands | Papua New Guinea | Zambia |
Fiji | Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie & Oneo Islands | Zimbabwe |
EEA States
Austria | Germany | Malta |
Belgium | Greece | Netherlands |
Bulgaria | Hungary | Norway |
Croatia | Iceland | Poland |
Cyprus, Republic of | Ireland | Portugal |
Czech Republic | Italy | Romania |
Denmark | Latvia | Slovakia |
Estonia | Liechtenstein | Slovenia |
Finland | Lithuania | Spain |
France | Luxembourg | Sweden |
Other Qualifying Countries
Switzerland |
Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region), Japan, United States of America, People's Republic of China - only for aircraft awaiting commercial lease or sale in accordance with Exemption and Permission 2021/055 . |