In the United States, amateur radio licensing is governed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) under strict federal regulations. Licenses to operate amateur stations for personal use are granted to individuals of any age once they demonstrate an understanding of both pertinent FCC regulations and knowledge of radio station operation and safety considerations. December 2012 will mark one hundred years of amateur radio operator and station licensing by the United States government.

Operator licenses are divided into different classes, each of which correlates to an increasing degree of knowledge and corresponding privileges. Over the years, the details of the classes have changed significantly, leading to the current system of three open classes and two grandfathered (but closed to new applicants) classes.

Current license classes

Amateur radio licenses in the United States are issued and renewed without charge, although the private individuals who administer the examinations may recoup their expenses by charging a fee. Licenses currently remain valid for 10 years from the date of issuance.

• The entry-level license, known as Technician Class, is awarded after an applicant successfully completes a 35-question multiple choice written examination. The license grants full operating privileges on all amateur bands above 30 MHz and limited privileges in portions of the high frequency (HF) bands.
• The next level, known as General Class, requires passage of the Technician test, as well as a 35-question multiple-choice General exam. General class licensees are granted privileges on portions of all amateur bands, and have access to over 83% of all amateur HF bandwidth. However some band segments often used for long distance contacts are not included.
• The top US license class is Amateur Extra Class. This license requires the same tests as General plus a 50-question multiple-choice theory exam. Those with Amateur Extra licenses are granted all privileges on all US amateur bands.

Grandfathered license classes

The current FCC classifications of licensing were not always the way they are currently and in fact have evolved considerably since the program's inception History of US amateur licensing, below). When the FCC made the most recent changes it allowed certain existing operator classes to remain under a grandfather clause. These licenses would no longer be issued to new applicants, but existing licenses may be modified or renewed indefinitely.

• The Novice Class operator license was for persons who had passed a 5 word per minute (wpm) Morse code examination and a basic theory exam. After the 1987 restructuring, privileges included four bands in the HF range (3â€"30 MHz), one band in the VHF range (30â€"300 MHz), and one band in the UHF range (300â€"3,000 MHz). This class was deprecated by the restructuring in 2000. Novice operators gained Morse code only privileges in the entire Morse code and data only segments of the General class portions of 80, 40, 15 and data and Morse code in the general section of 10 meters in 2007 just prior to the end of the Morse code requirement.
• The Advanced Class operator license, whose privileges included 275 kHz of additional spectrum in the HF bands over and above that allocated to General class licensees. It was deprecated by the restructuring in 2000.

Volunteer examiners

Any individual regardless of citizenship who wishes to apply for a US amateur radio license must appear before Volunteer Examiners (VEs). VEs are licensed radio amateurs who conduct examination sessions, frequently through permanently established teams on a monthly or quarterly basis. VEs are governed by Volunteer Examinator Coordinators (VECs), organizations that "coordinate the efforts of Volunteer Examiners … in preparing and administering amateur service operator license examinations." Although the FCC currently recognizes 14 VECs, the two largest VEC organizations are the one sponsored by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) and the one started by W5YI, now sold and operated by another party. The ARRL VEC coordinates about two-thirds of all U.S. license examinations.

Prior to 1984, many Novice exams were administered by volunteers, but all other exams were taken at FCC offices. Some of the exam times were not always convenient for candidates, so a few exceptions were allowed in cases where candidates were physically unable to get to the field offices (such as the Conditional license, discussed elsewhere in this article).

In the 1950s and 1960s, Novice, Technician and Conditional exams were given by licensees acting as volunteer examiners. No Advanced and very few Amateur Extra exams were administered during this period, leaving the General exam as the only exam class regularly administered by the FCC.

The government's use of licensed amateur radio operators as voluntary examiners dates back to the founding of the Amateur Radio Service as a government-regulated entity in 1912 (Amateur Second Class licenses).

History of U.S. amateur licensing

Formation and early history

Established in 1912, regulation of amateur radio was a result of the U.S. Navy's concern about interference to its stations and its desire to be able to order amateur radio stations off the air in the event of war. U.S. Amateur Radio was first governed by the U.S. Department of Commerce (the U.S. Department of Commerce and Labor until March 1913), then by the Federal Radio Commission, and finally (in 1934) by the FCC. The federal government's licensing of amateur radio experimenters and operators has evolved considerably over the century since the inception of licensing.

1912 through 1950

Under authority of the Radio Act of 1912, the Department of Commerce issued Amateur First Grade and Amateur Second Grade operator licenses beginning in December of that year. Amateur First Grade required an essay-type examination and five (later ten) words per minute code examination before a Radio Inspector at one of the Department's field offices. This class of license was renamed Amateur Class in 1927 and then Amateur First Class in 1932. Amateur Radio licensing in the United States began in mid-December 1912.

At first, the Amateur Second Grade license required the applicant to certify that he or she was unable to appear at a field office but was nevertheless qualified to operate a station. Later, the applicant took brief written and code exams before a nearby existing licensee. This class of license was renamed Temporary Amateur in 1927.

The Department of Commerce created a new top-level license in 1923, the Amateur Extra First Grade, that conveyed extra operating privileges. It required a more difficult written examination and a code test at twenty words per minute. In 1929, a special license endorsement for "unlimited radiotelephone privileges" became available in return for passing an examination on radiotelephone subjects. This allowed amateurs to upgrade and use reserved radiotelephone bands without having to pass a difficult code examination.

From 1912 through 1932, amateur radio operator licenses consisted of large and ornate diploma-form certificates. Amateur station licenses were separately issued on plainer forms.

In 1933, the Federal Radio Commission (FRC) reorganized amateur operator licenses into Classes A, B and C. Class A conveyed all amateur operating privileges, including certain reserved radiotelephone bands. Amateur Extra First Grade licensees and Amateur First Class licensees with "unlimited radiotelephone" endorsements were grandfathered into this class.

Class B licensees did not have the right to operate on the reserved radiotelephone bands. Amateur First Class licensees were grandfathered into this class.

Class C licensees had the same privileges as Class B licensees, but took their examinations from other licensees rather than from Commission field offices. Because examination requirements were somewhat stiffened, Temporary Amateur licensees were not grandfathered into this class but had to be licensed anew.

In addition, that year the FRC began issuing combined operator and station licenses in wallet-sized card form.

1951 licensing structure decision

In 1951, the FCC moved to convert the existing three license classes (A, B, and C) into six named classes. Following the rule change, the classes were Novice, Technician, General, Conditional, Advanced, and Amateur Extra. Each license class required two exams, one on theory and one on Morse code, and each license was valid for five years (except Novice). Until the advent of incentive licensing in the late 1960s, the Technician, Conditional and General classes shared the same written examination and the Conditional, General, Advanced and Amateur Extra classes shared the same operating privileges.

• The Novice class created by the 1951 decision was the entry-level license; it remained the primary entry license until the Morse code requirement was eliminated for Technician licenses in 1990. On HF it permitted code transmissions only, with a maximum power of 75 watts, (input to the transmitter's final amplifier stage) on limited segments of the 80, 40 and 15 meter bands, and on VHF, both code and voice privileges on 145-147 MHz. Initially, they were also limited to crystal control of the transmitting frequency, a restriction that was lifted in 1972. To qualify for a Novice license, a candidate would have to pass a 5 word-per-minute (WPM) Morse code test (send and receive) and a 25- (later 30-) question multiple-choice test. The Novice Class license was valid for one year, as it was intended only as an entry level; within the year, the Novice was expected to move up to General (or Conditional). Under incentive licensing, the term of the Novice class was extended to two years. In 1978 the Novice changed into a renewable license with the same five year validity as other classes.

• The Technician license, newly created in the 1951 structure decision, was awarded to applicants who passed the General Class theory test, known as Element 3, but only required a 5 WPM code proficiency. It was initially intended for radio control of model airplanes, etc. but that usage was rare. Technicians were granted all General Class privileges in the 50 MHz band and all bands above 220 MHz; on 2 meters they were limited to 145-147 MHz. An applicant was permitted to apply for and hold both Technician and Novice licenses simultaneously (for the first year).

• The General class originally conveyed full privileges on all ham bands, having passed the Element 3 theory exam and 13 WPM Morse code test. Class B operators were assigned this license following the 1951 structure decision.

• The Conditional license class was created when Class C operators were reassigned to this group. In 1978 all Conditional Class licenses became General Class.
  • History: Prior to 1984, the FCC administered license exams for all classes except Novice and Technician, with some exceptions. The old Class C license had been issued to applicants who would otherwise have been Class B operators but who lived more than 125 miles airline from the nearest examining point. They were permitted to have their code test and written exam administered by a Class A or B or otherwise FCC-qualified operator. When the class became the Conditional Class, the restrictions were generally the same, except that the required distance from the nearest Field Office was reduced to 75 miles (there were also exceptions for the military and physically disabled). The Conditional License exam was given by a ham with General (or higher) license, who would administer the code test, proctor the written exam, and send the completed exam to the FCC for grading. Successful examinees were given Conditional licenses, which brought the same privileges as the General class. The FCC retained the right to require Conditional licensees to come in to an FCC office for retesting. The current Volunteer Examiner program evolved from the Novice/Technician/Conditional exam procedure.

• The Advanced class was earned after the General Class through passing the Element 4A theory exam. Class A operators were assigned this license following the 1951 structure decision. Although existing Advanced Class licenses continued to be renewed, new licenses were not issued in the period 1951-1967.

• The Amateur Extra class was a new highest-level class created in the 1951 decision, and was reached by passing both the Element 4B theory exam and a 20 WPM Morse code test. From the 1950s through the early 1980s, FCC Field Offices would issue diploma-form certificates to Amateur Extra Class licenses.

Incentive licensing

In 1964, the FCC and the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) developed a program known as "Incentive Licensing," which rearranged the HF spectrum privileges. The General/Conditional and Advanced portions of the HF bands were reduced, with the spectrum reassigned to those in the Advanced and Amateur Extra classes. It was hoped that these special portions of the radio spectrum would provide an incentive for hams to increase their knowledge and skills, creating a larger pool of experts to lead the Space Age.^[ It did not take effect until 1968.

Prior to the advent of incentive licensing, only a small percentage of General Class operators progressed to the Amateur Extra Class. After incentive licensing, a large number of amateurs attained Advanced and Amateur Extra Class licenses. Thus, incentive licensing was successful in inducing a large number of amateurs to study and upgrade their knowledge and license privileges. Incentive licensing was not without controversy; a number of General class operators, unhappy at having their privileges reduced, dropped out of the hobby rather than upgrade.

Novice enhancement

Prior to 1987, the only difference between the requirements for Technician and General licenses was the Morse telegraphy test, which was five words per minute (wpm) for Technician and 13 wpm for General. The written test, then called element 3, was the same for both classes.

In 1987, a number of changes, later called the "Novice Enhancement," were introduced. Among them, element 3 was split into two new exams, element 3A, which covered VHF theory and 3B, which covered HF theory. Element 3A became a requirement for the Technician class and element 3B became a requirement for General. Both classes also required candidates to have passed the Novice element 2 theory exam.

The changes also granted Novices and Technician classes limited voice privileges on the 10-meter HF band. Novices were also granted voice privileges on portions of the then-220-MHz (since changed to 222 MHz) and 1240 MHz bands using limited power. For the first time, Novices and Technicians were able to operate using single sideband voice and data modes on HF. It was hoped that this would prompt more hams to move up to General, once they had a chance to sample HF without a Morse key.

Technician: the first license without Morse code

In late 1990, the FCC released their Report and Order on Docket 90-55. Beginning on February 14, 1991, demonstration of proficiency in Morse code telegraphy was removed from the Technician license requirements. Because International Telecommunication Union (ITU) regulations still required proficiency in Morse telegraphy for operation below 30 MHz, new Technicians were allowed all modes and bands above 50 MHz. If a Technician passed any of the contemporary Morse tests, he or she gained access to the so-called Novice HF privileges, essentially "upgrading" to what a Tech had before the new rules went into effect. This new, sixth class had no name until the FCC started calling them "Technician Plus" in 1994. With a code-free class now available, Technician class became a second entry class, eventually surpassing the number of Novice class license holders.

Restructuring in 2000

In 1999, the FCC moved to simplify the Amateur Radio Service operator license structure, streamline the number of examination elements, and reduce the emphasis on telegraphy. The change was titled a restructuring, and the new rules became effective on April 15, 2000.

The major changes were:

• A reduction of the number of operator license classes from six to three. The Advanced Class, Technician Plus Class, and Novice Class licenses were deemed redundant and would no longer be issued; however, existing licensees would retain their operating privileges and be allowed to renew their licenses.
• A reduction of the number of telegraphy examination elements from three to one. Both the 20 words-per-minute (WPM) and 13 WPM Morse code tests were removed in favor of a standardized 5 WPM as the sole Morse code requirement for both the General and Extra Class licenses. With the removal of the high-speed Morse code tests, physician certification waivers were no longer accepted.
• A reduction of the number of written examination elements from five to three.
• Authorization of Advanced Class amateur radio operators to prepare and administer examinations for the General Class license.
• Elimination of station licenses for the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES).

With the rule simplification, all pre-1987 Technician operators were now qualified to become General class operators, having already passed both the theory and code exams now required for the higher class. All that was necessary was to apply for the General license. The restructuring also enabled a pre-1987 Technician operator to become an Extra operator simply by passing the element 4 theory examination. Additionally, an expired or unexpired Novice class license could be used as credit toward the 5 WPM Morse code examination when upgrading.

With the change, Technicians who could pass the 5 WPM Morse code examination were given the same HF-band privileges as the Technician Plus class, although the FCC's callsign database no longer distinguished between those Technician licensees possessing HF privileges and those who did not.

End of Morse code requirement

In 2003, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) ratified changes to the Radio Regulations to allow each country to determine whether it would require a person seeking an amateur radio operator license to demonstrate the ability to send and receive Morse code. The effect of this revision was to eliminate the international requirement that a person demonstrate Morse code proficiency in order to qualify for an amateur radio operator license with transmitting privileges on frequencies below 30 MHz.

With this change of international rules, the FCC announced on December 15, 2006 that it intended to adopt rule changes which would eliminate the Morse code requirement for amateur operator licenses Shortly thereafter, the effective date of the new rules was announced as February 23, 2007. After that date, the FCC immediately granted the former Technician Plus privileges to all Technician Class operators, consolidating the class into a single set of rules.

Following the change in requirements, the ARRL reported a significant increase in the number of applications for licensing.

Call signs

Each station is assigned a call sign which is used to identify the station during transmissions.

Amateur station call signs in the US take the format of one or two letters (the prefix), then a numeral (the call district), and finally between one and three letters (the suffix). The number of letters used in the call sign is determined by the operator's license class and the availability of letter combinations.

The format of the callsign is often abbreviated as X-by-X where a number in place of the X indicates the quantity of letters, separated by a single digit of the call district.

Currently there are 13 geographically based regions. There were 9 original call districts within the 48 contiguous states, also known as radio inspection districts.  The 10th district (with numeral 0) was split from the 9th district. Three additional regions cover Alaska, the Caribbean (including Puerto Rico), and the Pacific (including Hawaii).

In the last few decades the FCC has discarded the requirement that a station be located in the corresponding numerical district. Whereas at one time the callsign W1xxx would have been solid identification that the station was in New England (district 1), that is no longer the case, and W1xxx may be located anywhere in the USA. Even particularly distinctive calls such as KH6xxx which used to be exclusively in Hawaii, may be assigned to license holders on the US mainland. However, those licensees with KH6, KL7, KP4, etc., call signs must have been living in Hawaii, Alaska or Puerto Rico when they received those call signs.

A newly licensed amateur will always receive a call sign from the district in which he or she lives. For instance, a newly licensed Technician from New England would receive a call sign of the form KC1xxx. The amateur may thereafter apply for a specific or specialized call sign under the Vanity Licensing program.

According to the website Vanityhq.com, approximately 88% of all amateur radio operators have call signs that reflect the district in which they live.

An amateur operator with an Amateur Extra Class license can hold a call from any of the four call sign groups, either by keeping an existing call sign (indefinitely, since there is no requirement to change call sign upon license renewal), or by choosing a Group B, C or D call sign under the Vanity Licensing Program.

Likewise, Advanced Class licensees can hold Group C or D call signs, as well as Group B, and any operator may choose a Group D call sign (in reality, all new licensees, except Amateur Extra, are assigned Group D call signs, since the supply of available Group C "1x3" call signs was quickly depleted with the introduction of the elimination of the Element 1A Morse Code requirement for the Technician Class in 1991)

Amateur Radio Callsigns in the United States

	Class	Size	Format	Letters	Example
Group A	Amateur Extra Class	Four characters	1-by-2	K, N, or W plus two letters	W1NG
			2-by-1	AA-AL, KA-KZ, NA-NZ, or WA-WZ plus one letter	AB0A
		Five characters	2-by-2	AA-AL plus two letters	NA7KR
Group B	Advanced Class	Five characters	2-by-2	KA-KZ, NA-NZ, or WA-WZ plus two letters	NB7TR
Group C	Technician or General Classes	Five characters	1-by-3	K, N, or W plus three letters	K7HAH
			2-by-2 (location specific)	KL, NL, or WL; NP or WP; KH, NH, or WH, plus two letters	KL5CD
Group D	Novice, Club, and Military Recreations Stations; and sequentially to Technician or General	Six characters	2-by-3 (Novice or Club)	KA-KZ, WA-WZ plus three letters	KA2DOG
			2-by-3 (Sequential)	KA-KZ plus three letters	KN0WCW
Source: FCC Callsign information

The call district assignments are as follows (note that a station may not actually be located in the district indicated by the numeral in the station's call sign) :

District	Numeral	States and Territories
1	1	ME, NH, MA, RI, CT, VT
2	2	NY, NJ
3	3	PA, DE, MD, DC
4	4	KY, VA, TN, NC, AL, GA, SC, FL
5	5	NM, TX, OK, AR, LA, MS
6	6	CA
7	7	WA, OR, ID, MT, WY, NV, UT, AZ
8	8	MI, OH, WV
9	9	WI, IL, IN
10	0	ND, SD, NE, KS, CO, MN, IA, MO
11	L0 - L9	AK
12	P1 - P5	Caribbean
		P1: Navassa Island	P3/P4: Puerto Rico
		P2: U.S. Virgin Islands	P5: Desecheo Island
13	H0 - H9	Hawaii and Pacific	H5K: Kingman Reef
		H1: Baker, Howland Islands	H6/7: Hawaii
		H2: Guam	H7K: Kure Island
		H3: Johnston Atoll	H8: American Samoa
		H4: Midway Island	H9: Wake Island
		H5: Palmyra Atoll, Jarvis Island	H0: Northern Marianas

Sequentially assigned call signs

During the processing of a new license application, a call sign is selected from the available list sequentially using the sequential call sign system. This system is based on the alphabetized regional-group list for the licensee's operator class and mailing address.

As of March, 2010, the sequential system for Group C is assigning 2-by-3 formats beginning with the letter K.

Vanity callsigns

The FCC offers amateur licensees the opportunity to request a specific call sign for a primary station and for a club station. The format of the call sign is limited to the same Group or lower, meaning a Technician Class operator can select an available callsign from Group C (e.g. a 1x3) or Group D (e.g. a 2x3), but not from Group A or B (e.g. a 1x2). RACES and military recreation stations are not eligible for a vanity call sign.

Special event 1x1 call signs

The FCC allows the use of special event "1x1" call signs to denote special occasions such as a club's anniversary, a historic event or even a DXpedition. As an example, the call sign "N8S" was used for the April 2007 DXpedition to Swains Island in American Samoa. These call signs start with the letters K, N or W, followed by a single numeral from 0 to 9 then followed by a single letter from A through W, Y or Z. The letter X is not allowed as it is reserved for experimental stations. Thus, there are 750 such call signs available. Each call sign may be used for 15 days from its issue. Each station using the special 1x1 call must transmit its assigned call at least once every hour.

Five coordinators (ARRL, W5YI Group Inc, Western Carolina Amateur Radio Society/VEC Inc, W4VEC Volunteer Examiners Club of America and the Laurel Amateur Radio Club Inc) are authorized to handle these call sign requests.