hello. I am a Mexican Airline pilot, i would like to buy a basic VFR plane to fly it in the US ( below 20K cost). i was told, forming an LLC will be the best way to do so; i read to register a plane you must be a us citizen and if an LLC plans to register it has to be formed by US citizens. Is this true? if not where will be the best place to form the LLC and register the aircraft? where could i find info on this matter?
Thanks
JoseRo
You need to form an LLC through an attorney. If you’re not a citizen, why are you concerned with personal liability in the USA?
It is not clear to me whether you want to own and register the plane in Mexicao and fly it sometimes in the US (which is easy to do) or you want to own and register the plane in the US and fly it in the US. IF the later, it is pretty complex and you should talk to an aviation attorney. Here are a few points that may help you:
The FAA says:
An aircraft is eligible for U.S. Registration if it is not registered in another country and it is owned by:
- a U.S. citizen as defined in 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 47.2.
- a Resident Alien (foreign individual lawfully admitted for permanent U.S. residence
- a U.S. governmental unit or subdivision
- a non-citizen corporation lawfully organized and doing business under the laws of the U.S. or one of the States as long as the aircraft is based and primarily used in the U.S. (60% of all flight hours must be from flights starting and ending within the U.S.)
So I think you are talking about point #4, a non-citizen corporation. My understanding, and you should check this, is that the LLC laws in some states require 51% ownership by a US citizen. You should also check out putting your plane into a trust. As I said, you really want to talk to an aviation attorney. AOPA has a list of them.
i wanted to fly it mostly in the US, so i thought it could be easier to register it in the US. Unfortunatly (for me) only a US citizen could buy an airplane, you could buy an airplane thru an LLC, but the LLC must be owned by an american citizen! to make an s-corporation you have to be a US citizen! the only option i see is to make a c or another more formal corporation and i don’t know if i want to do this for a 20,000 plane ! probably it will be better to export - import it to mexico. We have all kind of corporations here in mexico, but any way it couldn’t register the plane in the US. If you have an idea i could use i will appreciate it.
Jose
what kinda plane you gettin for $20k… 
Jose: you should check out setting up the LLC within a trust. You can have a US citizen as the trustee, which then qualifies under the regs. Again, you should consult an aviation attorney.
A hot Alarus CH2000, maybe?
Good morning snowbird - my thoughts exactly… 
I’m not sure Jose is really real (don’t tell him I said that though). 
Don’t tell me our inspector has put on a dark mustache and a bad accent!?!
discussions.flightaware.com//vie … php?t=4275
That would be too funny! 
Seriously, 20K barely gets you into ultralights, and that is if you buy the most bare bones of kit and build it yourself. Used maybe.
I’ll keep quiet. Promised!
I would like to know why he wants N registry for a plane that will be kept in Mexico? Is it a Mexican tax issue? I know it isn’t insurance – the Mexican insurance is far cheaper than American.
I know a guy who has a Mexican registered aircraft based here in the US, and the advantages are quite clear. He restored his aircraft, and now wouldn’t try to put it back on N registry if he could do it all over again.
I would love to learn the advantages of N registry applicable to Mexican aircraft.
Chris
Having flown to the US on occasion, I know that the Charlie Fox or C-G painted on the plane does attract a certain degree of attention from some locals. They’ll just come up and ask something like “Where in Canada are ya from?” etc…
A N- registration is a lot more diluted in the crowd. Some people may have their reasons to want this. And the N- being seen in Mexico, well, it’s tracked down to an American LLC, where shareholders are not easy to trace…
Nevertheless, I think flygirljc raised the right question.
A N- registration is a lot more diluted in the crowd. Some people may have their reasons to want this. And the N- being seen in Mexico, well, it’s tracked down to an American LLC, where shareholders are not easy to trace…
As far as I know, and I could be wrong, the only state where shareholders of an LLC can be hidden is Nevada (no, not even in Delaware…just checked on that one). In every other state in the U.S., one only need consult the State Secy. of State’s office to find out the shareholders.
Also, in Mexico, they have XA, XB, and XC, where, I believe, XC is reserved for government, XB is business, and XA is private – again, just going off what I have been told, and I admit that I could be wrong here. I can tell you from my trips to Mexico that having an N registration raises the eyebrows and elicits more questions than does an XA or XB registration.
Also, on a side note, if it is registered Mexican and flying in the US, while garnering a bit more attention than a N reg. aircraft, it would be much tougher for the average joe to track down ownership of a Mexican corp. than an LLC or S-corp. Add to that, as noted earlier, insurance costs are significantly lower, and I don’t think that the taxes are equal to or higher than what we have here in the States. It begs the question, for him, why N register?
As to flygirl’s question, I know of several aircraft on the market right now that are under $20K. It isn’t impossible even in today’s inflated prices for aircraft.
Chris
As to flygirl’s question, I know of several aircraft on the market right now that are under $20K. It isn’t impossible even in today’s inflated prices for aircraft.
Chris
Well - I suppose you could be correct/right on the $20k cost - but I actually wanted to know/was interested in what kinda aircraft Jose was gettin for $20k 8)
Hey - I might want to buy an aircraft instead of a new car - where’s the website for info you are suggesting Chris?!?!? 
whisper to Snowbird (man if i could get a plane for $20k that’s flyable - i would - then i could finish up & get my ticket & fly to work instead of drive - the answer to all my problems in life) 
Well, my company buys and sells aircraft as part of the services it offers. I don’t have any exclusive listings right now; however, I could broker an aircraft to you. The aircraft I know of are generally in the older CE150 class, and some AA1’s.
I don’t blame you for wanting to fly as opposed to drive…I would too…oh wait, I do fly for work 
Take care,
Chris