Well, I am in the process of doing a change of address for my licence. Last time it was a simple exercise of filling in one form and sending it off to the CAA. IF I have the correct form, this time it is a 7 page exercise giving all your details again, like medical date, licence dates and so forth PLUS certified copies of my revalidation page and passport/drivers. I would think after all these years they would have all my information tapped into their computers etc so I can only conclude that there must be some very bored members of staff thinking up ways to justify their salaries. I bet there is a fee involved too. I do realise that there are people that get a buzz from form filling but I am not one of them. I find it tedious and life way to short. Still, it is like farting against thunder, gets you no where so I will just have to suck it up and make them happy. There, my moan for the day is over. 
I had a similar “exercise” with changing to the new “European” licence from my British PPL and so asked the CAA what it was all about. The information I received (which is always recorded) was to just not answer some of the questions where the information sought was already known. If you are unable to continue with an on line form then just enter a zero and continue.
IT WORKED
Recently I converted my license – a process that took several months.
First of all, all my documents were returned to me with the following:
“On initial admin assessment of your application it appears that the following documents are outstanding:
In addition to your SRG 1104 conversion form we require a copy of your licence page (to show your current ratings) which must be certified as a true copy by your Examiner.”
Actually this may have been slightly different – I haven’t kept the original and I think it may have asked for my certificate of revalidation or somesuch.
This didn’t make a great deal of sense to me so I called the CAA and was advised that my documents had been returned in error – I was converting a licence rather than adding a rating or revalidating or applying for a new licence, so they didn’t need anything from my examiner (who as far as I am aware is currently in Azerbaijan). Helpful chap from the CAA looked on the computer and said ‘I can see here we’ve already issued your licence with your SEP rating that is still valid, so we don’t require any further proof. Sorry.’ So I sent my documents back as directed. A few weeks later along came an Email:
“On initial admin assessment of your application it appears that the following documents are outstanding:
In addition to your SRG 1104 conversion form we require a copy of your licence page (to show your current ratings) which must be certified as a true copy by your Examiner.”
So I emailed back and explained the previous advice I had been given.
Reply giving no indication that my previous Email had been read:
“On initial admin assessment of your application it appears that the following documents are outstanding:
In addition to your SRG 1104 conversion form we require a copy of your licence page (to show your current ratings) which must be certified as a true copy by your Examiner.”
So I emailed them back again. As I recall I was then sent a paper copy of the same request. I didn’t get a reply to my Email.
So I called them back by telephone and ended up speaking to the person who had been Emailing me who explained that I needed to photocopy my ratings page and send it in, after getting it signed by my examiner, so they could validate it. ‘Even though you issued the document to me yourselves and your colleague confirmed that you have up to date details of it on your system?’ Yes. ‘Why?’ ‘Because we need it’. ‘But my examiner is in Azerbaijan and even if he comes to Britain it’ll be very difficult to get hold of him’. ‘So why don’t you send in the original then?’
So I did, and they charged me lots of money and sent back my new licence within a week. I still don’t understand why it had to be so complicated. Neither do I see how I should have known to send in my ratings page. After all, they didn’t ask for my medical or RT license.
It would also have saved a lot of hassle to have explained that some of the questions relating to radio navigation experience aren’t relevant if you have a JAR licence (as oppose to the old uk ppl where radio navigation wasn’t on the syllabus).
