Here's a question I've been seeking an answer for for more than a year. Nobody seems to really know.
In JAR land, for carrying passengers at night, you have to have at least one night landing in your 3 landings during the past 90 days.
However, if you hold a JAR IR, you can take passengers at night on IFR flights no matter whether you have that one night landing during the past 90 days.
What if you as an IR holder take up passengers at night on a VFR flight plan, do you have to fulfil that 1 landing in 90 days requirement or as an IR holder are you always night current?
I have been told that IR holders are always night current but I'd like to see a real confirmation for that.
Thanks!
AFAIK JAA IR holders are always regarded current for night passenger carriage - perverse as this is given that you can keep a JAA IR valid for ever (with the annual tests) without ever flying in the dark.
The FAA IR doesn't give you that privilege.
To change the topic a little:
An interesting Q is whether a JAA IR gives you that privilege in an N-reg, when its use is non-compliant with FAR 61.3 i.e. when you are flying outside the airspace of the country which issued the JAA IR 
In that case the license you are flying on has to be your FAA PPL/CPL (because the JAA PPL/CPL is now void for 61.3) and the JAA IR is worthless because it isn't on that FAA license.
You don't need a PhD to work out that the dual pilot papers required under EASA FCL for N-reg pilots will be invalid (under iCAO i.e. State of aircraft registry) outside of the airspace of the country which issued the EASA papers 
Peter,
so you have the same problem -- you think JAR IR holders are always night current but it's hearsay. I have not managed to find any evidence in the law text (JAR is not a EU directive/regulation so each country has its own law).
perverse as this is given that you can keep a JAA IR valid for ever (with the annual tests) without ever flying in the dark.
The FAA IR doesn't give you that privilege.
But the FAA IR gives you the privilege of a lifelong IR without ever flying a real plane under IFR (can do your 6 approaches/holdings/radials in a procedure trainer), all you have to do is the biannual VFR review. And after 30 year not flying IFR you can shoot your 6 approaches in the procedure trainer and you're current again. I find the JAR currency requirements for IR a lot harder (and my last FI has given me a very hard time)
Very rarely I am night current in the VFR sense and it is a big PITA because most night flights start during daytime and just end after SS+30. The VFR night rule basically precludes all VFR night flights with passengers for me. I just do all night flying under IFR. I don't like the idea of breaking some rule and finding a nice letter in my mailbox...
How to get a binding answer on that?
The best I can find, in UK law, is in CAP393 on top of page 266 of the PDF file.
If you search the PDF for "90 days" you find corresponding references to that IR exemption for helicopters etc.
Now, I will leave it to people much smarter than I am to show that "instrument rating" is the JAA IR and not just any ICAO IR
Thanks for the link. I found in CAP393:
SCHEDULE 7
PART A FLIGHT CREW LICENSES
Section 1 - United Kingdom Licenses
Sub-section 1 AEROPLANE PILOTS
Private Pilot's License (Aeroplanes)
...
(2) The holder may not:
...
(g) fly as pilot in command of such an aeroplane carrying passengers unless:
...
(ii) if such a flight is to be carried out at night and the licence does not include an instrument rating (aeroplane), at least one of those take-offs and landings has been at night.
I wonder what "United Kingdom Licenses" means. The quoted part mentions "Private Pilot's License" whereas in a later section on another license it talks about "National Private Pilot’s Licence" so I presume the former means JAR, the latter something UK specific and "United King Licenses" just means that these are all the licenses that exist in the UK, both JAR and national.
I will research the German law next. Unfortunately it is spread out over half a dozens of laws and regulations and implementing regulations and revisions thereof...
CAP393 only applies to old UK licences, EASA FCL applies to all FCL licences (ex JAR included). The night stuff is covered by FCL 060 which is in CAP804 as well. It just says 'holds an IR' which is even more vague!
The 90 day recency applies to the carriage of passengers only; it has nothing whatsoever to do with Flight Rules. If the document says you can carry passengers at night by virtue of having a current IR then that is exactly what you can do.
Apart from autoland, the touchdown is always visual, which makes one wonder what relevance holding a valid IR is, but that's the rule, so fill your boots.
From EASA FCL:
FCL.060 Recent experience
...
(b) Aeroplanes, helicopters, powered-lift, airships and sailplanes. A pilot shall not operate an aircraft in commercial air transport or carrying passengers:
(1) as PIC or co-pilot unless he/she has carried out, in the preceding 90 days, at least 3 take-offs, approaches and landings in an aircraft of the same type or class or an FFS representing that type or class. The 3 take-offs and landings shall be performed in either multi-pilot or single-pilot operations, depending on the privileges held by the pilot; and
(2) as PIC at night unless he/she: (i) has carried out in the preceding 90 days at least 1 take-off, approach and landing at night as a pilot flying in an aircraft of the same type or class or an FFS representing that type or class; or
(ii) holds an IR;
So as an IR holder you just need to have the 3 take offs and landings in the last 90 days to carry passengers at night. It doesn't matter if they are all within the daylight period.
Thank you Officer! :-)
Great, that's almost enough reason to get an IR ticket! The VFR night currency requirements are very hard to meet, one basically has to go to the aerodrome on his own one evening before doing the VFR night trip given that in most cases one would begin the flight during daytime and land at night time.
I usually did the 90d business by taxiing into a holding loop at the airport, waiting for official sunset plus exactly 1 hour (which is the FAA passenger carriage requirement) and then flying 3 circuits.
I think a lot of people do the same thing.
The airport would close soon afterwards, and this was possible only in the winter anyway.
Now, with the JAA IR, I don't need to do that anymore.
But I rarely fly at night, due to
However this highlights what is so wrong with the European GA scene, which is largely devoid of utility value. If you want to do a business trip, you want to be back the same day, ideally, but this isn't generally possible unless the airport opens say 6am, closes say 10pm, and is suitably equipped. Very different in the USA!
