Yes, you get your permit in early January and it is valid until December 31st and you are only allowed to operate the aircraft on 180 days within the validity period of the permit. Nobody is every going to check it and also nobody is ever going to fly an experimental more than 180 days a year.
So in essence you can make full use of your N-reg experimental in Germany. There was a short period of confusion 2-3 years ago when some dimwit at the FAA sent an unauthorized letter to the LBA saying that FAA do not oversee N-reg experimentals outside the US. The LBA then concluded there is no oversight and stopped issuing permits. After a short period this was cleared up by the FAA and everything went back to normal.
You are probably much less protected against stupid new legislation with a foreign experimental than with a national experimental or a CoA airplane but there are many N-reg experimentals in D and they have been here for decades so I would consider the risk to be rather small.
Germany also has a lot of SE-reg experimentals and had a lot of fake RU-reg experimentals which are now mostly Lithuanian. Most Yaks (of which there are many) are foreign reg.
Next one. In CH, basically no limitation whatsoever!
The main problem still remains. A US registered experimental homebuilt cannot freely cross borders in Europe like a European homebuilt. For an Nreg you need a permission to enter and fly in every “foreign” airspace you head into.
@LeSving. For sure the N-reg is more limited than then an EASA reg. But it all depends on your mission level.
Let’s say you are based in Germany and you fly a few times a year to other countries. You just yearly permit for Germany and the surroundings countries (e.g. Austria doesn’t require one for VFR day according to their AIP). And when you plan your longer trips, you just check where you fly to.
This is very manageable. I flew my plane from BE for about 1 year and now from CH for the last months. I update the authorizations that I need on a yearly basis without too much hassle. There are even countries that are answering you directly per e-mail and so giving you directly the overfly authorization (e.g. Poland).
A US registered experimental homebuilt cannot freely cross borders in Europe like a European homebuilt. For an Nreg you need a permission to enter and fly in every “foreign” airspace you head into.
No homebuilt, regardless of reg, can cross borders without permits. There are a few automatic concessions e.g. UK-France. But any significant European travel needs multiple permits.
I update the authorizations that I need on a yearly basis without too much hassle.
It’s interesting that you can get a permit for a whole year, for example. That’s pretty good. I wonder who these are? I know that this is not universal; I know owners who have to do it for every trip. Spain never replies, so for Spain (and other places) they just fly anyway…
Peter wrote:
No homebuilt, regardless of reg, can cross borders without permits. There are a few automatic concessions e.g. UK-France. But any significant European travel needs multiple permits.
Not true for ECAC-registered experimentals which have automatic grants in all member states. Makes them more universal in theory but in reality one can probably get away with N-reg, just make sure to choose a very small “EXPERIMENTAL” sticker, best white on white 
achimha wrote:
Makes them more universal in theory but in reality one can probably get away with N-reg, just make sure to choose a very small “EXPERIMENTAL” sticker, best white on white
“non-replica aircraft are required to display the word “experimental” on your aircraft in accordance with § 45.23(b). You are required to place the 2- to 6-inch high letters near each entrance to the cabin or the cockpit” FAA AC 20-27G
If I were ever to operate an aircraft in Germany as a part time (non) resident, this FAA Experimental Amateur Built route would definitely be worthy of consideration. I’d import the plane from the US, a similar situation to that which I’ve had for years with a motorcycle. Something relatively inexpensive that worst case I’d just abandon in place in the end.
It’s interesting that you can get a permit for a whole year, for example. That’s pretty good. I wonder who these are? I know that this is not universal; I know owners who have to do it for every trip. Spain never replies, so for Spain (and other places) they just fly anyway…
You just ask for one year and you get it in almost all cases. I never flew to Spain, but wouldn’t bother too much if they don’t answer in the next 2 days.
ploucandco wrote:
This is very manageable
I guess you are right. It’s no worse than flying microlights across the borders, and within Schengen, why should anyone care what kind of vehicle you are using? But there are strange rules everywhere. In Northernmost part of Norway, on the border to Russia, lots of refugees are coming. They have paid some Russian mafia to bring them from Balkan area up to Murmansk and the border to Norway. The “ticket” includes a bicycle. It’s not allowed to cross the border walking, and Russians are not allowed to bring refugees in a car, but it is allowed for the refugees to ride a bicycle across the border
Peter wrote:
No homebuilt, regardless of reg, can cross borders without permits. There are a few automatic concessions e.g. UK-France. But any significant European travel needs multiple permits.
The ECAC has an updated table now. I got the pdf downloaded by looking at the source, but I don’t know how to upload pdf’s here. The link to ECAC is a bit awkward.
http://tinyurl.com/ocbqjcy [replaced – Peter]
or maybe this works?:
https://www.ecac-ceac.org/documents/10189/0/HomeBuiltAircraft2015-09.pdf [ local copy ]
In this new version, the following states have no restrictions:
Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France (for the most, all other ECAC countries with no restrictions at least), Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Malta (only time limit), Netherlands (only time limit), Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovak Rep, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Macedonia.
States with VFR flight only restrictions:
Austria, Germany, UK
States that require case to case permission
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Estonia, Hungary, Iceland, Monaco, San Marino, Spain, Ukraine
Edit: Here is a bit older document from EFLEVA
http://www.efleva.eu/new/images/T__B_Conf_2012_ECAC_status.pdf [ local copy ]
