The International Aircraft Dealers Association is changing how brokers earn its Certified Aircraft Broker title. Candidates must now finish a study course and at least three months of preparation before they sit the exam. AIN and GlobalAir both reported the change on 12 October. IADA's own release the same day calls it Version 2.0 of the programme. It launches after NBAA-BACE in Las Vegas.
Until now a candidate with the required experience could register and test without finishing a set course. The 2 years of transaction experience stays in place. What changes is the path between eligibility and the exam. Preparation runs through IADA U, the association's learning platform. A new digital study guide covers key terms and common transaction pitfalls, plus the skills and reference material the exam draws on.
"This is about developing better brokers, not simply creating a harder test," said Lou Seno, IADA's executive director.
The syllabus grows from 7 knowledge domains to 9. The 2 new ones are Industry Structure and Segments, and General Broker Requirements. Across the 9 domains there are 79 published learning objectives, and every exam question is tied to one of them. Candidates are told where to find the reference material for each subject they can be tested on.
IADA says the new version leans less on US practice than the old one. Eight of the 79 objectives deal directly with cross-border work. They cover the International Registry and the Cape Town Convention. They also cover import and export rules, CAMO, plus sanctions and export controls. The study guide includes a table that sets US terms beside their international equivalents.
That extra work is aimed at deals that cross a border. A European buyer of a US-registered jet needs a broker who can work two registries. So does a Gulf office selling into America. The same person has to handle two rulebooks and the sanctions checks those deals now involve. A title earned after a set course on those subjects is a clearer check than one earned on the first available exam date.
The list of certified brokers is short. IADA certified 16 brokers in 2026, taking the total to 233. A required course and a minimum preparation period will lengthen the path for each new candidate. The 12 October announcement does not say whether brokers who already hold the title will face new steps when they recertify.
Beyond the exam, IADA is adding continuing education. The first IADA U Education Series course, a 7-module programme on aviation insurance, is already live. Courses on aircraft finance and on contracts are in development, with aircraft appraisal still to come.
For an owner or a chief of staff appointing a broker on a cross-border sale, the practical test is simple. Ask whether the person handling the deal holds the title, and when they earned it. The extra months of study only matter if buyers and sellers start to ask.
When we source ACMI and wet lease capacity we still ask any counterparty, certified or not, to walk us through their last cross-border deal. A credential that tests that knowledge is a useful check. It does not replace the conversation. Details are on the contact page.
Sources: ainonline.com, globalair.com, iada.aero, iada.aero