BasicMed expiration runs on two separate clocks: the online medical education course is good for 24 calendar months, and the physician-signed Comprehensive Medical Examination Checklist (CMEC) is good for 48 calendar months. Both have to be current every time you fly. They renew independently, so their due dates almost never line up, and if either one lapses you’re grounded until you bring it current. There is no grace period.1Federal Aviation Administration. AC 68-1A – BasicMed
How the Calendar-Month Clock Works
The FAA measures both timelines in calendar months, not exact days. A calendar month runs from the first day through the last day of that month, so a period that starts mid-month still runs through the final day of the last qualifying month.1Federal Aviation Administration. AC 68-1A – BasicMed In practice this gives you a small buffer at the tail end of each cycle. You don’t have to count days from an anniversary; you have through the end of the month the anniversary falls in.
The 24-Month Course Clock
The online medical education course is valid for 24 calendar months. Complete the course on October 15, 2024, and your certificate stays valid through October 31, 2026 — the remainder of the completion month plus 24 full months after that.1Federal Aviation Administration. AC 68-1A – BasicMed
Two FAA-approved courses satisfy the requirement, one from AOPA and one from the Mayo Clinic. Both are free, and either can be retaken online each cycle without booking an appointment.2Federal Aviation Administration. BasicMed When you finish, the system electronically transmits your completion to the FAA and issues a release authorizing a one-time National Driver Register check through your state’s DMV. You don’t take any separate action for that check.3eCFR. 14 CFR 68.3 – Medical Education Course Requirements
The 48-Month CMEC Clock
The physical exam, documented on FAA Form 8700-2 (the Comprehensive Medical Examination Checklist), must have been completed within the previous 48 calendar months.4eCFR. 14 CFR 68.7 – Comprehensive Medical Examination Checklist A CMEC signed on June 12, 2022 stays valid through June 30, 2026. You don’t need to renew on the exact anniversary, but the next exam has to be complete before the end of that 48th month.1Federal Aviation Administration. AC 68-1A – BasicMed
Any state-licensed physician can perform the exam. You do not need an FAA-designated Aviation Medical Examiner, which means your regular doctor is an option.2Federal Aviation Administration. BasicMed You fill out your own portion first — every medication (prescription and over-the-counter) and your full medical history, with the approximate date, description, severity, and treatment for each past diagnosis. Intentionally false statements on the form can lead to revocation of your pilot certificate. The physician then performs a clinical exam covering vision, hearing, cardiovascular health, neurological function, and mental health screening, and signs a declaration that they are not aware of any medical condition that, as currently treated, would interfere with your ability to safely operate an aircraft.5Federal Aviation Administration. FAA Form 8700-2 – Comprehensive Medical Examination Checklist
Because the CMEC cycle is twice as long as the course cycle, you’ll complete two course renewals for every physician’s exam.
What Grounds You
If either the CMEC or the course completion certificate expires, you are not legal to fly under BasicMed, even if the other one is still current. There’s no grace period, and flying past an expiration is a regulatory violation that can trigger FAA enforcement.
Your U.S. driver’s license is a third clock, one you probably already watch. It has to be valid every time you fly, not just at some point in the past. If it’s suspended, revoked, or simply expired, your BasicMed status is gone until the license issue is resolved.6eCFR. 14 CFR 61.113 – Private Pilot Privileges and Limitations: Pilot in Command
One boundary worth naming: a new diagnosis of certain mental health, neurological, or cardiovascular conditions requires an FAA Authorization for Special Issuance before you can fly BasicMed again, even if your course and CMEC are both current.7eCFR. 14 CFR 68.9 – Special Issuance Process That’s a separate track from the ordinary renewal clocks.
Records You Have to Carry
You’re required to keep both the signed CMEC and the course completion certificate available at all times, either in your logbook or in an accessible electronic format, and produce them on FAA request.6eCFR. 14 CFR 61.113 – Private Pilot Privileges and Limitations: Pilot in Command Documents that exist somewhere but aren’t with you don’t satisfy the requirement. A phone photo of each, stored in your flight app, is a cheap backup for a ramp check.
Set two separate calendar reminders when you renew, one 24 months out and one 48 months out. The two clocks will drift out of sync forever, and treating them as one deadline is how pilots end up flying illegal without realizing it.