Hello, everyone;<br><br> I just recently went through my second
expired ham radio license renewal process (been a ham for over 20
years), and I wanted to let everyone know about the procedures
involved. <br><br>In the past, W5YI Group or other organizations would
mail you forms and send you some kind of notice that your license was
about to expire, and they would offer to fill out and turn in the Form
605 for a small fee (I think it was $5 when I did my last one back in
2000--looks like $8 now). This time, after many moves, I did not receive any kind
of notifications; and I just happened to notice that my license expired
last weekend. I remembered that I had received notices from the FCC that
an FCC Registration Number (FRN) being attached to my ham license
several years ago, and that the Universal Licensing System could be used
for updating and renewing my license.<br>
<br>I went to the FCC's website where I found the CORES/ULS link. Once I was
on the ULS page, I had to use the lost password tool to establish a
password, but then I found that I had to establish a personal security
question (PSQ) before this could be done. After setting the PSQ, I was
informed that I would have to wait 1-3 business days for it to be
processed. 2 days later, I was able to create a new password and
quickly fill out a Form 605 renewal form in the ULS. This was very
similar to filling out an online tax form (but thankfully much
faster!). At the end of the page, I was able to submit my form to the
FCC and print out an official copy of my Form 605--no fees were
involved.<br>
<br>73's de N4YPK<br><font color="#888888">Jonathan Maybin</font>