How much does it cost to register an aircraft in Aruba?
Registry fees, turnover tax at import, airworthiness and mortgage costs on the Aruba aircraft register.
Aruba is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and sits outside the European Union and outside EASA. Its aircraft register is run by the Department of Civil Aviation, with the registry program operating alongside it. Two layers of charge apply as a result: the statutory fees set by decree, and the registry's own service pricing, which is quoted on the aircraft's weight.
What do the decree fees and the registry's own pricing come to?Link to this section
Read the entry charge and the recurring charge as separate questions here, because the statutory decree and the registry program price different things. The decree sets fees for issuing and renewing the certificate, while the program quotes its own work against the aircraft's maximum take-off weight and lists some services at no charge.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Registration fees | Aruba's statutory registration fee is Afl. 1,000 (about US$ 559) for a foreign-based aircraft; the registry's own service fees are quoted on weight.Retributie- en legesbesluit Directie Luchtvaart 2005 (Landsbesluit, houdende algemene maatregelen, van 17 oktober 2005, regelende de heffing en inning van retributies en leges door de Directie Luchtvaart, AB 2005 no. 65), Centraal Wettenregister consolidated text of 21 October 2013, published by the Government of Aruba via gobierno.aw (index page https://www.gobierno.aw/nl/0418-retributies-en-leges), articles 1 to 3, read together with The Registry of Aruba, 'FAQ | Aircraft Registration in Aruba' (Documents / Registration / FAQ), question 3, 'What is the cost to register an aircraft in Aruba?'cuatro.sim-cdn.nl · art. 2, onder FRetrieved 2026-08-29Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Annual registration fee | There is no annual fee: Afl. 1,000 (about US$ 559) falls due only when a foreign-based aircraft's certificate is renewed, at most every three years.Retributie- en legesbesluit Directie Luchtvaart 2005 (Landsbesluit, houdende algemene maatregelen, van 17 oktober 2005, regelende de heffing en inning van retributies en leges door de Directie Luchtvaart, AB 2005 no. 65), Centraal Wettenregister consolidated text of 21 October 2013, published by the Government of Aruba via gobierno.aw (index page https://www.gobierno.aw/nl/0418-retributies-en-leges), article 2, under F, read together with Regeling inschrijving en inschrijvingskenmerk (ministeriele regeling ter uitvoering van artikel 6 van de Luchtvaartverordening, AB 1991 no. GT 36), Centraal Wettenregister consolidated text of 4 October 2024, incorporating AB 1993 no. 47, AB 1997 nos. 9 and 10, AB 2014 no. 15, AB 2018 no. 28, AB 2019 no. 33, AB 2021 no. 142 and AB 2023 no. 53, published by the Government of Aruba via gobierno.aw (index page https://www.gobierno.aw/nl/0907-luchtvaart), article 5cuatro.sim-cdn.nl · art. 2, onder FRetrieved 2026-08-29Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
How does private or commercial operation change the running cost?Link to this section
How the aircraft will be flown decides its oversight and therefore much of its running cost. Private operation sits under the local operating rules; commercial work needs either a local air operator certificate or an agreement transferring oversight from another state. The registry is outside EASA and accepts type certification from several authorities.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Private and AOC operations | Private aircraft fly under AUA-OPS 2; commercial work needs an Aruba AOC or an Article 83 bis agreement.The Registry of Aruba, 'Registration Framework' (Documents / Registration / Registration Framework)theregistryofaruba.comRetrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| EASA status | Aruba is not an EASA member; the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) accepts FAA, Transport Canada, EASA and Brazilian type certificates.The Registry of Aruba, 'Type Certificate (TC)' (Documents / Airworthiness / Type Certificate)theregistryofaruba.comRetrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
Aruba levies no VAT, so what does an imported aircraft pay?Link to this section
Aruba levies no value added tax. An imported aircraft meets a combined turnover tax instead, and the registry states that registered aircraft are exempt from import duty, so the landed cost of putting an aircraft on this register is not the same question as it would be inside the European Union.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Import VAT and customs | Aruba has no VAT; a combined 7 percent turnover tax applies at import, and the registry states that registered aircraft are exempt from import duty.Departamento di Impuesto (Tax Department of Aruba), 'BBO na frontera' (Zakelijk / Overzicht zakelijke belastingen / BBO / BBO na frontera), published in Papiamentowww.impuesto.awRetrieved 2026-08-27Effective 2023-08-01Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
What does continuing airworthiness management add in Aruba?Link to this section
Continuing airworthiness has to be managed for as long as the aircraft stays registered, but who manages it differs by regime. Here the obligation rests on the operator, and contracting an approved organization is optional for a privately flown aircraft. That makes it a commercial choice rather than a fixed registry cost.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| CAMO requirements | Continuing airworthiness rests on the operator; contracting an approved CAMO is optional for private aircraft.The Registry of Aruba, 'Continuing Airworthiness (CAMO)' (Documents / Airworthiness / Continuing Airworthiness)theregistryofaruba.comRetrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
What does financing add when the mortgage sits outside the register?Link to this section
A financed aircraft carries costs the registry does not set. The mortgage sits in a separate court-supervised title register rather than on the aircraft register itself, and it ranks behind certain statutory claims. Where the Cape Town Convention applies, a filed deregistration authorization gives the creditor a short, defined exit.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Mortgages and charges | Aircraft mortgages sit in a separate court-supervised title register, ranking behind execution and salvage claims.Burgerlijk Wetboek van Aruba, Book 8 (Landsverordening bevattende de tekst van boek 8 voor een nieuw Burgerlijk Wetboek van Aruba, AB 2001 no. 87), Title 15 'Het luchtvaartuig', Centraal Wettenregister consolidated text of 14 January 2014, published by the Government of Aruba via gobierno.aw (index page https://www.gobierno.aw/nl/1501-burgerlijk-wetboek)cuatro.sim-cdn.nl · Boek 8, art. 1302Retrieved 2026-08-27Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Cape Town Convention and IDERA | The Cape Town Convention applies to Aruba, and a filed IDERA obliges the DCA to deregister within five working days.UNIDROIT, 'States Parties' status chart for the Cape Town Convention (Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment), Netherlands entry and footnote 3www.unidroit.org · Convention status chart, footnote 3Retrieved 2026-08-27Effective 2010-09-01Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
Which aircraft will the Registry of Aruba accept?Link to this section
What an owner can register at all bounds the exercise. The registry applies a minimum mass for airplanes and a lower one for helicopters, and in practice declines airframes built before a cut-off year. Ownership is open well beyond residents, covering companies from a listed set of states without needing a local vehicle.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| MTOW and aircraft age limits | Aruba takes aircraft from 5,700 kg and helicopters from 1,000 kg, and in practice will not register an airframe built before 1 January 1980.The Registry of Aruba, 'Registration of Aircraft' (Documents / Registration / Registration of Aircraft) for the weight thresholds, read together with AIC JETS Corp., 'P4 Aruba Aircraft Registration' (https://www.aicjetscorp.com/offshore/aruba-aircraft-registration), which reproduces the Department of Civil Aviation's aircraft acceptance policy for the build date and the exclusionstheregistryofaruba.comRetrieved 2026-09-01Corroborating source, not the register's own publicationOpen sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Who may register an aircraft | Aruba residents, Aruban companies, or companies of the EU, EEA, Switzerland, Canada, the UK, the USA or a listed state may register; no Aruban company needed.Regeling inschrijving en inschrijvingskenmerk (ministeriele regeling ter uitvoering van artikel 6 van de Luchtvaartverordening, AB 1991 no. GT 36), Centraal Wettenregister consolidated text of 4 October 2024, incorporating AB 1993 no. 47, AB 1997 nos. 9 and 10, AB 2014 no. 15, AB 2018 no. 28, AB 2019 no. 33, AB 2021 no. 142 and AB 2023 no. 53, published by the Government of Aruba via gobierno.aw (index page https://www.gobierno.aw/nl/0907-luchtvaart), articles 2 to 3d, read together with The Registry of Aruba, 'Registration Framework' (Documents / Registration / Registration Framework) on registration by domicile and with The Registry of Aruba, circular DOM 01 'Aruba Enacts New Aircraft Registration Legislation', Rev. 3 | 2022, Annex 1, for the annexed list of qualifying statescuatro.sim-cdn.nl · art. 2, eerste lidRetrieved 2026-08-29Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
What does leaving the Aruba register cost?Link to this section
Exit costs belong in the entry budget. Deregistration is a filing supported by the returned certificate and the removal of the marks, and a recorded deregistration authorization gives a creditor its own route out. The size of the register is worth knowing too, since a small register means fewer local service providers.
| Item | Published position |
|---|---|
| Deregistration process | The holder files form INS-4.069, returns the paper certificate and strips the marks; a recorded IDERA gives the creditor a five working day exit instead.Regeling inschrijving en inschrijvingskenmerk (ministeriele regeling ter uitvoering van artikel 6 van de Luchtvaartverordening, AB 1991 no. GT 36), Centraal Wettenregister consolidated text of 4 October 2024, incorporating AB 1993 no. 47, AB 1997 nos. 9 and 10, AB 2014 no. 15, AB 2018 no. 28, AB 2019 no. 33, AB 2021 no. 142 and AB 2023 no. 53, published by the Government of Aruba via gobierno.aw (index page https://www.gobierno.aw/nl/0907-luchtvaart), articles 7, 7a and 7b, read together with The Registry of Aruba, 'De-Registration' (Documents / Registration / De-Registration) (https://theregistryofaruba.com/documents/registration/de-registration/), The Registry of Aruba, 'IDERA' (https://theregistryofaruba.com/documents/registration/idera/) and 'Export Certificate of Airworthiness' (https://theregistryofaruba.com/documents/airworthiness/export-certificate-of-airworthiness/); the cost and elapsed time are estimates and rest on AIC JETS Corp. (https://www.aicjetscorp.com/offshore/aruba-aircraft-registration) and on VanEps Kunneman VanDoorne, 'Aruban registers' and 'Deregistration from the Aruba Register of Registered Aircraft', Guide to doing business in Aruba (doingbusinessdutchcaribbean.com) for the separate title registercuatro.sim-cdn.nl · art. 7, eerste lidRetrieved 2026-08-29Open sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
| Register size | About 150 aircraft are on the Aruban P4 register, an estimate counted from an independent listing because Aruba publishes no figure.Arno Landewers, 'Complete aircraft register of Aruba (P4-) from 1988 onwards', landewers.net/P4.txt, updates of 4 January 2026 and 28 August 2026landewers.net (web.archive.org) · header lines and the used-abbreviations listRetrieved 2026-09-01Effective 2026-08-28Corroborating source, not the register's own publicationOpen sourceInformational only, not legal, tax or financial advice. Contact a qualified professional for current information. |
How do you turn these figures into a budget?Link to this section
Read the positions above against the alternatives, then have a firm price them for the aircraft. Compare on the Aruba aircraft pillar and against the Cayman Islands, model the fees with the flag cost comparator and the aircraft import and VAT question finder, read the registration process guide, then ask a specialist.
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