An SOE limitation is removed administratively, not by a checkride. Once your supervised hours are logged and the required endorsements are signed, a Designated Pilot Examiner reviews the documentation, validates your FAA Form 8710-1 in IACRA, and issues a temporary certificate without the limitation. It is an eligibility-and-documentation review — there is no flight test and no knowledge test.
Daytona DPE does this on a 20-minute secure video call. $200 flat, certificate issued same-appointment. Have your supervised-hours log and endorsements complete before the call.
Two kinds of SOE limitation — which one is on your certificate?
SOE stands for Supervised Operating Experience, and the FAA uses it in two different places. The removal process is administrative in both cases, but the requirements differ, so start by reading the limitation line on your certificate:
- Type-rating SOE — "SUBJECT TO PILOT-IN-COMMAND LIMITATIONS." Issued under 14 CFR §61.64(g) when the type-rating checkride was done in a simulator. Removal takes 25 hours of supervised PIC time in the type, each flight attested in writing. That process lives on its own page: Type Rating SOE Removal (with type-specific pages for CE-525S, CL-65, ERJ, Phenom, and the rest), and the long-form walkthrough is the complete §61.64(g) SOE guide.
- CFI SOE — supervised instruction hours. A limitation added to some newly issued flight instructor certificates requiring a set amount of supervised instruction before the certificate is unrestricted. That is what the rest of THIS page covers.
Not sure which you have? The certificate says. A type-rating SOE names the aircraft type; a CFI SOE sits on the flight instructor certificate. Either way it's the same appointment format and the same $200.
What a CFI SOE limitation actually is
When a CFI certificate is initially issued under certain conditions, the FAA can add a Supervised Operating Experience (SOE) limitation. The limitation requires the new instructor to log a specified amount of supervised flight instruction time before the certificate becomes fully unrestricted.
Once the supervised hours and required endorsements are complete, the SOE limitation can be administratively removed by a Designated Pilot Examiner. No additional checkride is required — this is an eligibility-and-documentation review, not a practical test.
The result: a CFI certificate with the SOE limitation language stripped, restoring full unrestricted instructional privileges.
Who needs SOE removal
This applies to CFIs whose initial issuance included an SOE limitation — often newly-minted CFIs coming out of an integrated training program, particularly Part 141 or 142 schools, where the FSDO or DPE issued the certificate with the SOE box ticked.
Common indicators on your certificate:
- The limitation line on the certificate explicitly mentions "SOE" or "Supervised Operating Experience"
- Specific hour count attached to the supervision requirement
If you're unsure whether your certificate carries an SOE limitation, the easiest check is to look at the limitations line on the plastic certificate itself, or pull up your most recent IACRA-issued temporary certificate.
Don't sit on it — the limitation follows you, not your school
A common pattern: the supervised hours got finished months ago, but the limitation is still on the certificate because "the school was going to sort it out" or it didn't seem urgent while the job was steady. The SOE limitation is on your certificate — no employer, school, or training department controls when it comes off. Once the supervised instruction time and the supervising-instructor endorsement are complete, any authorized examiner can remove it, and it's worth doing before you need it rather than the week a recruiter asks about it.
- Applications and interviews read the certificate as-is. An SOE line invites questions you don't want to be answering mid-interview.
- Endorsements go stale in practice. The supervising instructor who signed your hours moves on, changes numbers, gets harder to reach. Clean paperwork today beats a scavenger hunt next year.
- It's 20 minutes. There is no version of this that gets easier by waiting.
How the SOE removal actually works
The DPE's role is to:
- Verify your identity
- Confirm the SOE limitation appears on your current certificate
- Review your supervised-hours log and confirm it meets the limitation's requirements
- Verify the supervising-instructor endorsement(s) are in your logbook
- Process the IACRA application for the limitation removal
- Issue a temporary certificate with the SOE language removed
The whole process is virtual, 20 minutes, same-day issuance.
What you'll need
After you submit the contact form, you'll receive a SOE Removal document checklist by email. You'll typically need:
- Government-issued photo ID
- Current CFI certificate showing the SOE limitation
- Logbook documentation showing the required supervised instruction hours, with supervising-instructor endorsements
- Started IACRA application for the limitation removal (you fill in your half; the DPE signs on the call)
- Knowledge of your FTN
Timing and turnaround
- Contact form to checklist email: within 24 hours
- Document review: typically 1–2 business days after you return documents
- Video appointment: scheduled at the next mutually-available time, with the FAA-required 24-hour DMS oversight notice
- Certificate issuance: same-appointment temporary certificate
Total turnaround from inquiry to issued temporary certificate is usually 3–5 business days.
Pricing — $200 flat
Same flat rate as every other Daytona DPE service. Paid by credit card, Venmo, or Zelle after the appointment, only if the certificate is issued.
If for any reason your documents don't pass review during the appointment — your supervised hours aren't quite complete yet, an endorsement is missing — there's no charge and we discuss what's needed to come back.
More on pricing → View pricing details
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Ready to remove your SOE limitation?
Submit the contact form. You'll have an SOE Removal document checklist within 24 hours.
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