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A Vanity call sign is a special Amateur Radio call sign specifically chosen by a person or club who is currently an Amateur Radio licensee (similar in purpose to Vanity license plates on cars). Vanity call signs usually include alphabetical characters of personal significance (eg, licensees initials, parts of names, hobbies, etc), or sometimes are simply chosen because they are shorter calls, or sometimes they have double or triple duplicate characters (eg, W1WWW).
A Vanity call sign is a call sign that the licensee wants assigned by the FCC for use in place of an existing call sign (or for an Amateur Radio club, it is a call sign assigned to replace the existing FCC-assigned club license call sign).
A Vanity call sign can only be obtained in exchange (traded in) for an existing call. A new individual licensee or a new club cannot initially get a Vanity call sign as their first call sign.
The FCC charges an annual fee for the Vanity call sign (payable up front for the entire ten-year license term) FCC Regulatory Fee.
For persons who have no interest in a special call sign, the FCC will issue at no charge a systematically assigned call sign (next one up in their computer system, with the type {group} of call sign and call area number determined by the FCC computer based on the applicant's license class and license address).
Whether you are applying as an individual or a club trustee, there will be some limits on the types of vacant Vanity call signs that may be available to you, depending on your license class or mailing address.
First, the FCC does not limit the Vanity call sign choice numeral (0-9). For example, you can be a W1-land addressee, and have a W6 (California) type call if you so desire.
Also, aside from a very few FCC-limited choices, Extra class licensees can choose virtually any vacant but valid US call sign--FCC call sign Groups A, B, C or D. Although Advanced class licensees cannot seek the special 1x2, 2x1 or 2x2 (beginning with letter "A") Extra class type call signs, they can seek a 2x2 or 1x3 call sign (beginning with prefix N, K or W), or a 2x3 call sign (beginning with prefix letter K or W)--FCC call sign Groups B, C or D. General, Technician or Technician Plus class licensees can seek a 1x3 call sign (beginning with prefix N, K or W), or 2x3 call sign (beginning with prefix letter K or W)--FCC call sign Groups C or D. Novice licensees also have access to the Vanity program. Novices can seek a 2x3 call sign (beginning with prefix letter K or W) of their choice--FCC call sign Group D.
Unless you have a mailing address specific to Alaskan, Pacific or Caribbean areas, you would not be able to obtain certain call signs where the second prefix letter is an L, H or P in conjunction with certain call area numbers (eg, KL7??? is limited to Alaskan addressees only, KH6??? to Pacific Island addressees only, KP4??? to Caribbean addressees only, etc).
Club call signs are limited per above and also are limited based on the class of license held by the trustee at the time of application. Should the club trustee change and the trustees license class is of a different qualifying class, the clubs’ call sign will not change.
According to the FCC's Vanity web page on Call Sign Availability, a call sign is normally assignable two years following license expiration, surrender, revocation, set aside, cancellation, void ab initio, or death of the grantee. Where a vanity call sign for which the most recent recipient was ineligible is surrendered, cancelled, revoked or voided, the two-year requirement does not apply. Refer to the Sequential Call Sign System for how call signs are sequentially assigned and the grouping and geographic region attributes of each call sign.
The following call signs are not available for assignment:
For Extra class licensees seeking the rare 1x2 or 2x1 Extra class type call signs, some on line databases exist that attempt to list the apparently vacant calls. The QRZ.COM web site is one of those sites, which has been of great service to Extra class hams.
For Advanced, General, Technician Plus, Technician or Novice class amateurs, the number of possible choices (in the tens of thousands) is so great that it has been impractical for a data base to attempt to provide all of the possibly vacant call signs available to these amateurs. For such persons looking to develop their list of possible choices, we recommend the following approach. 1) Write down the types of suffixes, the call area number(s) and the prefix types you may desire; 2) assemble some call signs using your desired components and then check on line data bases to determine if your choices have already been assigned. 3) For those (up to 25) choices that are not apparently assigned, arrange them in your desired order from most desired (#1) to your choice #25.
Several databases can be found on the World Wide Web to assist you, including:
QRZ |
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WM7D |
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Sunnyvale VEC |
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N4MC's Vanity HQ |
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hamdata.com |
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AE7Q |
FCC will not reassign a call sign that is presently licensed to an individual or club, unless they receive a request to have the license canceled--or until two years have elapsed since the license may have expired. Only one person or club can hold a single call sign at one time.
To cancel a license of a deceased holder, FCC requires that they receive a signed written request indicating that the current licensee is now deceased (include the deceased licensee's name and call sign in the letter). Also, FCC requires that some type of evidence of death accompany the request--something that verifies that the licensee is deceased--such as a newspaper obituary, a death certificate or social-security/death-benefits documentation. Faxed documents are not accepted.
Supply this information to: FCC, Attn: Amateur Radio, 1270 Fairfield Rd, Gettysburg PA 17325-7245. Allow FCC one to two weeks to cancel the license. You can verify the FCC has canceled the license by looking up the FCC license call sign data at http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls . If the license has been canceled, FCC will show the license STATUS as "CANCELED".
The FCC charges a fee to applicants seeking a Vanity call sign. The present FCC Regulatory Fee is paid up front for the entire ten year Vanity Call Sign license grant term. Vanity applicants must currently expect to pay the fee at the beginning of each ten-year renewal term for their Vanity call sign.
The Vanity Fee may be paid by bank draft/check, personal check, money order or credit card. For checks/bank drafts, the fee is made payable to "FCC".
Refunds. Applicants who submit an FCC Form 605 application but are not successful in obtaining a Vanity call sign with that application may seek a refund of the application fee, by writing to FCC, 1270 Fairfield Rd, Gettysburg PA 17325-7245. Applicants must write to FCC to obtain the refund since the FCC does not automatically refund the fee when an application is dismissed. Be sure to include the Taxpayer ID Number (TIN) which was listed on the Form 605 application when seeking a refund.
Applicants have two ways in which to apply for a Vanity call sign. FCC accepts the required forms by mail, or applicant's can apply on line using the FCC's web site. Unless paying by credit card, the required filing fee must be mailed to the FCC's Bank Contractor (the fee is not sent to an FCC office).
The FCC allows the applicant to submit from one, up to 25, desired call sign choices in the order listed by the applicant. The FCC will not honor any request where the applicant may write on the application "please give me the next W1??? call sign that is available". The applicant must tell the FCC exactly which call sign(s) is/are being requested for FCC to consider the assignment.
Applicants seeking a regular Systematic call sign change can apply on line at the FCC's web site or can use the FCC Form 605 “Schedule D” and FCC Form 605 (Form 159 is NOT needed). Mail the two required forms directly to the FCC in Gettysburg PA:
Obtain, complete and forward FCC Form 605, FCC Form 605 “Schedule D”, FCC Form 159 (Fee Remittance form) and the required application fee to the FCC Bank Contractor address at:
Federal Communications Commission
Wireless Bureau Applications
PO Box 979097
St. Louis, MO 63197-9000
Need to obtain Form 605, Form 159 or any other FCC forms? Connect to the FCC's web site forms page at: http://www.fcc.gov/formpage.html or contact the FCC's Forms Distribution Center toll free at 1(800) 418-FORM(3676) to obtain the forms you need. ARRL can supply FCC forms as well--please supply a SASE with your request.
You can find information on how to apply on line for a Vanity call sign by connecting to the FCC's web site at http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls/. Click on the icon entitled “Online Filing LOG IN” to access the FCC's interactive, on-line application system. For complete instructions visit the FCC’s Obtaining a Vanity Call Sign page.
After submitting the application form, you will receive a file number and the filing fee will be displayed. Click on View Form 159, select Form 159 button, and then choose to pay by credit card online.
If you are not paying online, print out and mail the FCC generated Form 159 along with your payment by check or credit card to:
Federal Communications Commission,
Wireless Bureau Applications, ULS Electronic Filings
PO Box 979097
St. Louis, MO 63197-9000
If paying by Check or Money Order, your Form 159 and Vanity Fee must arrive at the Bank Contractor within 10 calendar days after the date you filed on line. Remember to sign the form where prompted. If the fee does not arrive in ten days, the bank will still deposit the payment but the FCC will later dismiss the application and you will need to reapply (start over from scratch). You may seek a refund of the fee following the procedure as described above.
If you file on line but are not able to print out the completed Form 159, you must obtain through a different means a blank Form 159. Remember that when completing Form 159, the following special boxes must be completed (in addition to those that must obviously be completed):
Item 1 - FCC Lockbox #: this is the PO Box number you are mailing the fee payment to. The lockbox number is "979097".
Section A - Complete the routine items numbered 2 - 11. Item 11 is the payers’ Federal Registration Number (FRN). An FRN is assigned by the FCC as soon as your Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) which is the Social Security Number (SSN), or an IRS issued Employer Identification Number (EIN) is registered in the FCC COmmission REgistration System (CORES). If you are not a US Citizen and you do not have a TIN you must still register in CORES. Where FCC requests your SSN leave it blank and select the “reason for exemption - the individual is a foreigner”.
Section B - Skip this section (items numbered 13 – 21), unless you are paying the fee for someone else; or if the payer and applicant names are different; or if paying for multiple applications. Frequently application fees for a club vanity call sign will be paid for by an entity other than the club itself -- the club licensee trustee, for instance. In such cases, the information provided in Section B applies to the applicant, whereas Section A would apply to the payer.
Section C - Complete the items as follows:
Section D – On the first line print your name, then sign your name on the Signature line provided. To the right side of the signature, fill in the date the form is signed.
Section E - If you wish to pay by Credit Card (check MASTERCARD, VISA, AMEX or DISCOVER), enter your credit card number (all 16 digits), expiration date and sign and date the form. Payment can be made also by personal check (in US funds) or by Bank Check or Money Order. Applicants paying by credit card must also sign and date in the block provided for credit card authorizations.
Assuming your fee reaches FCC as required, the FCC processing time for Vanity applications is 18 days. If you have not heard anything from FCC in 30 days, you should contact the FCC regarding your application. You can call FCC weekdays toll free at 888-225-5322 (wait to speak with a live person); or fax FCC at 717-338-2696; or write to them at: FCC, 1270 Fairfield Rd, Gettysburg PA 17325-7245.
Once you have learned, through any FCC data source, that you have been granted a new Vanity call sign, you can immediately begin using the call sign. A hardcopy license will follow from FCC by mail in 7 to 10 days after the FCC license grant date.
Some amateurs find that no one knows them under their new Vanity call sign identity, and they don't desire to wait to let the new identity sink in. In such cases the applicant desires to get back the call sign they gave up when they applied for their Vanity call sign. Is there a way to accomplish this? The answer is yes, so long as the call sign they surrendered has not yet been reassigned to someone else (surrendered call signs are available only to former holders; or members of a deceased amateur's family, or to a club where the deceased amateur was a member--with permission of the family; within the first two years after the call sign was surrendered or cancelled).
The solution is to submit another Vanity call sign application, and the requisite fee, and a Form 159. On the Form 605 “Schedule D” list that the Vanity call sign being chosen is your former call sign. Yes, this means you get your former call back--and it becomes a Vanity call sign (but that's the small price you pay for being able to get your former call sign back). Some Vanity call sign holders use this same mechanism to obtain a Vanity call sign that they consider even more desirable than their current Vanity call or former call sign (choices like a call sign that includes their initials is common).
The FCC web site has numerous Vanity Resource pages that may be of help to you.
If you still have questions, you may direct them to us by email to vec@arrl.org at ARRL HQ and we will try to assist you, or call us weekdays at 860-594-0300.
Good luck!
