When should I submit my renewal application?

As soon as possible. Submitting your application no less than 2 months before the expiry of your licence (before 1 August for a 30 September expiring licence and 1 February for a 31 March expiring licence) also means that reduced application fees may be available, please see our summary of ATOL renewal charges.

Will the CAA be able to consider my application if I do not provide a fully completed application form?

We cannot process your application until we have received the application fee (if you have an ATOL charges Direct Debit the application fee will be collected after you have applied), relevant accounts and Annual Accountants' Report Part 2.

What happens if a new ATOL is not granted before the old ATOL expires.

Your firm will be included on a list that the CAA publishes and you cannot legally transact licensable business. This means you would have to immediately cease offering, booking, receiving any payment (including balances for existing bookings), fulfilling licensable business and remove all references to the expired ATOL and the logo.

You would also have to make arrangements to either refund or reprotect existing licensable bookings. The CAA's policy document Making arrangements when an Air Travel Organiser's Licence (ATOL) is not renewed provides further advice.

What turnover do I need to disclose at Section 7 - Analysis of Total Turnover?

Section 7 should disclose the total turnover of your business, not just that which is licensable. If your turnover (or part of it) is stated as commission only, you should provide the gross value as if you had received revenue directly.

I make sales of air travel, which are exempt by class exemption (can be found in the Official Record Series 3). Where do I show these sales at Section 7?

With the exception of Airline Ticket Agent Sales made under the IATA Exemption 08/2012, which should be identified as "Sales made as an airline ticket agent", all other class exempt sales should be identified as "Other Turnover" and you should provide an explanation as to what class exemption applies.

I want to change to a different type of ATOL. How can I do this?

This will change the information you are required to provide and possibly the fee payable. You should contact us by email or by phone on 0333 103 6700 for further advice.

Section 2 of the application form asks for details of directors/shareholders. We have identified changes to the directors and/or shareholder on our application form. What information does the CAA require?

We need to carry out fitness and identity checks and to do this we require the following for each new director/shareholder:

• A full up to date CV
• A recently issued original utility bill or bank statement
• A clear copy of the photograph and signatory pages of a current passport certified either by an Accountant, Barrister, Solicitor or Police Officer.

There is a separate dedicated section on our website covering this. 

Why do I have to produce a new bond when my current bond is valid for another 6 months?

A bond is required to cover the period of the new licence plus a six month run off and we therefore cannot rely on the current bond, which relates to the current licence. Where a bond provider enters into a new bond and a new ATOL is granted, there can be no call on the existing bond.

Why are bonds required to be valid for 6 months beyond the expiry of an ATOL?

This is so that if an ATOL is not renewed and the firm subsequently fails, the bond is still available to be used to protect licensable passengers who booked while the ATOL was valid. It does not entitle you to take new licensable bookings.

I am applying for renewal for the first time. Will my bond amount/percentage used to calculate it reduce?

Bond levels are calculated based on the amount of time a licence has been held and if this is less than a year, the new bond will remain at the current amount/percentage. Please note that there are various factors that can influence the level of bond required and the full policy on bonding can be viewed here.

What does this mean?

These are licensable sales made under your own ATOL, through other firms appointed to act as agent making sales on your behalf. It is a requirement for written agency agreements to be in place, which in addition to any general terms you may have, must contain certain terms required by ATOL Standard Terms. These can be found on the ATOL Compliance - Agency Agreements page.