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Instrument flying: IR, BIR and the routes to them

"The instrument rating" no longer exists in Europe as a single route. There are several – with different effort, different privileges and different limitations. Confuse them and you will plan the wrong thing.

Applicability: European Union (EASA framework); issued and overseen by the competent national authority – in Germany the Luftfahrt-Bundesamt or the aviation authorities of the Länder
Rulemaking authority: Regulation (EU) No 1178/2011, Annex I (Part-FCL), FCL.600 et seq. and FCL.835
Reviewed by NorthTrack on: 2026-09-13

The basic rule

FCL.600 provides: except in the case of FCL.835, flights under instrument flight rules may be conducted only by holders of a PPL, CPL, MPL or ATPL with an IR appropriate to the aircraft category – or in the course of a skill test or dual instruction. FCL.835 is the Basic Instrument Rating, the BIR.

The instrument flying abbreviations

IR(A) is the instrument rating for aeroplanes. The BIR is not a smaller version of it but a rating in its own right, with limits of its own.

IR — Instrument rating
Valid for one year; decision height not below 200 ft.
BIR — Basic instrument rating
A rating in its own right with tighter operating limits — not a smaller IR.
EIR — En-route instrument rating
No longer issued; replaced by the BIR on 8 September 2021.
IFR — Instrument Flight Rules
Flight on clearances and published procedures.
DH — Decision height
For the BIR, at least 200 ft above the value otherwise calculated.
MDH — Minimum descent height
The counterpart to DH on non-precision approaches.
PBN — Performance-Based Navigation
Included in the IR privileges.
ATO — Approved training organisation
Required for IR, BIR and commercial pilot training.
FSTD — Flight simulation training device
For the PPL(A), up to 5 of the 45 hours may be flown in one.
FFS — Full flight simulator
The highest level of FSTD.

The three routes at a glance

Legal basis
IR(A): FCL.605 et seq. · BIR: FCL.835
Prerequisite
IR(A): at least a PPL(A); at least 50 hours cross-country as PIC, of which at least 10 in the category concerned · BIR: at least a PPL(A)
Training
IR(A): integrated course or modular course per Appendix 6, at an ATO · BIR: modular structure at an ATO, modules partly in free order
Theoretical examination
IR(A): seven subjects · BIR: one paper each for modules 1 to 3, subjects as for the IR
Minimum decision height
IR(A): not less than 200 ft (60 m) · BIR: at least 200 ft above the value otherwise calculated
Minimum visibility for operating minima
IR(A): per the operating rules · BIR: not less than 1,500 m
Validity
IR(A): 1 year · BIR: 1 year

The full IR

The privileges are to fly aircraft under instrument flight rules, including PBN operations, with a decision height of not less than 200 ft (60 m) – or below that where a corresponding approval under Annex V (Part-SPA) to Regulation (EU) No 965/2012 is held (FCL.605).

Prerequisites

at least a PPL in the aircraft category concerned – with night privileges under FCL.810 where the IR privileges are to be used at night – or an ATPL in another category, or a CPL in the category concerned;
at least 50 hours of cross-country flight time as pilot in command on aeroplanes, TMG, helicopters or airships, of which at least 10 hours in the category concerned (FCL.610).

Theory

FCL.615 requires theoretical knowledge to be demonstrated in seven subjects:

Air law
General aircraft knowledge – instrumentation
Flight planning and monitoring
Human performance
Meteorology
Radio navigation
Communications

Validity, revalidation and renewal

An IR is valid for 1 year (FCL.625).
Revalidation takes place within the 3 months immediately preceding the expiry date.
Revalidating earlier than that means the new validity is counted from the date of the proficiency check.
After expiry a renewal is required: assessment at an ATO (or at an EBT operator specifically approved for the refresher training), refresher training where necessary, and then a proficiency check.
Where the IR has not been revalidated or renewed in the preceding 7 years, both the theoretical examination and the skill test must be taken again.

The BIR – what it actually is

The BIR is not a stripped-down IR with the same privileges but a rating in its own right with operating limits of its own. The privileges are to conduct flights under instrument flight rules on single-pilot aeroplanes for which class ratings are held – excluding high performance aeroplanes and aeroplane variants for which the operational suitability data require an IR (FCL.835(a)(1) as amended by M20).

The operating limits – the decisive difference

BIR conditions per FCL.835(a)(5)
The decision height or minimum descent height in the operating minima must be at least 200 ft higher than the value otherwise calculated, and the visibility in the operating minima may be not less than 1,500 m. An IFR flight, or a change from VFR to IFR, may be commenced only where the visibility at the departure aerodrome is at least 1,500 m and the cloud base at least 600 ft – or the published circling minimum for the aeroplane category, whichever is greater. A corresponding requirement applies to destination and required alternate aerodromes for the period from 1 hour before to 1 hour after the estimated time of arrival.

BIR privileges may furthermore be exercised only in accordance with FCL.205.A – that is, within the PPL privileges – and at night only with a night rating.

The module structure

The training consists of modules (FCL.835(c)):

Module 1 – core training: controlling the aeroplane solely by reference to instruments. This module is to be completed first.
Module 2 – applied training: IFR departure, holding procedures, and 2D and 3D approach procedures.
Module 3 – applied training: IFR en-route procedures.
Module 4 – only for a multi-engine BIR: procedures with one engine inoperative, including asymmetric instrument approach and go-around.

After module 1, modules 2, 3 and where applicable 4 may be completed in any order. The modules may be completed in aeroplanes, in flight simulation training devices or in a combination; in every case training must be received in the aeroplane used for the skill test. Modules 1, 2 and 4 may be started outside an ATO but must be completed at an ATO; module 3 may be completed entirely outside an ATO.

Revalidating the BIR

A BIR is valid for 1 year. There are two routes to revalidation (FCL.835(g)):

a proficiency check within the 3 months immediately preceding expiry; or
within the period of validity, 6 hours as PIC under IFR including three instrument approach procedures, plus a training flight of at least 1 hour with an instructor qualified for the BIR.

At every second revalidation, however, the proficiency check must be taken in an aeroplane.

From the BIR to the full IR

Appendix 6 to the Regulation provides a dedicated transition: a BIR holder who can show at least 50 hours of flight time under IFR as PIC on aeroplanes is assessed at an ATO for an adequate level of competency-based IR theoretical knowledge, receives the flight training required to extend the IFR privileges under FCL.605, and then takes the skill test for the IR(A). In doing so, an adequate level of knowledge of air law, meteorology, and flight planning and performance must be demonstrated orally to the examiner.

The EIR no longer exists

Historical note
The former "En-route Instrument Rating" (EIR) is no longer issued. Existing EIR holders may continue to exercise their privileges and to revalidate or renew the rating. Training courses for an EIR commenced before 8 September 2021 could be continued and counted as BIR courses. Anyone holding an EIR, or who passed the EIR theoretical examination before that date, receives full credit towards the BIR theory. Older descriptions presenting the EIR as a current route are out of date.

What IFR means in practice

The difference between VFR and IFR is not primarily the weather but the set of rules: under IFR you fly as cleared, on published procedures, at prescribed minimum altitudes and in continuous contact with air traffic control. More on that on the VFR and IFR compared page.

What is not on this page
This page states the regulatory minimum requirements. What a course of training actually involves depends on the training organisation, the aircraft type, your previous licensing history and national implementation. In practice the number of hours actually needed is regularly above the minimum. The binding information is that given by the competent authority and by the training organisation you choose.

Official sources

European Commission / EASA: Regulation (EU) No 1178/2011 (Annex I "Part-FCL", Annex IV "Part-MED") – Consolidated version 02011R1178-20260430. Open source (retrieved 2026-09-13)
DFS Deutsche Flugsicherung GmbH: Aeronautical Information Publication Germany – AIP VFR, GEN 2-1 to GEN 2-7 "Abkürzungen / Abbreviations" (bilingual German/English) – Effective 20 AUG 2026. Open source (retrieved 2026-09-13)