Of all the currency items a flight school has to track, IFR currency is the one that causes the most confusion — and the one that's hardest to verify from the outside.
Flight Review? You check a date. Medical? You check a certificate and a class. Landing recency? You calculate 90 days from a logged landing date. These are all single data points with clear expiration rules.
IFR currency is different. It requires a specific set of activities, logged over a rolling six-month window, verified against the pilot's actual flight records. It can also be "regained" through different mechanisms, adding another layer of nuance. For a flight school administrator who isn't a CFII, navigating all of this can feel like reading the FARs in a foreign language.
This guide cuts through the complexity. For a broader overview of all four currency items — Flight Review, medical, landing recency, and IFR — see our guide to tracking pilot currency at your flight school.
What the Regulation Actually Says — FAR 61.57(c)
Per FAR 61.57(c), to remain IFR current, a pilot must, within the preceding 6 calendar months, have performed and logged:
- 6 instrument approaches
- Holding procedures and tasks
- Intercepting and tracking courses through the use of navigational electronic systems
These must be accomplished in actual instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) or under simulated instrument conditions — either in an aircraft or an approved flight training device (FTD) or flight simulator.
A few things worth noting:
"6 calendar months" is a rolling window. It doesn't reset on January 1. If today is May 16, the lookback window runs from November 16 to today. This makes tracking harder than annual or biennial requirements because the window is always moving.
Simulated conditions count. A pilot doesn't need actual IMC to maintain IFR currency. Flying under the hood with a safety pilot, or logging approaches in an approved simulator, qualifies. This matters for your school if you have students using simulators or ATDs — those logged approaches count toward currency.
An FTD or AATD can substitute — but the device matters. Not all simulators are created equal for currency purposes. An approved AATD can count for all three requirements. A basic desktop trainer cannot. If your school uses simulation equipment, verify its approval category before crediting it toward student currency.
What Happens When a Pilot Goes Out of IFR Currency
A pilot who fails to complete the required approaches, holds, and tracking within any rolling 6-month window is no longer IFR current. They cannot act as PIC under IFR in actual IMC.
They have an additional grace period — another 6 months — during which they can regain currency by completing the required approaches, holds, and tracking, but only in simulated conditions (not actual IMC). If they let that second window lapse too, they need an Instrument Proficiency Check (IPC) with a CFII before flying IFR again.
This two-tier lapse structure is what makes IFR currency harder to reason about than other requirements. A pilot might think they're close to current when they're actually in the second window and need a CFII sign-off before they can fly IFR for real.
Why This Is Hard to Track Without a System
The fundamental problem with IFR currency is that it's logged, not certified. There's no document a student hands you with "IFR current until [date]" stamped on it. The currency status lives in their logbook — or digital logging app — as a series of approach entries with dates.
This means there are two practical approaches for flight school administrators:
Option 1: Trust the pilot, verify periodically. Have your CFIIs ask instrument students to show their logbook or app and confirm currency before scheduling IFR flights. Flag the expected next review date and put it in your system. This works at small scale but breaks down as your instrument student roster grows.
Option 2: Maintain admin-controlled expiration dates. Have a CFII confirm currency (or perform an IPC if needed), then log an "IFR current until" date in your school's management system. The admin sets this date based on CFII verification, and the system handles the warning and expiration from there.
Option 2 is more reliable at scale and creates a documented record that your school verified currency before allowing IFR flights. That documentation matters if anything ever goes wrong.
Setting Up IFR Currency Tracking at Your School
If you're setting up IFR currency tracking for the first time, here's a practical starting point:
1. Identify your instrument-rated students. This sounds obvious, but many schools don't have a clear list. Pull your student roster and flag everyone with an instrument rating.
2. Have your CFIIs verify currency. For each instrument student, have a CFII review their logbook and confirm that the 6-month window is satisfied. If a student is lapsed, determine whether they're in the grace period (where a simulated session can restore currency) or need a full IPC.
3. Log an "IFR current until" date. Based on the CFII's review, record the date through which the student is IFR current. For a student with recent approaches, this is typically 6 calendar months from their most recent approach date.
4. Set warning thresholds. IFR currency lapses faster than most pilots expect. We recommend a 45-day warning threshold — enough time to schedule additional approaches before the student falls out of the window.
5. Build CFII verification into your renewal workflow. Each time a student's IFR currency approaches expiration, flag it for a CFII review. Don't rely on students to self-report; build the check into your process.
The Instrument Proficiency Check — When It's Needed
If a pilot has been out of IFR currency for more than 12 months (the combined 6+6 window), they need an IPC before flying IFR in actual IMC. The IPC must be completed with a CFII and covers a defined set of tasks from the Instrument ACS.
For flight school administrators, this is worth knowing because:
- Students who've been away from IFR flying for a year or more may not realize they need an IPC, not just a few practice approaches
- Scheduling an IPC is a CFI hour and an aircraft rental — revenue your school can capture by proactively identifying students who need one
- An IPC result should be documented and trigger a new "IFR current until" date in your system
What SkyBookings Does
SkyBookings includes an IFR currency field on every student profile, set and managed by your admin team. Administrators enter the "IFR current until" date following CFII verification, and the system handles warnings and expiration tracking from there.
The currency dashboard shows IFR status alongside Flight Reviews, medicals, and landing recency — so your team can see the complete picture for every student in one view, without opening logbooks or chasing down CFIIs for individual status checks.
Start a free trial and see how much cleaner your instrument currency tracking can be.