I don't know what TSA has done post-9/11, but FAR 61 still seems to
allow issuance of pilot certificates based on foreign licenses. But
you cannot add a U.S. rating to that certificate. I was in the same
situation, and I took the private pilot checkride and the instrument
checkride back to back. In hindsight, what I should have done is to
take the commercial checkride first and then the instrument checkride.
That way I could have avoided having to take the private checkride
once again.



Dylan Smith wrote in message ...
In article , Steve
Foley wrote:
A friend of mine with an FAA certificate based on his UK certificate was
told that his certificate had been revoked as a result of 9/11. He was not
permitted to get an instrument rating. He had to get a private first.

He was told wrong - they never had been revoked. However, IIRC, to get
an instrument rating on a US ticket, you do need a bona-fide US ticket
to start with (I think it was Andrew Sarangan who originally discussed
this, coming to the US with a Canadian license)