GMRS License: How to Apply, What It Costs, and Who It Covers

The GMRS license is the cheapest, simplest radio license the FCC issues: no exam, one fee, ten years, and it covers your family. The hard part is the FCC’s web systems, which were built for many radio services at once. This page walks through each step with the exact menu choices, then covers what the license allows, how to use your call sign, how to look a license up and when to renew.

Do you need a GMRS license?

You need a GMRS license to transmit on any GMRS channel with a GMRS radio, including a handheld. Listening needs no license. FRS radios, the license-free bubble-pack type limited to 2 watts with fixed antennas, need no license either.

A quick test: if the radio’s box, manual or spec sheet says “GMRS” or “FCC license required”, you need the license before you press the talk button. Midland’s manuals, for example, warn that unlicensed use of GMRS channels can bring penalties under Sections 501 and 502 of the Communications Act. Since a 2017 FCC rule change, any radio on these shared channels that can transmit above 2 watts is a GMRS radio. If you are still deciding between the two services, the GMRS radio guide compares them in plain terms.

Who is eligible for a GMRS license?

Any individual who is at least 18 years old may apply, unless they are a representative of a foreign government or are under an FCC cease and desist order (47 CFR 95.1705 and 95.305). There is no citizenship requirement in those sections, and no exam.

New licenses go to individuals only. Businesses cannot get a new GMRS license; a small number of business licenses issued before the current rules are grandfathered. The ULS application also asks basic qualification questions, including whether the applicant has a felony conviction. Midland’s licensing guide notes that answering yes means giving more detail about the conviction, not an automatic denial.

Who does one GMRS license cover?

One license covers the licensee and their immediate family members, who may operate the licensee’s stations (47 CFR 95.1705). The rule lists them: spouse, children, grandchildren, stepchildren, parents, grandparents, stepparents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and in-laws.

Children of any age in that list may talk on your radios. Under 95.1743, the license holder, not the minor, is responsible for any improper operation by someone under 18. Friends, neighbors and employees are not covered; each needs their own license. One exception applies to everyone: anyone may operate a GMRS station if that is necessary to communicate an emergency message.

How much does a GMRS license cost, and how long does it last?

That works out to $3.50 a year for the whole family. The fee is the same whether you own one handheld or a mobile radio, a base station and a repeater; one license covers all of your GMRS stations.

How do you get an FCC Registration Number (FRN)?

The FRN is your ID with the FCC, and you need it before the license application. Create it in CORES, the FCC’s Commission Registration System:

1. Open the CORES home page (apps.fcc.gov/coresWeb/publicHome.do) and register a username account with your email address. The FCC sends a verification link; open it before you continue.
2. Log in to CORES and choose to register a new FRN.
3. Register as an individual, with your legal name, mailing address, phone and email. Midland’s licensing guide says to register as a domestic individual.
4. Enter your taxpayer identification number when asked. For an individual this is a Social Security number; CORES uses it to issue the FRN and does not publish it.
5. Save the FRN and the password. You will use them in ULS now and again at renewal.

The FRN is usually issued within moments of submitting the form.

How do you apply for the GMRS license in ULS?

The application itself is filed in ULS, the Universal Licensing System. These are the steps the FCC’s licensing support desk gives for a new GMRS license:

1. Go to the ULS License Manager login (wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsEntry/licManager/login.jsp) and log in with your FRN and password.
2. On the left side of the page, click Apply for a New License.
3. From the radio service list, choose ZA - General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS).
4. Click Continue through the application screens: applicant details (pre-filled from CORES), the basic qualification questions, and your contact information. Give an email address so the license can be emailed to you.
5. On the Summary page, review everything and click Continue to Certify.
6. On the Certification page, sign by typing your name in the boxes and click Submit. The title box is optional.
7. ULS calculates the $35 fee. Click Continue for Payment Options and pay. The FCC’s instructions say fees for online filings must be received within 10 days of filing.

What happens after you apply?

The FCC reviews the application and grants it. Under Public Notice DA 15-72 the FCC no longer mails paper licenses; if you gave an email address, an official copy of the license is emailed to you after the grant. The FCC does not publish a guaranteed processing time, so wait until the grant shows in ULS before you transmit.

To keep a copy, log back in to the License Manager, click Download Electronic Authorizations, move your call sign from “My Authorizations” to “Authorizations to Download”, and click Download. The license opens as a PDF. If you get stuck, the FCC Licensing Support Center is at (877) 480-3201, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern, Monday to Friday.

How do you use your GMRS call sign?

Say your call sign at the end of each transmission or series of transmissions, and at least every 15 minutes during a transmission that runs longer than 15 minutes (47 CFR 95.1751). Use English voice or Morse code by audible tone.

In practice, families say the call sign once when they finish a conversation, not after every sentence. Family members operating under your license use your call sign. A repeater does not need to identify separately when it only retransmits properly identified stations under the same license authority. Using ten-codes is fine; coded messages with hidden meanings, music, advertising and continuous transmissions are not (47 CFR 95.1733).

How do you look up a GMRS license or call sign?

Use the FCC’s ULS License Search (wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsApp/UlsSearch/searchLicense.jsp). Search by call sign to see who holds it, or by name to find your own license, its grant date and its expiration date. GMRS licenses appear under radio service ZA.

The same search answers two common questions. If you lost your FRN, search your call sign and the license record shows the FRN. If someone on a repeater gives a call sign, the search tells you whether the license is active. License records are public, so the name and mailing address you register in CORES appear on the record.

When and how do you renew a GMRS license?

File the renewal no sooner than 90 days before the expiration date and no later than the expiration date (47 CFR 1.949). Renewal is done online: log in to the ULS License Manager with the same FRN and use its renewal option for your call sign. Expect to pay the FCC’s application fee in effect at the time, which is $35 as of October 2026.

Set a reminder for nine and a half years after your grant date. The 10-year term runs from the date of grant or renewal (95.1705), so a renewed license runs 10 more years. If the license expires before you renew, stop transmitting on GMRS and file a new application.

What does a GMRS license not allow?

The license does not make every radio legal. GMRS transmitters must be certified for GMRS (47 CFR 95.1761), so amateur-only radios such as the classic Baofeng UV-5R cannot be used on GMRS even by a licensee; our page on Baofeng radios and GMRS lists which models are certified. Combination radios certified for both FRS and GMRS can no longer be sold (95.1791).

The license also does not cover ham bands, does not let employees use your radios, and does not apply outside the US. If you want worldwide contacts or more bands, compare GMRS vs ham radio and read how to get a ham radio license.

What should you buy once you are licensed?

Buy certified GMRS radios that match how your group moves. Handheld pairs suit hikers and hunters; our best GMRS radios comparison ranks them on certification, power, removable antenna and repeater support. If you drive in convoys or want a strong home station, a 15 to 50 watt mobile radio with a roof antenna adds the most range per dollar.

Who this license is not for: businesses with staff (Part 90 business radio), anyone outside the US (PMR446 or the local equivalent), and hobbyists who want HF or worldwide contacts (amateur radio).