FCC Rule 97.505(a) offers partial credit to an examinee that has an expired General, Advanced, or Extra license. If an applicant held a General or Advanced license, and has proof, the FCC will afford credit for the General (Element 3) written exam only. If an applicant held an Extra license, and has proof, the FCC will afford credit for the General (Element 3) and Extra (Element 4) written exams. At VE exam sessions it is the applicant (not the VEs or coordinating VEC) who is responsible for supplying the evidence of holding valid expired license credit.

The section titled “Valid Forms of Exam Element Credit for Expired Licenses” explains how to verify the license status of someone eligible for such credit under Section 97.505 of FCC Rules.

At a test session, the VEs will review all credit documents presented by applicants.

Persons who hold an expired General or Advanced license receive General written exam (Element 3) credit per FCC Rules. Persons who hold an expired Extra license receive General (Element 3) and Extra (Element 4) written exam credit per FCC Rules.

This can be verified if an applicant presents any of the following:

-- Per FCC Rule 97.505(a), an original or copy of an original expired FCC issued General, Advanced or Extra license as indicated on the license.

-- A REFERENCE COPY of the license or the webpage showing the license record printed from the FCC ULS or FCC archive license database. Visit the FCC website at  
https://www.fcc.gov/wireless/systems-utilities/universal-licensing-system. 

-- If licensed in the mid-'70s or after, FCC will issue a 'License Verification Letter' indicating that the applicant was licensed.  The FCC stated any requests for verification must be submitted in writing to:  FCC, ATTN: Amateur Section, 1270 Fairfield Rd, Gettysburg, PA 17325. The request must include name, address, telephone number, date of birth, call sign issued at that time, and when the license was granted (if exact date is not known, give the approximate time frame). The FCC asks those inquiring to include any information that may be helpful in researching these requests, but it does not need to know details of the examination session, such as where the test was administered or who gave it. "These requests must be researched on microfiche, so they will be very time-consuming," an FCC spokesperson said, adding that no one should expect an overnight response.

-- For 1966 or more recent records, the FCC's research retrieval service contractor, Best Copy & Printing, Inc. (BCPI), will obtain the General, Advanced or Extra license certification from FCC records. There is a charge for this service. For assistance in purchasing copies of FCC documents, please contact  BCPI directly.  Phone: 202-488-5300 or 1-800-378-3160. TTY: 202-488-5562. Fax: 202-488-5563. Email: fcc@bcpiweb.com. Web: http://www.bcpiweb.com/fcc_research.php.

-- A 1967 Edition, or later, Radio Amateur Callbook listing is acceptable as proof provided the 'G' (General), 'A' (Advanced) or 'E' (Extra)  license class appears on the page next to the call sign listing. Only Callbooks issued Fall 1967 or later will show the license class. Be sure to copy the year of publication reference, if not printed on the page.  Visit https://archive.org/search.php?query=callbook for an archive of old Callbooks. The books are searchable PDFs.

FCC Rule 97.505(a) offers partial credit to pre-1987 Technician licenses. If an applicant held a "Technician" prior to 3/21/1987, and has proof, the FCC will afford credit for the General (Element 3) written exam only. The FCC does not require the applicant to have been continuously licensed. At VE exam sessions it is the applicant (not the VEs or coordinating VEC) who is responsible for supplying the evidence of holding valid grandfather credit.  

The section titled "Valid Forms of Exam Element Credit for Pre-1987 Technician Licenses" explains how to verify the Technician grandfather credit status of someone eligible for such credit under Section 97.505 of FCC Rules.
 

At a test session, the VEs will review all credit documents presented by applicants.

For General written exam (Element 3) credit, persons who took a 50-question Technician/General written exam before March 21, 1987 receive Technician grandfather license credit per FCC Rules.

This can be verified if an applicant presents any of the following:

-- Per FCC Rule 97.505(a)(4)s, a FCC Technician license issued before March 21, 1987, as indicated on the license.

-- An original Element 3 Certificate of Successful Completion of Examination (CSCE) issued before March 21, 1987.

-- If licensed in the mid-'70s or after, FCC will issue a 'License Verification Letter' indicating that the applicant was licensed as a Technician licensee prior to March 21, 1987.  The FCC stated any requests for verification must be submitted in writing to:  FCC, ATTN: Amateur Section, 1270 Fairfield Rd, Gettysburg, PA 17325. The request must include name, address, telephone number, date of birth, call sign issued at that time, and when the Technician license was granted (if exact date is not known, give the approximate time frame). The FCC asks those inquiring to include any information that may be helpful in researching these requests, but it does not need to know details of the examination session, such as where the test was administered or who gave it. "These requests must be researched on microfiche, so they will be very time-consuming," an FCC spokesperson said, adding that no one should expect an overnight response.

-- For 1966 or more recent records, the FCC's research retrieval service contractor, Best Copy & Printing, Inc. (BCPI), will obtain the pre-1987 technician certification from FCC records. There is a charge for this service. For assistance in purchasing copies of FCC documents, please contact  BCPI directly.  Phone: 202-488-5300 or 1-800-378-3160. TTY: 202-488-5562. Fax: 202-488-5563. Email: fcc@bcpiweb.com. Web: http://www.bcpiweb.com/fcc_research.php.

-- A 1987 Edition, or earlier, Radio Amateur Callbook listing is acceptable as proof provided the 'T' (Technician) license class appears on the page next to the call sign listing. Only Callbooks issued Fall 1967 or later will show the license class. Be sure to copy the year of publication reference, if not printed on the page.
Visit https://archive.org/search.php?query=callbook for an archive of old Callbooks. The books are searchable PDFs.

-- QRZ.COM has posted on their website a copy of their very first Amateur Radio CD ROM product as originally published in 1993. This searchable database contains license records from 1983 to 1993. A printout of such a listing from the CD ROM or the web page, showing a Technician license effective or begin date prior to 3/21/87 is acceptable.
 

At an exam session, the VEs will review all credit documents presented by applicants. Per FCC Rule 97.505(b), a Certificate of Successful Completion of Examination (CSCE) issued within the previous 365 days at a VEC sponsored exam session, is acceptable proof for the Element(s) indicated on the form.
 

FCC Rule §97.505 Element Credit.

(a) The administering VEs must give credit as specified below to an examinee holding any of the following license grants: 

(b) The administering VEs must give credit to an examinee holding a CSCE for each element the CSCE indicates the examinee passed within the previous 365 days. 
 

Additional information and clarification for VEs can be found on the VE Resources web page under the section Exam Element Credit.   GO NOW!

ARRL does not have the resources to do old call sign look-ups.
Visit the following websites for vintage call sign and license research information. 
 
https://archive.org/search.php?query=callbook   
Online archive of old Callbooks. The books are searchable PDFs.

http://w0is.com/oldcallsigns/oldcalls.html