What is FIS and other FIS FAQs
Estimated Reading Time: 7 Minutes1. What is FIS?
FIS is the International Ski Federation.
To obtain a FIS registration you must hold a current U.S. Ski & Snowboard Competitor membership (U16 & over or U15 &over) and be a U.S. citizen. Masters must hold an U.S. Ski & Snowboard Masters membership to obtain a Masters FIS license. If you are not a U.S. citizen, you must register for FIS with your home nation’s ski federation. It is best to register for both U.S. Ski & Snowboard and FIS together. You may not register for FIS without a current U.S. Ski & Snowboard Competitor membership. To register for both U.S. Ski & Snowboard and FIS go to my.ussa.org.
After registering for a FIS License, you must wait for the next valid FIS list to obtain your FIS number and to be able to enter any FIS event. To be assured of appearing on the next available FIS list, your completed registration must be received by U.S. Ski & Snowboard Member Services at least 7 days prior to the closing date of that list. Registrations received inside that 7 day period are not guaranteed to appear on the next list.
A FIS license means an athlete will appear on the FIS points list and be seeded by their FIS points. Early Bird Registration closes on August 15th. A late fee will apply if registering after August 15th. No exceptions are made to the late fee, so please register for both your U.S. Ski and Snowboard and FIS registrations prior to the August 15th deadline.
FIS does not send out a membership card. FIS numbers may be found in your my U.S. Ski & Snowboard account at my.usskiandsnowboard.org.
Athletes who have registered for FIS are not guaranteed access to FIS events. Athletes must qualify through their home state, division or region; each local entity has its own procedures. Please call your coach with questions. If you can’t get an answer contact your division office or let me know, but please check with your coach first.
In order to compete in a FIS race you must have the following: 1) A valid U.S. Ski & Snowboard Competitor membership, including any division or state dues and 2) A valid FIS license (explained below).
Although FIS racing is “international racing”, it starts in your home region. As you improve you may continue on to national and international events. Your coach should be able to help determine if you are in a position to enter FIS events and therefore will need to be FIS registered.
First year FIS athletes are not permitted to compete in the southern hemisphere. First year FIS athletes may train in the southern hemisphere, but not compete.
2. Do I need to submit the FIS application again if I have already purchased the FIS through online registration?
No, if you have already purchased your FIS license through online registration you do not need to submit the FIS application. Please note that if this is the first FIS license you have purchased there could be a delay until the FIS number appears in your account. FIS licenses will not be activated and numbers will not be assigned until all membership requirements have been completed (if applicable).
3. Is there a Short-Term FIS license?
No, FIS does not offer a short-term license. The FIS membership season runs from July 1 - June 30 annually. Athlete’s who wish to purchase a FIS license must hold a membership in their home federation. For U.S. citizens, the federation is the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association (U.S. Ski & Snowboard).
4. We’re registering our child with FIS for the first time. However, we want to change his/her national affiliation with U.S. Ski & Snowboard and FIS, how do we go about doing this?
As long as your child hasn’t registered with FIS previously, there is no problem changing countries. To change countries for U.S. Ski & Snowboard, you will need to provide proof of citizenship for the country in question.
5. How do I change my nation affiliation with FIS once I hold a FIS number?
In order to transfer FIS licenses, the athlete needs to transfer their registration from their original country to the country they wish to compete for. This is not a simple process as transfers must be approved by the FIS Council, and they generally only do those at the May / June meeting. They will sometimes accept a request at the Fall meeting, but that isn’t guaranteed.
The rules for a FIS transfer are as follows:
203.5 Application for a change of FIS License Registration
All applications to change license registration from one-member National Ski Association to another are subject to consideration by the FIS Council at its Meetings in the spring. In principle an application to change license registration will not be granted unless the competitor demonstrates his personal association with the new nation. Prior to submitting an application to change license registration a competitor must possess the citizenship and passport of the country for which he wishes to compete. In addition, the competitor must have had his principal legal and effective place of residence in the new country for a minimum of two (2) years immediately prior to the date of the request to change registration to the new country/National Ski Association. An exception to the two-year residency rule may be waived if the competitor was born in the territory of the new country, or whose mother or father is a national of the new country. Applications will not be accepted if a parent has obtained a passport for the new country, but is not resident, and/or there is no family ancestry. Furthermore, the competitor is required to submit a detailed explanation with the application about his personal circumstances and the reason for requesting a change of license registration.
203.5.1 If a competitor has already participated in FIS calendar events for a National Ski Association, he must have the written agreement to be released from the former National Ski Association in addition to the citizenship, passport and residency requirements in art.203.5 before the new National Ski Association may submit a request to FIS for a change of registration.
If such a written agreement is not given, the competitor may not participate in any FIS calendar events for a period of twelve months from the end of the last season in which he competed for his present National Ski Association, nor may he be issued with a license to participate in FIS races by the new National Ski Association. These rules are also valid when a competitor has more than one nationality and would like to change National Ski Association license registration.
203.5.2 The FIS Council reserves the right in its absolute discretion, to grant or to decline to grant, a change of license notwithstanding the fulfilment of the aforementioned conditions where it deems it is contrary to the spirit of the rule and in the best interests of the International Ski Federation to do so (e.g. to decline to grant a change of license if a member National Ski Association tries to “import” a competitor).
203.5.3 In the event that a competitor does not fulfil all the criteria required to apply for a change of National Ski Association license registration, the onus shall be on the competitor to demonstrate in writing to the satisfaction of the FIS Council that exceptional circumstances exist and it is in the best interests of the International Ski Federation to grant the change.
203.5.4 A competitor will retain his FIS points if he changes his National Ski Association under the condition that the former National Ski Association granted the release of the competitor.
203.5.5 In the event that any of the documents for an application to change license registration submitted by the National Ski Association (letter of release from the former National Ski Association, passport, residency papers) are found to be false, the FIS Council will sanction the competitor and the new National Ski Association.
Essentially you will need to provide proof that the athlete is living in the country they wish to transfer to, that he/she has a passport for the country, and that either parent was born in the country. Then U.S. Ski & Snowboard will write a letter releasing the athlete and the country the athlete wishes to transfer to will write a letter asking that he/she be transferred.
6. How do I change my sponsors on FIS?
The manufacturer/sponsor is responsible for making equipment updates on FIS.