- Element 4 has 50 questions; you need 37 correct answers to pass.
- E7 (Practical Circuits) and E9 (Antennas and Transmission Lines) each carry 8 questions - the heaviest weighting.
- The active pool runs July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2028, minus four withdrawn questions.
- ARRL VEC's 2026 session fee is $15 ($5 under 18); a General-to-Extra upgrade adds no separate FCC fee.
Exam Snapshot: The Numbers That Matter
This is a one-page reference, not a tutorial - pull it up the night before your session and confirm every number below. The Amateur Extra written exam is officially Element 4, administered by Volunteer Examiners under a Volunteer Examiner Coordinator, either in person or through a supervised remote session. "FCC-AMATEUR-EXTRA" here refers to this specific FCC amateur license class, not any other credential that shares the acronym.
- Question count: 50 multiple-choice questions
- Passing score: 37 correct answers
- Morse code: not required at any license class today
- Prerequisite credit: passing or accepted credit for Elements 2 and 3; most candidates already hold General and sit only for Element 4
- Diagrams in the pool: 10
If any of these numbers surprise you, back up and review the full breakdown in the FCC-AMATEUR-EXTRA Passing Score guide before moving on - everything else in this cheat sheet assumes you already understand the 37-of-50 threshold.
The Subelement Map: All 10 Domains at a Glance
Element 4's question pool is organized into 10 subelements (E1 through E0), each mapping directly to one of the exam domains. Every subelement has a fixed number of question groups, and a properly built exam draws exactly one question from each group - so the allocation below is not a rough weighting, it's the literal structure of every session.
| Subelement | Domain | Questions on Exam |
|---|---|---|
| E1 | Commission Rules | 6 |
| E2 | Operating Procedures | 5 |
| E3 | Radio Wave Propagation | 3 |
| E4 | Amateur Practices | 5 |
| E5 | Electrical Principles | 4 |
| E6 | Circuit Components | 6 |
| E7 | Practical Circuits | 8 |
| E8 | Signals and Emissions | 4 |
| E9 | Antennas and Transmission Lines | 8 |
| E0 | Safety | 1 |
E7 (Practical Circuits) and E9 (Antennas and Transmission Lines) are the two heavyweight domains at 8 questions apiece - together they account for nearly a third of the entire exam. E6 (Circuit Components) and E1 (Commission Rules) follow at 6 each. On the light end, E3 (Radio Wave Propagation) contributes only 3 questions and E0 (Safety) just 1, though neither should be skipped since every group still produces a guaranteed question.
Practical Circuits (E7) - 8 questions
Covers oscillators, filters, power supplies, digital logic basics, and amplifier configurations. This subelement rewards candidates who can trace a schematic rather than memorize isolated facts.
- Know the difference between series and shunt regulator topologies
- Be able to identify basic op-amp and filter configurations from a diagram
Antennas and Transmission Lines (E9) - 8 questions
Covers antenna gain, feed-line loss, matching networks, and radiation patterns. Expect diagram-based questions drawn from the pool's 10 official figures.
- Understand VSWR and impedance-matching relationships
- Recognize common antenna types by their described radiation characteristics
For a domain-by-domain study plan rather than just the allocation table, see the FCC-AMATEUR-EXTRA Exam Domains Guide, which walks through what to master in each of the 10 areas listed above.
2024-2028 Question Pool and Withdrawn Questions
Element 4 currently draws from the public question pool valid July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2028. This pool includes the 10 diagrams referenced above and is the exclusive source of every question you'll see on the actual exam - there is no hidden or "extra" question bank beyond it.
Four questions have been formally withdrawn from this pool and will not appear on any exam form:
- E2A13
- E4D05
- E6D07
- E9E10
Key Takeaway
If a practice source still shows you E2A13, E4D05, E6D07, or E9E10, that material is outdated. Cross-check your prep against the current pool dates before trusting any question bank.
Because a valid exam form takes exactly one question from each group within a subelement, a strong practice strategy mirrors that structure rather than drilling randomly. Tools that track your progress group-by-group - rather than simply granting blanket access to the whole pool - make it much easier to spot which of the 10 domains still has weak groups. That's the approach behind the mock exams on our practice test platform, and it's worth pairing with the tactical walkthrough in the FCC-AMATEUR-EXTRA Study Guide.
Fees, Paperwork, and What to Bring
Fee structure and required documents trip up more candidates than the actual electronics content. Keep these numbers straight:
- ARRL VEC 2026 session fee: $15 per candidate, or $5 for candidates under 18 - this covers one attempt at each element taken that session
- Retest fee: if you fail an element, another exam fee applies to retake it
- FCC application fee for a class-only upgrade: $0
- FCC fee for a new license or renewal application: $35
- Net cost for an adult General-to-Extra upgrade through ARRL: ordinarily $15 before study materials, since the FCC charges nothing for a class-only upgrade
For the full cost picture including materials and optional extras, see FCC-AMATEUR-EXTRA Certification Cost.
Exam-Day Rules: Closed-Book and Calculator Policy
Element 4 is a closed-book exam. No manuals, notes, or reference sheets are permitted at the table. Calculators are allowed for the math-heavy questions in Electrical Principles (E5) and Practical Circuits (E7), but with conditions:
- Calculator memories and any stored formulas must be cleared before the session
- Phones cannot serve as calculators under any circumstance
Bring a simple standalone calculator you've tested in advance, and clear its memory in front of the Volunteer Examiner team if asked. This is a common point of confusion for candidates coming from other exam formats - see How Hard Is the FCC-AMATEUR-EXTRA Exam? for how the closed-book format compares to the General and Technician exams you may have already taken.
After You Pass: License Term and Renewal
Once you clear 37 of 50 on Element 4 and any outstanding paperwork is filed, the Amateur Extra license is granted for a 10-year term. A few mechanics to remember well before your renewal date arrives:
- Renewal filing opens 90 days before expiration
- There is a 2-year grace period after expiration to file for renewal - but that grace period itself grants no operating authority
- Ordinary renewal requires no repeat examination and no continuing-education credits
In other words, the hard work is front-loaded into passing Element 4 once; after that, renewal is administrative. This distinguishes the amateur license entirely from commercial radio qualifications, which often carry recurring proficiency or continuing-education requirements - the two credential types are not interchangeable, even though both involve FCC oversight.
Last-Week Review Priorities
If your test date is inside seven days, don't try to re-read every subelement equally. Spend the remaining time proportional to question weight, tightening the two 8-question domains first, then sweeping the smaller ones for gaps.
Practical Circuits (E7) and Antennas & Transmission Lines (E9)
- Re-drill every group in these two subelements - 16 combined questions, the largest share of the 50
- Review all diagram-based questions tied to the 10 official pool figures
Circuit Components (E6) and Commission Rules (E1)
- Confirm component symbol recognition and basic semiconductor behavior
- Review licensing, band-privilege, and station-identification rules
Electrical Principles (E5), Signals and Emissions (E8), Operating Procedures (E2)
- Run timed group-by-group practice to expose any remaining weak spots
- Revisit Amateur Practices (E4) and Radio Wave Propagation (E3) briefly
Full mock exam and paperwork check
- Take one complete 50-question mock built with one question per group
- Confirm FRN, ID, email, and any CSCE credit paperwork are ready to bring
This kind of weighted, domain-aware pacing is the one place generic study techniques (spaced repetition, timed drills) are worth borrowing - but only when applied to the actual 10-domain structure above, not as a generic template. If you want a longer-horizon version of this plan spanning several weeks instead of the final week, the FCC-AMATEUR-EXTRA Study Guide extends this same logic backward.
FAQ
Element 4 has 50 multiple-choice questions, and you need 37 correct to pass - that's the fixed threshold, regardless of which questions you draw.
No. There is no Morse-code testing requirement for any current amateur license class, including Extra.
Practical Circuits (E7) and Antennas and Transmission Lines (E9) are the largest, each contributing 8 of the 50 questions.
ARRL VEC's 2026 session fee is $15 for adults ($5 under 18). Since a class-only FCC upgrade has a $0 application fee, an adult's total cost through ARRL is ordinarily just the $15 session fee before study materials.
You have a 2-year grace period after expiration to file for renewal, but that grace period alone does not grant operating authority. Renewing on time, starting 90 days before expiration, avoids any lapse.
For a broader look at whether investing time in this upgrade path makes sense for your goals, see Is the FCC-AMATEUR-EXTRA Certification Worth It? and, once you've passed, the overview of related uses in FCC-AMATEUR-EXTRA Jobs.