United States
Do I need Part 107 to fly a drone in the United States?
You need it for any flight that is not purely for your own enjoyment. The FAA says compensation is not the test, and it says to assume Part 107 when you are not sure.
Read the rule before you fly
We check every number on this page against the Federal Aviation Administration, and we print the date we checked it. This page is still a summary, and it is not legal advice. The final word belongs to the Federal Aviation Administration, and a rule can change between our date and your flight.
Do you need it?
- You fly for work, for a client, or to sell a service. That is Part 107.
- You fly purely for your own enjoyment. The recreational exception covers you, and it asks for the free TRUST test instead.
- You are not sure. The FAA answers this one for you: assume Part 107, and meet every requirement of the rule.
- Payment alone does not settle it. The FAA counts taking photographs to help sell a property or a service as non-recreational, and it counts goodwill flying for a non-profit the same way.
The cost and the exam
- Certificate
- Remote Pilot Certificate, with a small UAS rating
- Exam
- Unmanned Aircraft General – Small, test code UAG
- Questions
- 60 multiple choice questions, in 2 hours
- Pass mark
- 70%
- Cost
- $175 for each attempt
- Who runs it
- The FAA writes the exam and issues the certificate. PSI runs the testing centres under the FAA contract, and it takes the $175.
- Age
- 14 to sit the exam, and 16 to hold the certificate
- After a fail
- Wait 14 days, then sit it again. No endorsement is needed.
- Renewal
- The free online course ALC-677, once every 24 calendar months. There is no retest and no fee.
- Registration
- $5 for each drone, and it lasts 3 years
Checked on 2026-09-10, against faa.gov, 14 CFR part 107 and the FAA airman knowledge testing matrix.
How to get it
01
Get an FAA Tracking Number
Create an IACRA profile first. The exam booking asks for the number, so this comes before the test.
02
Book the exam with PSI
PSI is the only vendor, and it runs every FAA knowledge testing centre. You pay PSI, not the FAA. Bring a government photo ID on the day.
03
Pass the UAG exam
It covers the regulations, airspace, weather, loading, emergency procedures, radio, airport operations, and night flying. From 26 October 2026 a chart question carries its image on the screen, so the printed supplement no longer holds every figure.
04
File Form 8710-13
Apply in IACRA with the 17-digit exam ID. The result can take 48 hours to reach IACRA after the test.
05
Clear the TSA check
An email confirms the security background check. It carries the instructions for printing the temporary certificate.
06
Carry the certificate, and register the drone
The permanent card arrives by post. Register each drone in FAA DroneZone, mark the number on the outside, and broadcast Remote ID.
Where you can fly
The licence is the start. These limits bind every flight you make under it.
- Height
- 400 feet above the ground, or 400 feet above a structure while you fly within 400 feet of it
- Speed
- 87 knots, which is 100 miles per hour
- Sight
- You keep the drone in sight, with no aid but your glasses
- Weather
- 3 statute miles of visibility, 500 feet below a cloud, and 2,000 feet from it horizontally
- Night
- Allowed, with anti-collision lighting visible for 3 statute miles
- Airspace
- Class B, C, D, and the surface area of Class E need air traffic control authorisation first
- People
- Never over a person, unless the flight meets one of the four categories in subpart D
If your drone weighs under 250 grams
A drone under 250 g skips the recreational registration, and it opens Category 1. Part 107 still applies in full.
- Under Part 107 you register every drone, whatever it weighs. The 250 g exemption belongs to the recreational exception alone.
- A drone of 0.55 pounds or less with no exposed rotating parts that would cut skin is a Category 1 aircraft, so it may fly over people.
- Category 1 stops at a crowd. Sustained flight over an open-air assembly needs the Remote ID rules in part 89.
- A registration you took out under the recreational exception cannot be moved to Part 107. Register again, for the right one.
What this guide does not cover
Flying beyond your sight
Part 107 requires visual line of sight. The FAA proposed a new part 108 for beyond-line-of-sight flying in August 2025, and it reopened the comment period in January 2026. It is not law yet, so the waiver is still the only route.
State, local, and land rules
The FAA controls the airspace. It does not control where you stand, or what a park, a city, or a landowner allows on the ground. Read those separately.
Flying a foreign-registered drone
A visitor from another country takes extra steps. The FAA keeps a page for international operators.
Prepare for the exam
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Course
A Part 107 test preparation course
The exam runs to 60 questions on airspace, weather, and loading. A course pays for itself the first time it saves you a $175 retake.
Flying somewhere else?
Licensed, and flying?
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