Drone rules in Belgium: a plain-English guide

The short version

• The rules are European. Regulation (EU) 2019/947 says how you may fly; Regulation (EU) 2019/945 says what you may fly.
• Hobby or business makes no difference. The category (Open, Specific or Certified) depends on the risk.
• Own a drone with a camera? You register as an operator, whatever it weighs.
• In the Open category you stay below 120 m, keep the drone in sight and never fly over a crowd.
• Anyone flying for work needs third-party liability insurance in Belgium.
• Check the official geozone map before every flight. Around Brussels the Open ceiling drops to 150 ft, about 45 m.

Who makes the rules

Two EU regulations do most of the work. Regulation (EU) 2019/947 covers operations: categories, distances, pilots and registration. Regulation (EU) 2019/945 covers the aircraft, including the class labels (C0 to C6) printed on drones and their boxes.²³

Belgium adds two texts. The Royal Decree of 8 November 2020 sets the national details, among them registration, minimum ages and insurance. The Ministerial Decree of 21 December 2020 fixes the Belgian geographical zones: the areas where extra conditions apply.⁴¹

Two organisations matter in practice:

• The Directorate-General Air Transport of the FPS Mobility and Transport (DGLV in Dutch, DGTA in French) is the Belgian authority for drones. It runs the Drone Portal for registration and exams, and it issues authorisations.¹
• skeyes, Belgium’s air navigation service provider, manages its own geozones, including the ones around Brussels Airport. Flights in those zones are filed in its DAA tool, which is free to use.⁵⁶

One thing the aviation authority does not handle is privacy. That has its own rulebook, further down.

Open, Specific, Certified: three levels of risk

The EU system sorts flights by risk, not by purpose. It also stops at the door: the EU drone rules don’t apply indoors. An FPV fly-through inside a building is outside them, although the venue’s permission and the safety of the people inside still sit with the pilot.¹

Open is the low-risk category, and it is where most photo and video work happens. It comes with fixed conditions:⁷

• a maximum of 120 m above the ground;
• the drone stays in the pilot’s visual line of sight;
• never over an assembly of people;
• nothing is dropped from the drone;
• geozones are respected;
• the take-off mass stays under 25 kg.

The drone also needs a class label from C0 to C4, or it must be privately built, or it must be an unlabelled model placed on the market before 31 December 2023. Anything else can’t fly in Open.⁷

“Assembly of people” isn’t a headcount. It means a crowd so dense that people couldn’t move away if a drone came down. The Belgian authority’s own examples include sports, cultural, religious and political events, beaches or parks on a sunny day, and shopping streets during opening hours. Night flights are fine in Open if every other condition is met, the drone stays in sight and it shows a flashing green light.¹

Specific covers everything that can’t meet all the Open conditions: flying above 120 m, over assemblies of people, beyond visual line of sight, dropping objects, or with a drone of 25 kg or more.⁸ There are three ways in. A declaration under a standard scenario (STS-01 or STS-02, which need C5 or C6 drones). An operational authorisation based on a risk assessment (PDRA or SORA). Or a light UAS operator certificate (LUC), which only companies can hold.⁹ The DGTA’s fee list puts an operational authorisation at €807 for the first year, then €242 a year. That list covers 2024, so check the current one before you budget.¹⁰

Certified is for high-risk operations, such as large drones over crowds or drones carrying people. The Belgian authority says these can’t be performed yet.¹

A shot over a festival crowd is never an Open-category shot. It’s Specific, and it needs an authorisation first.

A1, A2, A3: how close to people

The Open category is split into three subcategories, based on how close the drone gets to people who aren’t part of the flight.¹¹¹

• A1, fly over people. The drone may pass briefly over uninvolved people, never over an assembly.
• A2, fly close to people. At least 30 m horizontally from uninvolved people, or 5 m with low-speed mode switched on.
• A3, fly far from people. At least 150 m from residential, commercial, industrial and recreational areas.

“Uninvolved” includes people in cars and buses. A drone near a road can distract a driver.¹

Which subcategory a drone may use depends on its class label:¹¹¹²

Two examples from our own kit: the DJI Mini 4 Pro carries a C0 label and the DJI Avata 2 a C1 label.¹³¹⁴ The equipment page shows what we use each one for.

FPV has one Belgian extra. For a real FPV flight in the Open category, where the pilot flies through goggles, an observer is mandatory.¹ The drone still carries its operator number and follows the A1 or A3 rules that fit its weight and speed.

Registration and pilot certificates

Registration is about the operator, not the aircraft. In Belgium, registering with the DGTA through the Drone Portal is mandatory as soon as you own a drone with a camera, whatever it weighs. The drone itself isn’t registered.¹⁵

The operator number then goes on every drone, visible and legible, as a sticker or a QR code. It may sit in the battery compartment if that is easy to open. The same number is loaded into the drone’s remote ID. A Belgian registration is valid across the EU: bring proof of it when you fly in the Open category abroad.¹¹⁶ A company registers in the country of its registered office, through CSAM, and in one country only.¹⁵

Pilots need a minimum age and, for most drones, a certificate:⁴¹

• Age. 14 for A1 and A3, 16 for A2. Belgium used the EU option to lower the A1/A3 age.
• A1/A3 certificate. A free online course and exam on the Drone Portal. Valid for five years.
• A2 certificate of competency. Requires the A1/A3 first. The theory exam, at least 30 questions, is free and taken in person at the FPS Mobility in Brussels, booked through the Drone Portal. Practical self-training under A3 conditions and a signed declaration complete it. Valid for five years.
• STS certificate. For the standard scenarios in Specific: a theory exam with a designated entity, practical training at a recognised one, and a certificate issued by the DGTA.⁹

A private pilot’s licence for manned aircraft doesn’t exempt anyone. There is no medical certificate in the Open category, but flying under the influence of drugs or alcohol is out. A logbook isn’t required in Open; in Specific it is.¹

Remote ID

Since 1 January 2024, every class-labelled drone flying in the Open category, and every drone flying in Specific, must fly with its remote ID switched on and up to date. It broadcasts the drone’s serial number, the operator registration number, the position of the pilot or the take-off point, and the drone’s own location.¹⁶

C1, C2 and C3 drones have direct remote ID built in. C0 and C4 drones aren’t required to. Some Belgian geozones ask for remote ID or geo-awareness even in Open, and that includes all of Brussels.¹ What that means for a flight in the capital is in our guide Can you fly a drone in Brussels?

Insurance: where Belgium is stricter

This is the Belgian extra people miss. The Royal Decree requires every operator flying in the Open category to hold civil liability insurance covering bodily injury and property damage to third parties. The only exception is a drone under 900 g flown purely for private purposes.⁴ Any commercial flight needs cover, whatever the drone weighs.

Drones of 20 kg or more follow the insurance rules of Regulation (EC) 785/2004.⁴ For the Specific category, the FPS FAQ says the draft Royal Decree points to the same regulation.¹ The Open-category rule we read sets no minimum amount, so compare what policies actually cover rather than trusting a figure quoted online. The FPS also warns that some insurers exclude certain operations, by weight or height for example, and advises checking a policy against the EU rules.¹

In Brussels, the commune’s filming request asks for the insurance certificate, so keep it ready as a PDF.¹⁷

Geozones: the map that decides

Belgium’s geographical zones are published on Droneguide (map.droneguide.be), the official publication of the Belgian aviation authority.¹ Zone rules apply in every category, Open included. Permission to enter a zone, from skeyes or from whoever manages it, is separate from any DGTA authorisation.¹⁸

Three habits prevent most of the trouble:

1. Check the exact spot, not the town. Click the take-off point and the area you’ll fly over, then read every zone card that overlaps them. Zones stack.
2. Plan on the official map. Droneguide is the official publication of the zones.¹ A manufacturer’s no-fly map is not legally binding.¹⁹
3. Check again on the day. Temporary zones are switched on by NOTAM for events and summits.²⁰

Brussels is the case in point. When we checked on 25 September 2026, every point we tested in the Brussels-Capital Region sat inside the geozones around Brussels Airport. There, even a small Open flight is reported in skeyes’ DAA tool beforehand, and the ceiling is 150 ft, about 45 m.⁶

Privacy: a different rulebook

The aviation authority says privacy is outside its remit. Complaints about a drone and privacy go to the Data Protection Authority (APD/GBA) or to the police.¹

When people are recognisable in footage, the GDPR applies, because an image of an identifiable person is personal data. Belgium’s Camera Act only covers surveillance cameras, so in our reading it doesn’t govern a film shoot; the GDPR and image rights do.²¹ Image rights are a separate layer again. Filming someone and using the footage each need their consent, and agreeing to be filmed is not agreeing to publication.²²

The safe practice is a written release from everyone recognisable who is featured: the couple, the guests, the staff.

Hiring a drone pilot in Belgium: what to ask

A good operator answers all of these without looking anything up.

1. What’s your operator registration number? It should be on every drone.¹⁵
2. Which certificates do your pilots hold? A1/A3 at least, and A2 if the shot needs a C2 drone close to people.¹
3. Can I see the insurance certificate? Check that it covers commercial flights with the drone you’ll use.⁴
4. Which category is this shot? If it goes over a crowd (an assembly of people) or above 120 m, it’s Specific. Ask which authorisation covers it.⁸
5. Have you checked the geozones for the exact location? And who files the DAA request when one is needed?¹⁸
6. Who asks the commune? In Brussels, taking off or landing in public space needs the municipality’s permission.¹⁷
7. For FPV: who is the observer?
8. How do you handle people on camera? Releases, and what happens to footage of anyone who didn’t sign.

The permit side, from the Droneguide check to the skeyes filing and the commune request, is part of how we plan every shoot.