Drone laws in Bosnia-Herzegovina

Last update on 04.09.2024 | 0 Kommentare

In this article, we have summarised the drone laws in Bosnia and Herzegovina for you.

In order to ensure the safe and responsible use of drones in the country, the Civil Aviation Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BHDCA) issued regulations for the operation of drones on 25 September 2020. These regulations affect both recreational and commercial drone operators and apply to drones weighing between 249 grams and 25 kilograms. Drones with a maximum take-off mass of more than 25 kilograms require a special permit from the BHDCA.

Registering your drone in Bosnia-Herzegovina is mandatory in any case. We explain how this works in the article below.

Overview: Drone rules in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Drone categories in Bosnia and Herzegovina

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, there are a number of different categories that are reminiscent of the European rules. Firstly, there are the drone categories into which aircraft are categorised:

• A1 drones weighing between 249 grams and 1 kilogramme
• A2 drones weighing more than 1 kilogramme and up to 2 kilogrammes
• A3 drones weighing more than 2 kilograms and up to 5 kilograms
• A4 drones weighing more than 5 kilograms and up to 25 kilograms

The drone categories are roughly comparable to what we know as drone classes in the EU. However, we were unable to find out what influence the various drone categories have in the Drone Ordinance.

There are also operating categories that are based on the type of drone flight:

• OPEN: non-commercial drone flights
• SPECIFIC: commercial drone flights
• CERTIFIED: work from the air

We cannot say with certainty exactly how the SPECIFIC and CERTIFIED operating categories differ. However, we assume that you will end up in CERTIFIED as soon as you want to fly commercially and the operating limits from the SPECIFIC category are not sufficient (e.g. because you want to fly higher than 120 metres above ground). If in doubt, please contact the local authorities.

The examination on knowledge of aviation regulations in Bosnia and Herzegovina for drone operators will not be organised until further notice. Further information on the start date and details on how to take this exam will be published by the BHDCA on the official website in the near future.

General regulations for private drone operation (OPEN) in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The following rules apply to the private use of your drone within the OPEN operating category:

• Drones may only be flown during daylight hours and within the line of sight of the drone operator.
• The maximum permitted flight altitude for drone operation is up to 30 metres above ground.
• The lateral distance to people, animals, buildings, vehicles, ships, roads, railways, waterways, power lines, etc. must be at least 30 metres.
• The lateral distance to a public assembly must be at least 50 metres.
• A lateral distance of less than 500 metres from industrial areas, embassies, state facilities and institutions and other public buildings is not permitted.
• A valid insurance policy covering damage to third parties on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina is required for all drones with a mass of more than 1 kilogramme.
• It is not permitted to fly a drone within a protected area that is less than 300 metres from the border line in the depth of the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, unless the drone operator or the owner of the drone has obtained the prior consent of the Border Police of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

General regulations for commercial drone operations (SPECIFIC) in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The following rules apply to the commercial use of your drone:

• Daylight drone operations must be conducted within the operator’s line of sight, and the drone operator must be familiar with the environment in which they are operating the drone, designate a specific landing site and visibly mark it (in the case of autonomous landing). If the drone is operated outside the line of sight, the lateral distance to the drone operator must not exceed 1,000 metres.
• When operating at night, the drone must be equipped with light signalling systems, it may only be flown within the line of sight, the intended landing site must be in the immediate vicinity of the drone operator (in the case of an autonomous landing), and the maximum flight altitude may not exceed 30 metres above ground level.
• It is not permitted to fly a drone over crowds of people, important buildings and the like.
• Drone operators must have valid drone insurance that covers damage to third parties on the ground in the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regardless of the mass of the drone.
• The minimum lateral distance from people, animals, buildings, vehicles, ships, roads, railways, waterways, power lines or other remote-controlled aircraft must be at least 30 metres.
• Drone operators who are unable to maintain the prescribed lateral distances in accordance with the previous point due to the environment and surrounding obstacles may fly the drone at a smaller lateral distance, but not less than 5 metres, whereby the flight altitude may not exceed 20 metres above ground.
• The maximum permitted flight altitude of a drone is up to 120 metres above ground or up to 50 metres above an obstacle.
• The lateral distance to industrial areas, embassies, state facilities and institutions as well as other public buildings must not be less than 100 metres.
• Drones may only be operated within an airport site at a distance of less than 1.5 kilometres from the airport or CTR zone with the prior consent of the competent air traffic control or airspace management cell (AMC), and the drone operator is obliged to comply with the terms of the consent.
• It is not permitted to fly a drone within a protected area that is located within 300 metres of the border line in the depth of the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, unless the drone operator or the owner of the drone has obtained prior consent from the Border Police of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

General regulations for aerial work with drones (CERTIFIED) in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Before starting drone operations, the drone operator must contact the BHDCA at [email protected] in order to obtain a special permit to carry out aerial work with drones in the airspace of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Drones under the responsibility of foreign institutions (army, police, customs and other similar organisations) must obtain permission from the competent institution in Bosnia and Herzegovina before carrying out drone operations.

Registering a drone in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Since the introduction of standardised regulations, registering your drone in Bosnia and Herzegovina is mandatory. As the owner or operator of your drone, you must submit the complete application to the BDHCA. The BHDCA will then issue a registration certificate within 30 days. Unfortunately, the documents are currently only available in Serbian.

• Rulebook on Conditions for Drone Flight Operations (‘Official Gazette of Bosnia and Herzegovina’, number: 51/20)
• Procedure for registering a drone in the BHDCA records
• Application for drone registration
• Declaration of drone ownership
• Application for renewal of the drone registration certificate and changes to drone data (if applicable)

You will also need the following documents for the application:

• Copy of identity card (natural persons) or extract from the commercial register or similar (legal entities)
• Certificate of residence from the competent authority on form PBA-4
• Proof of ownership (certificate from the dealer/seller of the drone or a signed and notarised declaration of ownership of the drone from the competent authority)
• Copy of the insurance policy (if required)
• Proof of payment of the administrative fee of 5 KM for the application
• Instructions for paying the administration fee can be found here.
• For all other information, you can contact the BHDCA directly by email [email protected]

We have researched the drone rules for Bosnia-Herzegovina listed here to the best of our knowledge. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information. If you want to be on the safe side, contact the local aviation authority. Alternatively, you can ask the Bosnian embassy in Germany for more information about the regulations. Please leave us a comment if you have any news and/or have had any experiences with your drone in Bosnia and Herzegovina!