Drone regulations in Romania

Flying drones in Romania

Learn all about the drone rules in Romania.

The EU Drone Regulation has been in force in Romania since December 31, 2020. This has largely harmonized the rules for remote pilots. You only have to register as an operator in one European country and your EU drone license is also recognized across countries.

If you want to register in Romania, you can do so via this link.

Overview of the European rules that apply in Romania

In Romania, the regulations of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) apply. The following is a summary of the key facts. For a complete overview, read our article on the new EU drone regulation.

Is registration necessary? Registration is mandatory for all drone operators, unless the drone weighs less than 250 grams and is NOT equipped with sensors to collect personal data (e.g. camera, microphone). Drones that fall under the EU Toys Directive are also exempt. The registration is recognized in all countries that have also introduced the EU Drone Regulation.
LabelsAll drones must be visibly marked with the individual registration number (e-ID). If available, the number must also be loaded into the drones remote identification system. More info on drone badges
Drone licence:Depending on the category, pilots must take exams to obtain the EU drone licence. These are recognised in all countries that have also introduced the EU Drone Regulation.
Differentiation by category: Open Category (with three subcategories), Specific Category and Certified Category; no distinction between private and commercial pilots.
Maximum Altitude:120 Meter in uncontrolled airspace in Open Category.
Keep distance to airports
Respect the privacy of other people

National peculiarities in Romania

Each country can define certain aspects of its drone regulations. For Romania, the following requirements apply in addition to the European regulations.

Is drone insurance mandatory? No. Learn more about drone insurance here.
Minimum age for remote pilots16 years
Contact information

AACR: [email protected] and [email protected]

MAPN: [email protected]

Further regulations for drone pilots in Romania

You need permission from the Department of Defense to take aerial photos and videos with a drone under two conditions:

  1. You are operating your drone in the Special or Permit Required category.
  2. You plan to take the footage within a restricted flight area.

This means that permission from the Romanian Ministry of Defense is no longer required for most flights.

If you do need the aforementioned permission, you should send your request to the mail address [email protected] ten working days before the flight. You can find the form here in English, a guide is available as a pdf. If the permits have been issued, you should also have been given contact information to check in with just before the flight to let them know your intention to take off.

Safety distances and flight bans

An overflight permit is required for operations in the “Danube Delta” biosphere reserve.

We have researched the listed drone regulations for Romania to the best of our knowledge. We can not guarantee the correctness of the information. If you want to be on the safe side, please contact the competent aviation authority. Alternatively, you can also ask the embassy in your country for further information about the regulations. Please leave us a comment when you receive news and/or gain experience with your copter in Romania!

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About the author

Since January 2015, we travel around the world. In our backpack we carry a camera drone which we use to capture the best places from a bird’s perspective. First we travelled with a DJI Phantom 2. But now we use several drones like the DJI Phantom 4 Pro+ or the DJI Mini 3 Pro. On our blog we share the best tips for you about travelling with a drone. If you have questions about this article or new information, don’t hesitate to leave us a comment!

Discussions

  • Mihai Bogdan Roman | 27.09.2017

    Hello,
    Information for Romania:
    If the drone’s takeoff weight is less then 500g and you don’t use the drone to take aerial footage then you don’t need any special permissions and you don’t need to register the drone.
    If the drone’s takeoff weight is between 500g and 15kg then you need to register the drone with CAA.
    Drones that weigh more then 15kg require a licence.
    Drones that weigh more then 20kg also require a liability insurance.
    If you would like to use the drone to take aerial footage then you need a special permission from MApN (Romanian Ministry of National Defence).
    It is illegal to fly a drone FPV without a licence.
    According to caa.ro the maximum altitude for a drone is 300m. The pilot needs to have the drone in sight at all times and the distance between the pilot and the drone should not exeed 300m.
    It is illegal to takeoff or land a drone in cities or towns, it’s illegal to fly above crowds without a special permission and it’s illegal to fly near airports, military bases, prisons and some other public buildings.
    To register a drone that weighs between 0.5 and 15kg will cost 90€+VAT and the process will take up to three weeks. This can only be done in Bucharest and you will have to leave the drone with CAA for the whole period so they can fit a chip and put a registration number on it.
    For drones that weigh between 15kg and 150kg the fee is 540 euro plus VAT for the flight permit for one year and after that the renewal is 300 euros plus VAT.
    Source of information:
    http://www.caa.ro/supervizare/operare-uav-uas

    Best wishes
    Mihai

    • Francis Markert | 28.03.2018

      Hello Mihail,
      Thank you very much for your excellent summary. I have completed our article. Best regards, Francis

    • fred | 30.05.2018

      hey do you have messenger to chat about drone flying in Romania?

  • Tnikce | 03.05.2018

    If my drone weighs < 500g can I take flight with it? I understand that I don't need a licence but what does "aerial footage" mean? Whats that height?

    • Mihai Bogdan Roman | 19.12.2018

      Hi Tnikce
      Most probably by now you have found the answers to your questions, but I will answer them anyway just in case somebody else has similar queries. I’m not a regular on this website and I’ve stumbled across this article again looking for something else so I apologise for the late response.
      As your drone weight is less then 500g you don’t need to register it and you don’t need any special permissions from the Civil Aviation Authority. The “hight” should not be more then 300m. That is the distance between your drone and the ground underneath it. In most of the other EU countries that hight is 120m or 400ft and if you have a DJI drone it will be set to 120m by default. If you are flying your drone off a cliff, mountain or something similar you will have to be extra careful not to exceed the hight limit because the drone will tell you the hight between it and the point it took off and not the actual hight between it and the ground below it. Aerial footage is any picture or video taken from something that flies (drone, helicopter airplane etc).
      So that is what the law says regarding drones in Romania. Now from my own experience flying drones in Romania I can ADVISE you the following:
      1 DO NOT fly more than 300m above the ground as you will be putting helicopters and low flying airplanes in danger.
      2 Stay well clear of airports (at least 5km away)
      3 As tempting as it might be, please don’t fly too close or over historical sites. Some of them will have signs that clearly say NO DRONES ALLOWED but some of them won’t.
      4 When flying, try to attract as little attention as possible. Find a quiet place, away from peoples view from where you can take off/ land and fly without being disturbed. Some people don’t know much about drones and they can easily get paranoid about them.
      5 If you see the police then please don’t fly anywhere near them. Unfortunately like in many other countries, most of the police officers have limited knowledge about drones and regulations so it is better to stay away from them. It’s better to be safe then sorry and it will save you a lot of time trying to explain to them that what you are doing is perfectly legal.
      6 DO NOT fly near or above crowded areas where you have a lot of people together. Use your common sense and think that if you have to do an emergency landing can you do it safely without hurting anybody.
      7 Do not worry too much about asking for permission from MApN (The Ministry of Defense) to take pictures or videos with your drone. Most probably if you will call them to ask for permission to film with your drone, they will hang up on you thinking that you are making fun of them. As long as you don’t try to take pictures of some military stuff they won’t care.
      8 Do not loose track of your drone. The law says that you can fly up to 300m away from you but in some cases, depending on the drone size, colour, your eye sight, you will loose track of your drone much sooner so please don’t push it all the way to 300m because that’s what the law says.
      If you follow this 8 tips then you shouldn’t have any problems flying a drone in Romania.
      Stay safe and happy flying.
      Best wishes
      Mihai

  • Gheo | 27.05.2018

    Of course have communist laws regarding drones, compared to other EU countries. It is like this because Dragnea&Co are afraid of the eyes in the skies, because those might show to the world what you cannot see from the ground level(their villas, illegal destroying of forests and natural areas etc).
    Welcome back to the communism, Romania!

  • Antony Paul | 24.05.2019

    Hey buddy,
    I am planning to make a vacation trip to Romania from dubai, I am carrying my dji spark (drone), which the weight and flying altitude is below the policy, weather I want to make any special permission to enter my drone at Romania, in this case my drone gas been registered in dubai..
    Thank you

  • Mihai Bogdan Roman | 28.05.2019

    Hi Antony
    You don’t need any special permission to enter/leave Romania with a drone regardless of it’s size, weight and shape. DJI Spark weighs 300g so you don’t need to worry about registering it in Romania either. Some airline companies have policies in place regarding drones, batteries and how to transport them safely on their aircrafts so please check with your airline before talking it on the plane.
    Enjoy your trip and happy flying.
    Best wishes
    Mihai

    • Antony Paul | 03.06.2019

      Mulțumesc frumos, thats sounds wonderful..

    • Chris Brodie | 01.07.2019

      Hi Mihai, this is the only thread I can find on actually taking a drone into the country, I will be travelling from Bulgaria (via train) to Bucharest and following the strict laws on flying I will not be doing so. I am just worried I will get stopped and it taken from me – This happened in Azerbaijan and caused all kinds of problems! I do not want to miss out on flying in Bulgaria.

  • Md Tariqul islam | 30.09.2019

    I would like to read more insight from you! Also I am going to share this blog immediately. Awesome!
    Excellent site you have here. I’d really love to be a part of online community where I can get responses from other experienced individuals that share the same interest. Appreciate it!
    Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I truly appreciate your efforts and I am waiting for your further post thanks once again.

  • Luc | 18.10.2019

    What application or site is used to check the map with prohibited areas? Can you fly in a CTR?

  • Adrian | 27.02.2020

    I ve just tried to register my Phantom 4 Pro and guess what:
    -the 2 official phone numbers never answered.
    [email protected] and [email protected] reply back that the inbox is full and they cannot receive emails anymore.
    -I drove to CAA….and I could not find a parking spot because the whole street was full of parked cars and it was one way only.

  • Liam | 16.05.2021

    I know this is a long shot for an answer so quickly as I fly in a week, but:

    Would flying in a park on the outskirts of town be likely to get me in “real” trouble?
    Would flying in a large private garden up to say a height of 30m get me in “real” trouble

    Has anyone had experience of interaction with police on this subject? Especially as a foreigner?

  • Julz | 18.07.2023

    Hi Liam
    I was just wondering if you flew the drone in the end and if you encountered any problems? I’m in Romania at the minute.
    Cheers

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