Drone laws in China

Last verified 22 September 2026 against Civil Aviation Administration of China. Drone law changes fast — often twice a year. Every fact below links to the official source it came from. Verify with the regulator before you fly.

This page covers the rules issued by Civil Aviation Administration of China and applying in mainland China, under the national regime administered by the Civil Aviation Administration of China and the national air traffic management authorities. Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan have their own, separate drone rules and are not covered by this page. .

Mainland China regulates drones through the Interim Regulations on the Flight Management of Unmanned Aircraft, in force since 1 January 2024, and the CAAC's CCAR-92 operating rules. Aircraft are sorted into five classes — micro, light, small, medium and large — and every civil drone must be registered in its owner's real name, with no weight threshold. Airspace above 120 m and around airports, borders, military sites and critical infrastructure is controlled and needs prior approval. Since 1 May 2026 new drones must be registered before they can be activated. Beijing has its own, much stricter municipal rules: the whole city is controlled airspace, and from 15 November 2026 owning or storing a drone anywhere in Beijing is prohibited. The Beijing rules apply only in Beijing.

At a glance

Registration from

Every civil drone, whatever its weight — sub-250 g models included. The owner registers in their real name on the CAAC's national platform and receives a registration mark. Since 1 May 2026 newly made drones cannot be activated until they are registered; drones already in use have a 12-month transition. Flying toys, model aircraft and indoor flight fall outside the scheme. since source

Pilot credential

No licence for micro (under 250 g) or light (up to 4 kg empty, 7 kg take-off) drones, but flying a light drone in controlled airspace requires a CAAC theory-training certificate. Small, medium and large drones need a CAAC operator licence: full legal capacity, CAAC-assessed training, a clean medical and drug record, and no conviction for specified intentional offences in the past five years. Minors are limited to micro (and, depending on legal capacity, light) drones with an adult supervising on site. since source

Max altitude

120 m above ground. All airspace above 120 m true height is controlled airspace and needs prior approval. Micro drones are limited by definition to 50 m. since source

Remote ID

Mandatory. Every drone except micro must report identification data to the national unmanned aircraft supervision platform in flight, and micro, light and small drones must also broadcast identification automatically. Drones made before 2024 that cannot report automatically may fly only with a flight approval. since source

BVLOS

Permitted with the right licence: a small or medium operator licence with a BVLOS rating, or a large-drone licence. Relay flight over a cellular network or the internet always needs a flight approval, even in airspace otherwise open to small drones. since source

Can a visitor fly?

Unconfirmed. Unconfirmed. The national rules set no nationality exemption from real-name registration, but no official source we could verify explains how a short-term foreign visitor registers or activates a drone. Surveying and mapping flights by foreign nationals or with foreign drones are prohibited, with confiscation, fines of CNY 100,000–500,000 (up to CNY 1 million in serious cases) and possible expulsion. Beijing is off-limits: bringing a drone into the city, even in transit, is prohibited. source

Where you may not fly

Controlled airspace covers everything above 120 m; prohibited and restricted areas; and the airspace over and around airports, border zones, military and other classified sites, nuclear and hazardous-materials sites, power stations and substations, fuel stations, water works, transport hubs, ports, expressways, electrified railways, radar and satellite stations, and major heritage sites. Temporary controlled airspace can be declared at 24 hours' notice (30 minutes in emergencies). Flying there needs air traffic management approval, requested by 12:00 the day before. Flying over crowds always needs approval. Micro, light and small drones may fly outside controlled airspace without applying. In Beijing, the whole municipality has been controlled airspace since 1 May 2026, and all drone flight there is prohibited from 15 November 2026. source

Penalties

Flying an unregistered drone: an order to correct and a fine of up to CNY 200, or CNY 2,000–20,000 in serious cases. Flying without a required operator licence: CNY 5,000–50,000, or CNY 10,000–100,000 in serious cases. Flying a micro, light or small drone in controlled airspace without approval: police order the flight stopped and may fine up to CNY 500; in serious cases the drone is confiscated and the fine is CNY 1,000–10,000. Commercial operation without an operating certificate: CNY 50,000–500,000. Beijing sets its own penalties, including confiscation. source

Can a visitor fly?

Unconfirmed. The national rules set no nationality exemption from real-name registration, but no official source we could verify explains how a short-term foreign visitor registers or activates a drone. Surveying and mapping flights by foreign nationals or with foreign drones are prohibited, with confiscation, fines of CNY 100,000–500,000 (up to CNY 1 million in serious cases) and possible expulsion. Beijing is off-limits: bringing a drone into the city, even in transit, is prohibited.

Policy timeline

1. 11 September 2026 Pending

   Beijing adopts citywide ban on flying, owning and storing drones — in force 15 November 2026

   Not law. This has been proposed or is under review. There is no compliance obligation until it is published.

   Beijing's municipal legislature revised the Beijing Regulations on the Management of Unmanned Aircraft. From 15 November 2026 all drone flight in Beijing is prohibited, as are possessing or storing drones or their core components anywhere in the city, bringing them into the city, and selling or renting them to anyone in Beijing. Units with approved special needs (emergency response, major events, teaching and research, manufacturing, agriculture and forestry) are exempt after a police security assessment. Existing drones must be moved out of the city before 15 November. The city offers police-verified individual owners a subsidised buyback (30% of the sale price, up to CNY 3,000 per drone, until 31 October; 15%, up to CNY 1,500, from 1 to 14 November), scrapping (CNY 200, then CNY 100), or free EMS shipping to an address outside Beijing. Unapproved flight carries confiscation and a CNY 1,000–10,000 fine; unlawful possession or storage carries confiscation and a fine of CNY 500–5,000 for individuals or CNY 5,000–50,000 for organisations. This is a municipal rule and applies only in Beijing.

   Source: Beijing Municipal People's Government · Beijing Regulations on the Management of Unmanned Aircraft, revised 11 September 2026, Arts. 3, 4, 6, 8 and 12 · verified 22 September 2026

2. 1 May 2026 In force

   Beijing makes the whole city controlled airspace and bans drone sales

   Beijing's first drone regulation, adopted on 27 March 2026, made the entire municipality controlled airspace, so every outdoor flight needs prior approval. It banned selling or renting drones and core components to anyone in Beijing, and bringing them into the city, except by owners of existing drones that had completed real-name registration and a police information check. Existing owners had to register and activate their drones by 30 April 2026 and complete the police check within three months. New storage sites were banned inside the Sixth Ring Road; more than three drones or ten core components at one address counted as a storage site. This is a municipal rule and applies only in Beijing. The 15 November 2026 revision replaces it.

   Source: Xinhua · Xinhua report on the adoption of the Beijing Regulations on the Management of Unmanned Aircraft · published 27 March 2026 · verified 22 September 2026

3. 1 May 2026 In force

   National standard requires registration before a drone can be activated

   A mandatory national standard, Requirements for Real-Name Registration and Activation of Civil Unmanned Aircraft, took effect. It applies to every civil drone flown outdoors in China, including self-built drones and products sold as toys or models whose performance reaches civil-drone level. A drone cannot fly until its owner has registered it and the system has confirmed activation, and it must be deactivated and deregistered when it is sold or scrapped. New drones must comply from 1 May 2026. Drones already sold and in use have a 12-month transition, after which drones that do not meet the requirements may no longer be flown.

   Source: Civil Aviation Administration of China · CAAC explanatory note on the mandatory national standard for real-name registration and activation · published 21 April 2026 · verified 22 September 2026

4. 1 January 2024 In force

   CAAC operating rules for civil drones (CCAR-92) take effect

   The CAAC's Rules on the Operational Safety Management of Civil Unmanned Aircraft (CCAR-92) took effect on publication. They require every civil drone flying in China to be registered in its owner's real name on the CAAC's national platform. They require manufacturers to build drones that can only be activated after registration. They also set out the operator licence system, including the BVLOS rating.

   Source: Civil Aviation Administration of China · Ministry of Transport Order No. 1 of 2024 (CCAR-92) · published 1 January 2024 · verified 22 September 2026

5. 1 January 2024 In force

   Interim Regulations on the Flight Management of Unmanned Aircraft take effect

   The first national regulations on drone flight, issued by the State Council and the Central Military Commission, took effect. They sort drones into micro, light, small, medium and large classes, with micro meaning under 0.25 kg empty weight, at most 50 m high and at most 40 km/h. They require real-name registration and set operator licences for small and larger drones. They define controlled airspace, including everything above 120 m, which needs approval requested by 12:00 the day before, and let micro, light and small drones fly without applying outside it. They also require drones to report and broadcast identification data.

   Source: Civil Aviation Administration of China · State Council and Central Military Commission Decree No. 761, signed 31 May 2023 · published 28 June 2023 · verified 22 September 2026

Official sources

• Civil Aviation Administration of China — the regulator

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Last verified 22 September 2026 · next review due 22 October 2026 · this is not legal advice; ListDrone is an information site, not a law firm or an aviation authority · found an error? tell us.