The line between a recreational flight and a Part 107 flight is the purpose of the flight, not whether money changed hands. Photograph a house your brokerage is listing, inspect a client's roof, or gather footage for a monetized channel, and that is a non-recreational flight under 14 CFR Part 107. No invoice is required. The FAA's test is whether the flight is strictly for fun, and "I did it for free" is not a defense.
One structural fact first: the remote pilot certificate does not expire. Your currency does. The card is good for life. The aeronautical knowledge recency behind it lapses every 24 calendar months and is renewed with a free online course. Pilots lose privileges over that distinction constantly.
What Part 107 is and who needs a remote pilot certificate
Part 107 is the FAA's operating rule for small unmanned aircraft under 55 pounds flown for any purpose other than pure recreation. It both certificates the remote pilot in command (RPIC) and sets the operating limitations for the flight.
The alternative is the recreational exception at 49 U.S.C. § 44809, which requires flying within the safety guidelines of an FAA-recognized community-based organization, passing the free TRUST test, and flying strictly for fun. If any part of the flight furthers a business, a job, or a professional service paid or unpaid, § 44809 does not cover it.
The trap. "Commercial" is a purpose test, not a payment test. Free work for a friend's landscaping company, volunteer mapping for a fire department, and content uploaded to a channel that runs ads are all non-recreational. Fly them under Part 107 or do not fly them.
Government agencies have a third path: public aircraft operations under 49 U.S.C. § 40102 and § 40125, which let an agency self-certify pilot qualification and airworthiness standards — a different regime, covered in Part 107 vs. Part 91 public aircraft operations. Most agencies certificate their pilots under Part 107 anyway, as a fallback for flights outside their governmental function.
How to get a Part 107 license, step by step
Eligibility under 14 CFR 107.61 is short: at least 16 years old, able to read, speak, write and understand English, and physically and mentally fit to operate. No medical certificate, no flight hours, no logbook, no practical test.
- Create an IACRA profile at iacra.faa.gov and get your FAA Tracking Number (FTN). Do this first — the testing center asks for it.
- Schedule the Unmanned Aircraft General – Small (UAG) exam at a PSI-administered Knowledge Testing Center. The FAA states testing centers charge approximately $175.
- Pass the UAG. It is proctored at a physical center; there is no at-home version for an initial certificate.
- Submit FAA Form 8710-13 in IACRA using the 17-digit exam ID from your test report. Results can take up to 48 hours to appear in IACRA.
- TSA security vetting runs automatically once the application is filed. There is nothing for you to submit.
- Print your temporary certificate from IACRA when vetting clears. Valid 120 days, full privileges. The permanent card arrives by mail.
The certificate is free — the ~$175 is the testing center's fee, not the FAA's. A realistic end-to-end timeline is three to five weeks, though that is a third-party estimate, not an FAA service commitment; the testing-center scheduling gap is usually the long pole.
The Part 61 alternate path (ALC-451)
If you hold a current Part 61 pilot certificate other than student and completed a flight review in the preceding 24 calendar months, you skip the UAG entirely. Complete the free online course ALC-451 on FAASafety.gov, then file Form 8710-13 in IACRA and validate your identity with an FSDO, DPE, ACR, or CFI. No testing center, no $175.
What is on the UAG exam, and the 2025–2026 blueprint change
The UAG covers regulations, airspace and chart reading, weather, loading and performance, and operations. Sectional chart interpretation is where most first-time failures happen, not weather theory.
Per trade-press reporting, the FAA reweighted the UAG effective 29 September 2025: Regulations rose to roughly 48 percent, Weather fell to about 5 percent and Loading and Performance to about 2 percent, with Operations near 25 percent and Airspace near 20 percent. The same reporting says the FAA now directs applicants to PSI's Applicant Information Bulletin rather than the Airman Certification Standards, and that effective 27 October 2026 the exam adds dynamically embedded chart images that do not appear in the printed testing supplement.
That is trade-press reporting, not something verified here against an FAA publication. Pull the current Applicant Information Bulletin from PSI before you book, and check the FAA's become a drone pilot page.
Part 107 recurrent training: the 24-calendar-month cycle
Under 14 CFR 107.65 you must have completed aeronautical knowledge recency training within the preceding 24 calendar months to exercise remote pilot privileges. Since April 2021 this is a free online course, not a proctored test:
- ALC-677 on FAASafety.gov — the general recurrent course, for everyone certificated through the UAG.
- ALC-515 — for pilots holding a current Part 61 certificate with a flight review in the preceding 24 calendar months.
Currency expires on the last day of the calendar month 24 months out: certificate issued 14 March 2025, currency runs through 31 March 2027. Set a reminder at 22 months; across a team, dates drift apart fast.
No grace period, no penalty, no retest. Past 24 calendar months you may not exercise Part 107 privileges until you finish the course. You never retake the UAG and there is no fine for being late. The exposure is that every flight flown out of currency is an unlawful operation — exactly what an insurer or opposing counsel looks for after an incident.
Registering your drone under Part 107
Registration is the most-misunderstood requirement in Part 107.
The sub-250 g myth. The 0.55 lb (250 g) registration exemption applies only to recreational flight under § 44809. Any drone flown under Part 107 must be registered regardless of weight. A Mini flown for a client is a registered aircraft.
- $5, valid three years, through FAADroneZone. The registrant must be 13 or older and a US citizen or permanent resident.
- Recreational registration is per-owner — one number covers your whole inventory. Part 107 registration is per-aircraft — each airframe gets its own number and its own $5.
- The number must be legible on the exterior before flight, with proof of registration on hand.
- Aircraft at 55 lb and over register under 14 CFR Part 47, the crewed-aircraft registry, not Part 48 through DroneZone.
- A drone registered under the recreational exception cannot be flown under Part 107. It must be re-registered. Pilots who bought a drone as a hobbyist and later certificated routinely miss this, and the registry makes it obvious.
One adjacent trap: the Remote ID serial number entered at registration is not the serial printed on the airframe — get it from the manufacturer.
The Part 107 operating rules, with citations
These are the limits you fly to on every flight. Know the citation, not just the number.
| Rule | Citation | Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Groundspeed | 107.51(a) | 87 knots (100 mph) maximum |
| Altitude | 107.51(b) | 400 ft AGL, or within a 400 ft radius of a structure and no more than 400 ft above its uppermost limit |
| Visibility | 107.51(c) | 3 statute miles from the control station |
| Cloud clearance | 107.51(d) | 500 ft below, 2,000 ft horizontally |
| Visual line of sight | 107.31 | RPIC, person manipulating the controls, and VO must see the aircraft throughout the entire flight, unaided except by corrective lenses |
| One aircraft per person | 107.35 | No operating, or acting as RPIC or VO, for more than one aircraft at a time |
| Careless or reckless | 107.23 | No operation endangering life or property; no hazardous dropping of objects |
| Alcohol and drugs | 107.27 | Incorporates 91.17 and 91.19 — 8 hours bottle to throttle, BAC below 0.04 |
| Safety event reporting | 107.9 | Report within 10 calendar days any serious injury, loss of consciousness, or property damage other than to the aircraft unless repair or fair market value is $500 or less |
The altitude rule is not simply "400 feet." The structure exception lets you work a 900-foot tower legally, provided you stay within a 400-foot radius of it and no more than 400 feet above its top. That is not a waiver, and inspection pilots rely on it.
Airspace is a separate axis: Part 107 lets you fly Class G without asking anyone, while controlled airspace requires an authorization, which for most operations comes through LAANC in seconds — see airspace authorization, LAANC and TFRs.
Night and civil twilight operations under 107.29
Night flight has not required a waiver since April 2021. The Operations Over People rule eliminated it, and pre-existing waivers terminated 17 May 2021. Two conditions replace it:
- The RPIC completed an initial knowledge test or 107.65 recurrent training after 6 April 2021. If your last recurrent predates that, you are not eligible for night until you take the current course.
- The aircraft has anti-collision lighting visible for at least 3 statute miles, with a flash rate sufficient to avoid a collision. Stock navigation lights and strobes frequently are not sufficient — check the rated visibility distance.
The same lighting applies in civil twilight, the 30 minutes before sunrise and 30 minutes after sunset.
The trap. Night no longer needs a waiver, but night flight in controlled airspace still needs an airspace authorization. Authorizations are time-bounded and may not cover a flight running past sunset. Check the window on the one you actually hold.
Operations over people and moving vehicles: Categories 1 through 4
Part 107 Subpart D, effective 21 April 2021, created four categories permitting flight over people without a waiver. The category is a property of the aircraft, not of the pilot.
| Category | Citation | Threshold | Compliance documents |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 107.110 | 0.55 lb (250 g) or less including everything on board; no exposed rotating parts that would lacerate skin | None required |
| 2 | 107.115, 107.120 | No more than 11 ft-lb (14.91 J) of kinetic energy transferred on impact with a human; no lacerating exposed rotating parts | FAA-accepted means of compliance plus manufacturer declaration of compliance |
| 3 | 107.125, 107.130 | 25 ft-lb (33.9 J) kinetic energy threshold | Means of compliance plus declaration of compliance |
| 4 | 107.140 | Part 21 airworthiness certificate; operate per the approved Flight Manual | Airworthiness certificate; additional maintenance requirements |
Category 3 carries a hard prohibition: it may not be operated over open-air assemblies at all. Category 3 flight over people is limited to a closed or restricted-access site where everyone present was notified, or to operations without sustained flight over uncovered non-participants — which is why transiting over a person differs from loitering over a crowd. Categories 1, 2, and 4 require Remote ID compliance for sustained flight over open-air assemblies.
Flight over moving vehicles is governed separately by 107.145: the aircraft must meet one of Categories 1 through 4, and for Categories 1 through 3 you must either stay within a closed or restricted-access site where occupants were notified, or not maintain sustained flight over moving vehicles. Following a car down a highway for a commercial spot is a 107.145 problem, and among the least-granted waivers.
Check whether your aircraft carries a manufacturer's declaration of compliance before quoting a job that requires flight over people. Most consumer drones do not — a hard constraint on what work you can bid, and a theme in starting a drone service provider business.
How to apply for a Part 107 waiver
14 CFR 107.205 lists ten waivable sections: 107.25 (moving vehicle), 107.29(a)(2) and (b) (night lighting), 107.31 (VLOS), 107.33 (visual observer), 107.35 (multiple aircraft), 107.37(a) (right of way), 107.39 (over people), 107.41 (certain airspace), 107.51 (operating limitations), and 107.145 (over moving vehicles). Paragraphs (a) and (c) exclude any waiver permitting carriage of property for compensation or hire. 107.41 is on the list but is not handled as a waiver in practice — airspace access runs through FAADroneZone.
Where to file is genuinely confusing right now, because the FAA's own pages contradict each other. The Part 107 waivers landing page says applications have moved from FAADroneZone to the Aviation Safety Hub (Login.gov into DOT/FAA MyAccess), with an ASHub user guide dated July 2026; the Waivers Issued page still points at DroneZone. Airspace authorizations did not move. Confirm at the landing page immediately before filing.
The FAA's target is to approve or disapprove within 90 days, and the ASHub guide recommends a requested start date at least 90 days out. If the FAA requests more information you have a mandatory 30-day response window — miss it and the application is cancelled and the clock restarts.
A Pilot Institute analysis of FAA data from May 2024 found 575 active waivers:
| Waivable section | What it relieves | Active waivers (May 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| 107.31 | Visual line of sight (BVLOS) | 284 |
| 107.35 | One aircraft per person | 145 |
| 107.51(b) | Above 400 ft AGL | 127 |
| 107.33 | Visual observer requirements | 121 |
| 107.51(d) | Cloud clearance | 20 |
| 107.51(a) | Groundspeed | 12 |
| 107.25 | Operation from a moving vehicle | 9 |
BVLOS draws the most applications and has the lowest approval rate; approval rates circulate as third-party estimates only.
The FAA's Section-Specific Evaluation Information document is the best drafting guide available. Its warning:
The FAA, verbatim. "If your waiver application does not identify operational hazards and propose risk mitigation strategies, we will not be able to make a complete safety analysis and will disapprove your application."
What separates approved applications from rejected ones is concreteness. Be geographically specific — coordinates and maps, not "the state of Texas," which gets rejected on its face. Cite the standards you are building to (ASTM F3178, F3196, F3269, F3322, JARUS). Request the minimum relief you need and amend later. For 107.31 the FAA references detection distances of 1.5 SM head-on and 2 to 2.5 SM tangential and expects detect-and-avoid for cooperative and non-cooperative aircraft; for 107.35, a 1:1 ratio between maximum altitude and distance from the operational edge. Waivers of 107.51(c) and (d) are restricted to Class G.
Remote ID and reporting a safety event under 107.9
Remote ID applies to every drone that requires registration, which under Part 107 is every drone you fly. It has been fully enforced since 16 March 2024, when the FAA ended enforcement discretion. There has been no amendment to 14 CFR Part 89 in 2025 or 2026.
Three compliance paths: a Standard Remote ID aircraft with built-in broadcast; a broadcast module retrofitted to a non-equipped aircraft, which is VLOS-only and cannot be used for BVLOS; or a non-equipped aircraft flown within visual line of sight inside an FAA-Recognized Identification Area (FRIA). The broadcast differs materially: Standard Remote ID under 89.305 includes the control station's position plus an emergency status field, while a broadcast module under 89.310 sends the module's serial number and the fixed take-off location, with no emergency status field. The recordkeeping and Remote ID guide covers FRIAs, the non-broadcast authorization path, and what the broadcast difference means in practice.
Under 107.9, report to the FAA within 10 calendar days any operation resulting in serious injury to any person, any loss of consciousness, or damage to property other than the aircraft — unless repair cost or fair market value is $500 or less. Ten days is short, and flight logs, maintenance history, currency dates and the identity of the RPIC all have to be reconstructable afterward.
What a Part 107 certificate does not get you
- It is not BVLOS authority. 107.31 requires unaided visual line of sight throughout the flight; BVLOS requires a waiver, and it is the hardest one to get.
- It is not airspace access. A certificate lets you fly Class G. Controlled airspace requires a separate authorization every time.
- It is not a public-safety authority. Agencies conducting governmental functions have a distinct path through public aircraft operations and Part 91 waivers, with faster and broader BVLOS relief — see Part 107 vs. Part 91 public aircraft operations.
- It is not routine BVLOS at scale. That is the intent of Part 108, a proposed rule and not law. The NPRM published 7 August 2025 at 90 FR 38212, docket FAA-2025-1908; the final rule went to OIRA on 10 July 2026 and is still under review as of 29 August 2026. Articles claiming Part 108 is final are circulating and are wrong. No operator can claim Part 108 authority today.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a Part 107 license to fly a drone?
You need one for any flight that is not strictly recreational. The test is the purpose of the flight, not whether you were paid. Photographing a listing, inspecting a client's roof, or producing content for a monetized channel are all non-recreational even if no money changed hands. Purely-for-fun flights fall under the recreational exception in 49 U.S.C. § 44809, which requires the free TRUST test instead.
How much does it cost to get a Part 107 license?
The FAA states that testing centers charge approximately $175 for the Unmanned Aircraft General knowledge exam. The certificate itself is free and there is no FAA application fee. Registration adds $5 per aircraft for three years. Pilots holding a current Part 61 certificate with a recent flight review pay nothing, taking a free online course instead of the exam.
How long does it take to get a Part 107 certificate?
Roughly three to five weeks end to end, though that is a third-party estimate rather than an FAA commitment. Exam results can take up to 48 hours to appear in IACRA. Once you submit Form 8710-13 and TSA vetting clears, you print a temporary certificate carrying full privileges, valid 120 days while the card is mailed.
Does a Part 107 certificate expire?
No. What expires is your aeronautical knowledge recency, renewed every 24 calendar months under 14 CFR 107.65 by completing a free online course, ALC-677 or ALC-515. Currency lapses on the last day of the calendar month 24 months out. There is no grace period and no penalty for finishing late, but you may not exercise privileges until you do.
Do I have to register a sub-250 gram drone under Part 107?
Yes. The 250 gram exemption applies only to recreational flights under 49 U.S.C. § 44809. Any drone flown under Part 107 must be registered regardless of weight, at $5 per aircraft for three years — unlike recreational registration, where one number covers your whole inventory. A drone registered under the recreational exception must be re-registered first.
Can I fly at night under Part 107?
Yes, without a waiver, since the April 2021 rule. Two conditions apply under 14 CFR 107.29: the remote pilot completed an initial knowledge test or recurrent training after 6 April 2021, and the aircraft has anti-collision lighting visible for at least three statute miles with an adequate flash rate. The same lighting applies in civil twilight, and controlled airspace still requires an authorization.
How long does a Part 107 waiver take to approve?
The FAA's target is to approve or disapprove within 90 days of a complete application, and its guidance recommends a requested start date at least 90 days out. If the FAA requests additional information, you have a mandatory 30-day window to respond or the application is cancelled and the clock restarts. BVLOS waivers under 107.31 have the lowest approval rate.
What to do next
If you are not certificated: create the IACRA profile and get your FTN today, pull PSI's current Applicant Information Bulletin before buying a study course, and book the UAG early enough that a testing-center backlog does not cost you a month. If you hold a Part 61 certificate with a current flight review, skip that and take ALC-451.
If you are already certificated, check three things this week. Your recurrent date, and whether your last course was after 6 April 2021, which governs night eligibility. That every aircraft you fly is registered under Part 107, per airframe, number visible on the exterior. And if any recurring job needs flight over people, BVLOS, or above 400 feet, start the waiver now — a 90-day target plus a possible 30-day information request means a waiver begun in September is a spring capability.
Flight records, currency dates, registration expirations and 107.9 documentation all have to live somewhere retrievable, because the moment you need them is the moment after something has gone wrong.