Drone regulation from 1 January 2023 (Switzerland)

Switzerland adopts the new European drone regulation, which came into force on 1 January 2023. From this point on, there is a registration obligation for drone pilots and drones.

1. You register (privately or as a company) on UAS.gate and receive an operator number that you attach to your drone.
2. Check the table below to see in which category you can fly your drone and take the “small drone license” accordingly, and for subcategory A2 additionally the “large drone license”.
3. Special case “transitional category”: Currently, many drones do not yet have a class designation from the manufacturer, and older drones will more receive one. These devices fall under the “transitional categories”, which in practice means that you have to keep higher distances with “old” drones. See table below for details.

In which category does my drone fly (Switzerland)?

last update: 01.05.2023

Category	Open Category	Open Category	Open Category	Open Category	Special Category
Subcategory	A1	A1	A2	A3
Class designation						Left
Drones with class designation from the manufacturer		DJI Mavic 3 (C1), Mavic 3 Classic (C1)	DJI Mavic 3 Pro (C2)	DJI Inspire 3 (C3), DJI Mavic 3 Pro (C2) -> DJI Mavic 3 Pro can be promoted to category A2 with a large “A2” driver’s license	Delair UX (C6)
Types of drones without class designation from the manufacturer	DJI Mavic Mini, Mini 2, Mini SE, Mini 3, Mini 3 Pro, Autel EVO NANO+	Until December 23 in this category: DJI Spark, Avata, Parrot Anafi	Until December 23 in this category: DJI Air, Air Air 2, Air 2S, Mavic 2 Pro/Zoom, DJI FPV, DJI Phantom 1/2/3/4 Air	From January 24 in this category: DJI Spark, Avata, Air, AirAir 2, Air 2S, Mavic 2 Pro/Zoom, DJI FPV, Parrot Anafi, DJI Phantom 1/2/3/4 Air Until December 23 and from Jan 24 in this category: DJI Inspire 1, Inspire 2
Category	Open Category	Open Category	Open Category	Open Category	Special Category
Subcategory	A1	A1	A2	A3		https://www.bazl.admin.ch/bazl/de/home/drohnen/open.html
Drone weight up to	<250g	<900g +Transitional <category 500g until Dec 23	<4’000g +Transitional <category 2’000g until Dec 23	<25’000g +Transitional >category 250g from Jan 24	<25’000g
without class, until Dec 23	A1 (250g) ok	go to A2
without class, from Jan 24	A1 (250g) ok	go to A3
License plate or registration as a drone operator (private or business)	needed	needed	needed	needed		https://www.uas.gate.bazl.admin.ch//
small driver’s license “A1/A3”	not necessary	needed	needed	needed	needed	https://www.uas.gate.bazl.admin.ch/
large driver’s license “A2”	not necessary	not necessary	needed	not necessary	Most Needed	Low-cost online provider: https://www.droneschool.eu/slides/drone-license-open-a2-online-32
Driver’s license STS-01/2	not necessary	not necessary	not necessary	not necessary	needed
Approval procedures	not necessary	not necessary	not necessary	not necessary	STS-01 to operate drones C5 in A2, STS-02 to operate drones C6 BVLOS, PDRA, SORA LUC	https://www.bazl.admin.ch/bazl/de/home/drohnen/specific.html
Liability insurance	not necessary	needed	needed	needed	needed
Flying over uninvolved persons	allowed	avoid	forbidden, distance to people: flight altitude = min. Distance, min. 30m, in low-speed mode min. 5m	forbidden, distance to people: flight altitude = min. Distance, min. 30m or distance traveled in 2s (whichever is greater)
Flying over crowds of people	forbidden	forbidden	forbidden	forbidden
Flying in the city (uninvolved persons are usually to be expected)	allowed	allowed	forbidden	forbidden
Flying out of town	allowed	allowed	allowed	permitted, while maintaining a minimum horizontal distance of 150m from residential/commercial/industrial and recreational areas
Altitude	.max. 120 m above ground level	.max. 120 m above ground level	.max. 120 m above ground level	.max. 120 m above ground level
VLOS (flying without visual contact with the drone)	forbidden	forbidden	forbidden	forbidden	depending on the authorisation obtained
Exclusion zones	5km around airports, nature reserves and wildlife sanctuaries, temporary area restrictions	5km around airports, nature reserves and wildlife sanctuaries, temporary area restrictions	5km around airports, nature reserves and wildlife sanctuaries, temporary area restrictions	5km around airports, nature reserves and wildlife sanctuaries, temporary area restrictions		https://www.skybriefing.com/de/home https://www.skyguide.ch/de/dienstleistungen/drohnenfluege https://map.geo.admin.ch/?topic=aviation&bgLayer=ch.swisstopo.pixelkarte-grau&layers=ch.bazl.einschraenkungen-drohnen&X=189554.62&Y=664804.11&zoom=1&catalogNodes=1379&layers_opacity=0.6&lang=de
Minimum age	12 years, under 12 years with accompanying person 16 years	12 years, under 12 years with accompanying person 16 years	12 years, under 12 years with accompanying person 16 years	12 years, under 12 years with accompanying person 16 years

Please report bugs at info@drohnenspital.com

If your requirements cannot be covered by one of the “open categories/subcategories”, e.g. BVLOS (flying out of sight), then you fall into the “special category”, and there you need special permits that are difficult to obtain. Certain associations have obtained permits for their members for specific assignments. Check with your association about this.

FOCA Info Sheet

Useful articles

Further links:

FOCA
EASA

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