Reference page
The drone rules that apply in Belgium sit in three texts. Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945 defines the aircraft classes, from C0 to C6. Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 sets the operational categories and the flight rules. The Royal Decree of 8 November 2020 implements those texts here and lays down the insurance requirement.
The competent authority is the Directorate-General for Air Transport, within the FPS Mobility and Transport. The European framework comes from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, EASA, and the minimum insured amounts come from Regulation (EC) No 785/2004.
What follows sets out where things stand, with a source for every statement and the day we checked it. The rules in force before 31 December 2020, with their classes 1 and 2 and their one-kilo threshold, have been repealed. If you read them anywhere as current law, that page is five years behind.
Schematic. In the open category the 120-metre ceiling is measured from the take-off point, not from sea level.
Third-party liability insurance is compulsory for every drone operator in Belgium. One exemption exists, and it takes two conditions at once: strictly private use and a maximum take-off mass below 900 grams.
4 sources · checked on 09/09/2026
The open category covers low-risk flights: below 120 metres, within visual line of sight, never over a gathering, with an aircraft under 25 kilos. It divides into three subcategories, A1, A2 and A3, according to how far you are from uninvolved people.
3 sources · checked on 09/09/2026
As soon as one requirement of the open category is no longer met, the operation moves into the specific category. The insurance regime then changes in kind: the European regulation applies with no weight threshold at all, including for a 3-kilo aircraft.
5 sources · checked on 09/09/2026
In Belgium it is the operator that is registered, not the aircraft. The process is free, required from 250 grams, and from the first gram if the drone carries a camera. The insurance policy number is asked for during the procedure.
3 sources · checked on 09/09/2026
The European regulation does not classify drones by use, by trade or by price. It classifies them by the risk of the operation. The same aircraft can therefore fall under two regimes, depending on where you fly it and how you fly it. That is the first thing to settle before insurance is discussed, because the category decides the obligation.
| Category | What defines it | Formality | Insurance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open | Flight within visual line of sight, below 120 metres, with a take-off mass under 25 kilos, never over a crowd. | Registration of the operator and online training. No prior authorisation. | Required, except for strictly private use with an aircraft under 900 grams. |
| Specific | Everything the open category does not allow: beyond visual line of sight, above 120 metres, or too close to people. | Declaration under a European standard scenario, case-by-case operational authorisation, or a light UAS operator certificate. | Required in every case, with no weight threshold. |
| Certified | Carrying people, dangerous goods, or flight over crowds with an aircraft more than 3 metres across. | Certification of the aircraft, licence for the remote pilot and approval of the operator. | Required, with minimum amounts that follow the take-off mass. |
The great majority of Belgian operators work under the open regime. The move into the specific category comes sooner than expected: inspecting a pylon that reaches past the permitted height, a flight above an occupied site, or a survey during which the remote pilot loses sight of the aircraft is enough each time.
The class marking is applied by the manufacturer, in the factory. It cannot be obtained or caught up with after purchase. It sets how close you may come to people, and therefore nearly everything that concerns you in practice.
| Class | Take-off mass | What it opens |
|---|---|---|
| C0 | under 250 g | A1, including above isolated people |
| C1 | under 900 g | A1, with no deliberate flight over people |
| C2 | under 4 kg | A2, at 30 metres from people, 5 metres in low-speed mode |
| C3 | under 25 kg | A3, at 150 metres from inhabited areas |
| C4 | under 25 kg | A3, manual flight with no automatic mode |
| C5 | under 25 kg | Specific category, standard scenario STS-01 |
| C6 | under 25 kg | Specific category, standard scenario STS-02 |
An aircraft bought before January 2024 usually carries no marking at all. It still flies, but under a regime of its own that closes subcategory A2 to it. That regime is set out on the open category page .
The order of the steps often comes as a surprise. People expect to insure the aircraft once the registration is through; it runs the other way round. The policy number is asked for during the registration of the operator, on the portal of the Directorate-General for Air Transport. Without a policy that procedure does not reach its end.
The minimum amount of cover does not come from Belgian law but from Regulation (EC) No 785/2004, which expresses the sums in special drawing rights. For a light aircraft the floor sits around 885,000 EUR. In practice Belgian insurers offer sums of 1 to 2.5 million euros, because that legal floor copes badly with serious personal injury.
One point still deserves attention: the regulations impose third-party liability, and nothing else. Your aircraft, your sensors, lost income after a grounding and your disputes belong to optional covers, negotiated separately. The comparison of the six covers shows which are included in each formula.
Operational declarations resting on national standard scenarios are no longer valid. Three routes stayed open: the European standard scenario, the authorisation issued case by case, or the light UAS operator certificate. Whichever of the three was taken, the risk insured has changed, and the policy ought to follow.
A specific question rather than a full read? The twelve questions we are asked most each get their answer in one sentence.
Fully checked on 9 September 2026. These pages describe a regulatory framework and do not constitute legal advice.
