How to register your drone
So you’ve completed your license and bought your first drone, now what?
The first step is to register your drone (if it is over 250g) with Transport Canada through the Drone Management Portal. This blog post will quickly walk you through how to register your drone with Transport Canada.
Do I need to register my drone?
All drones between 250 g and 25 kg in weight must be registered. This includes custom-built drones and drones built from a kit or off-the shelf.
Drones under 250 g do not need to be registered unless something is attached to it that increases its weight to 250 g or more.
An example of a drone that falls in this category is the DJI Mavic Mini.
Drones over 25 kg also do not need to be registered, but require a special flight operations certificate (SFOC) instead.
Heads up! If you do not register your drone and meet the requirements you will face penalties and fines ranging from $1000 for recreational users, to $5000 for commercial users.
There are multiple benefits of registering your drone, outside of the legal requirements:
If you lose your drone, registration may help in returning it to you if it is found.
If there is a recall from the manufacturer, Transport Canada may be able to notify you.
How do I register my drone?
Click here on Transport Canada’s Drone Management Portal, once signed in.
First you must sign into the drone management portal. This is the same portal where you have written the required exams for your drone license, as well as where you will find and manage your paperwork and personal information.
Before you begin the process, its best to have these pieces of information at hand:
Purchase date (if applicable)
Make, model, serial number, weight and type of drone
Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Interac card to pay the registration fee of $5
On the landing page there is a clear icon marked “Register a Drone”, once you have clicked on the you will be led through the process of registration that typically takes around 3 minutes, and only costs $5.
Once you have paid for the registration you will receive proof of registration - this you will need to print and keep with your drone at all times
It’s usually best to keep it with the manual and other related paperwork with the drone and in your operations binder.
How do I mark my drone?
The next required step is to clearly mark the registration number on your drone. It must be clearly visible while looking at the drone so a placement on the front, the bottom and/or the top of the drone will work best.
The registration number can be marked with either:
A permanent marker
A permanent label
An engraving
What should I do after I register and mark my drone?
With the Transport Canada paperwork finished you can move on to setting up on NavDrone. This will allow you to plan operations in controlled airspace and in the vicinity of airports while working with the appropriate control tower, flight service station or operations manager.
Once you have input your information on NavDrone the next step is to do the same on the DJI Fly Safe site that you will use to unlock zones in controlled airspace.
Once you have completed these tasks, you will be set to fly!
By Kora Vanderlip, Instructor
