Global Drone Regulations & Conservation Permits
ConservationDroneRegs – a practical gateway to country-by-country drone rules
ConservationDroneRegs is a volunteer-run project rebuilding and updating the original Global Drone Regulations Database. Our goal is simple: give conservationists, researchers, pilots and regulators a clear starting point for understanding national drone regulations, JARUS / SORA status, and – where possible – special requirements for conservation and environmental work.
Status: early rebuild. Country pages and content are being restored from backups and new research. Expect gaps, outdated references and broken links while we quietly put things back together.
How to use this site (for now)
- Start with your country page – use the country list or map (coming soon) to open the relevant page.
- Read the summary – where available, we provide a short, plain-language description of current drone rules and any known work-arounds for conservation projects.
- Follow the original legal sources – links to civil aviation authority regulations, guidance material and permit forms are included whenever we can verify them.
- Double-check with your CAA or regulator – nothing here replaces official advice. Rules change fast; treat this site as a starting point, not legal confirmation.
- Share corrections and updates – if you spot an error, a broken link, or have new guidance to share, scroll down to the “Contribute updates” section and contact us.
What we are rebuilding
The original Global Drone Regulations Database was created with support from FSD and humanitarian partners between 2014–2018. It combined a clickable world map with per-country pages summarising UAV laws, travel experiences, legal sources and contact information. That site eventually went offline, and much of the content now survives only in database backups.
ConservationDroneRegs is the next step: a refreshed, conservation-focused version that keeps the best parts of the original project while adding:
- clearer structure for civil aviation rules, special conservation permits, and environmental ministries;
- flags for JARUS / SORA adoption and BVLOS frameworks where information is available;
- links to practical resources from conservation tech communities and CAAs;
- space for country-level notes contributed by rangers, researchers and local pilots.
Who this site is for
Conservation teams & NGOs
Field projects using drones for wildlife monitoring, habitat mapping, anti-poaching, marine patrols or disaster response who need to understand what is legally possible in a country.
Regulators & government partners
Civil aviation authorities, environment ministries and parks agencies developing or refining UAS regulations and looking for examples of how peers are handling conservation applications.
Researchers, students & trainers
People teaching or studying drones in nature conservation who need a global overview and links to primary legal sources.
Contribute updates or corrections
This project will only be useful if it stays up to date and reflects local realities. We welcome short, factual contributions:
- new or updated links to official regulations, circulars or guidance;
- clarifications from civil aviation authorities or environment ministries;
- notes from conservation projects that have successfully obtained permits;
- polite corrections when we get something wrong.
To share an update, please email:
contact@conservationdroneregs.info
(Temporary contact while we rebuild. A short, factual note with links is ideal.)
Connected initiatives
ConservationDroneRegs is part of a wider volunteer effort to support safe, ethical drones in nature conservation, including:
- Drone Use in Conservation Map – an open map of real conservation drone projects:
https://naturedroneforum.org/map-conservation-drones - Global Conservation Tech & Drone Forum – a global event series focused on drones, AI and conservation tech:
https://gctdf.org