Regulations
Do I Need to Register My Drone? The Rule and the Exception
✓ Reviewed against current FAA sources on October 22, 2026
In this guide
In short
Section 48.15 (opens in a new tab) exempts a small unmanned aircraft weighing 0.55 pounds or less on takeoff, including everything on board or attached, but only if it is operated exclusively under 49 U.S.C. 44809, the recreational exception. If you fly under Part 107, the aircraft must be registered regardless of its weight.
This is the question most often answered incorrectly online, because the popular version of the answer leaves out the condition that makes it true.
The popular answer, and what it omits
You will frequently read that drones weighing 0.55 pounds or less do not need to be registered. That is a partial quotation of Section 48.15 (opens in a new tab), titled "Requirement to register."
The exemption for aircraft weighing 0.55 pounds or less on takeoff, including everything on board or otherwise attached, applies only when the aircraft is operated exclusively under 49 U.S.C. 44809, the statutory exception for limited recreational operations.
What that means for a Part 107 pilot
If you are flying under Part 107, for work, for a business, or for any purpose that is not purely recreational, the weight exemption does not reach you. The aircraft must be registered, whatever it weighs. A sub-250-gram aircraft used for a paid photograph is a registered aircraft.
This is the single most common compliance error among new commercial operators, precisely because the folk version of the rule is so widely repeated.
One aircraft, two possible registrations
Registration under Part 48 can be made under the Part 107 framework or under the recreational framework, and they are not interchangeable. If the same aircraft is sometimes flown recreationally and sometimes for work, the Part 107 registration is the one you need.
Registration and remote identification are linked
The serial number of a standard remote identification aircraft must appear on its certificate of registration, or be supplied to the FAA under Section 89.130 (opens in a new tab) before the operation. You cannot treat registration and remote ID as two unrelated errands. We cover the broadcast side in Remote ID: what every Part 107 pilot must broadcast.
Marking the aircraft
The registration number must be displayed on the aircraft. Section 48.205 (opens in a new tab) governs how, and the requirement that the marking be readable without tools is the detail that appears on tests.
Which rules you are flying under is the real question
Almost every registration question resolves into a prior question: is this flight recreational or not? If you are unsure, Part 107 versus recreational drone rules sets out the test.
Sources: 14 CFR 48.15 (opens in a new tab), 48.205 (opens in a new tab); 49 U.S.C. 44809; 14 CFR 89.130 (opens in a new tab).