REGULATIONS / ZA
South Africa: drone rules for inspection
South Africa regulates drones under Civil Aviation Regulations Part 101, largely rewritten by the 26th Amendment of March 2023. Each UA needs a registration certificate and a UAS Letter of Approval (12 months), pilots need a remote pilot certificate (RPC), and commercial work needs a UAS operator certificate (UASOC) and liability insurance. Flying over people or within 50 m of a person is prohibited, and so is flying within 50 m of a structure or building. The structure rule is waived with the owner's permission and protection for people on the ground, which is a significant help for inspection work. Flights above 400 ft, within 10 km of an aerodrome or near nuclear plants, national key points and other sensitive sites need Director approval. BVLOS and night flights are approved case by case in the UASOC operations manual or operations specifications.
Checked against official sources
Fields are recorded in the language of the research notes.
| Authority | 南アフリカ民間航空局 (SACAA) / South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) |
| Main framework | Civil Aviation Regulations, 2011, Part 101 – Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems, made under the Civil Aviation Act 13 of 2009, with technical standards in SA-CATS 101. Part 101 was largely rewritten by the Twenty-Sixth Amendment of the Civil Aviation Regulations, 2023 (Notice No. R. 3170, GG 48228, 17 March 2023). It applies to Class 1 and 2 UAS unless the Director decides otherwise, and excludes autonomous aircraft, free balloons, aircraft that cannot be managed in real time, Part 94 aircraft, model aircraft and toys. The regulation text was read in a commercial legal-publisher reproduction (Acts Online), not the Government Gazette itself. |
| Registration | A UA may not be operated in South Africa without a certificate of registration and registration mark issued by the Director (101.02.4). The mark format is set in SA-CATS 101. Ownership transfers must be notified within 30 days. Each UAS also needs a UAS Letter of Approval (UASLA, 101.02.1), valid 12 months. Whether lighter or private-use aircraft are exempt depends on the Class 1/2 definitions in SA-CATS, which were not read (not verified against an official source, 2026-10-22) |
| Remote ID | No Remote ID provision was found in the regulations read (not verified against an official source, 2026-10-22) |
| Pilot licensing | Under the 2023 text the pilot must carry a valid remote pilot certificate (RPC), a copy of the UA operator's certificate (UASOC) and its operations specifications, a registration certificate for each UA, the operator's liability insurance certificate and the user manuals (101.05.10(1)). Operation types are commercial, corporate, non-profit or private. |
| Risk categories | Class 1 and 2 UAS as defined in the regulations and SA-CATS 101, combined with operation types (commercial, corporate, non-profit, private). There is no EU-style Open/Specific scheme. The class definitions were not read (not verified against an official source, 2026-10-22) |
| BVLOS | BVLOS is prohibited unless the Director approves it in a UASOC holder's operations manual, which requires meeting SA-CATS 101. Approved BVLOS must stay in VMC and below 400 ft above the surface unless otherwise approved (101.05.11). |
| Night & over people | Night flight is allowed only in R-VLOS operation or with Director approval for a UASOC holder, recorded on the OpSpec and compliant with SA-CATS 101. Night operations in controlled airspace need separate approval (101.05.12). No flight directly over people or within 50 m laterally of any person, except with a UASOC and Director approval, or for the operator's own crew with adequate safety provisions (101.05.13). |
| Near structures | No flight within 50 m laterally of any structure or building (101.05.14) unless the operator holds a UASOC with Director approval, or has the owner's permission and takes measures to protect people on the ground. Owner permission therefore opens close-in structure inspection. Unless the Director authorises otherwise: no flight above 400 ft, within 10 km of an aerodrome reference point, in restricted or prohibited airspace, or next to or above a nuclear power plant, prison, police station, crime scene, court, national key point or strategic installation (101.05.10(3)). National key points and strategic installations can include major power and industrial sites. |
| Indoor & confined | The applicability rule does not mention indoor operations (not verified against an official source, 2026-10-22) |
| Imaging & privacy | Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) (not verified against an official source, 2026-10-22) |
| Recent changes | The Twenty-Sixth Amendment of the Civil Aviation Regulations (17 March 2023) substituted most of Part 101, bringing in UASLA, UASOC, RPC terminology and the current distance and night rules. Amendments in 2024-2026 were not checked (not verified against an official source, 2026-10-22) |
Sources
- CAR 101.01.1 – ApplicabilityFull text read
- CAR 101.02.1 – UAS letter of approvalFull text read
- CAR 101.02.4 – Registration and markingFull text read
- CAR 101.05.10 – General restrictionsFull text read
- CAR 101.05.11 – Beyond visual line of sight operationsFull text read
- CAR 101.05.12 – Night operationsFull text read
- CAR 101.05.13 – Operations in vicinity of peopleFull text read
- CAR 101.05.14 – Operations in the vicinity of property, structures and buildingsFull text read
Sources checked: 2026-10-22