The Dominican Republic is a wonderful place to fly a drone. The scenes practically film themselves here. All you need to do is lift the drone and start taking photos or recording, and your shots will turn out spectacular. You don’t even need to enhance them to impress anyone you show them to.
At first glance, the Dominican Republic may seem like a “second world” country legislatively. However, it is worth familiarizing yourself with the law regarding the operation of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Drone operation is regulated in the Dominican Republic, which means that in addition to holding a license, we must obtain permission from the local authority.
Regulations Regarding UAV Operation
The law regulating drone flight in the Dominican Republic was developed by the local Civil Aviation Institute (IDAC – Instituto Dominicano de Aviación Civil). All persons wishing to fly a drone must register their unmanned aerial vehicles with the Institute and obtain the appropriate permit.
It is important to remember that, as in European countries, in the Dominican Republic you can operate a drone at a maximum altitude of 120m AGL (above ground level). Drones weighing more than 2 kilograms, commonly recognized as unmanned aerial vehicles, are subject to the same law in the Dominican Republic as manned aircraft. This means that pilots of these drones should have special permission from the Civil Aviation Institute (IDAC). Furthermore, it is prohibited to fly over people or property at an altitude below 50m unless you have the appropriate permit. The drone should be operated within visual line of sight, and the pilot must not be in a state of intoxication (under the influence of alcohol or drugs).
How to Obtain a Permit to Fly a Drone?
The first step is to send an email to siaga@idac.gov.do or dtac@idac.gov.do with information that you would like to begin the drone flight registration process. Subsequently, you should receive information from the Institute’s autoresponder with instructions and requirements necessary to obtain the permit. The message will include a link to a website from which you can download the registration form. Some sites with the Dominican domain (.do) may not work in Poland with certain Internet providers. In that case, you should ask the Institute employee assigned to you for the form and send them all the documents. The required documents for registration are:
- Properly completed registration form IDAC-1500-9 in physical or digital format
- Color scan – drone operator license
- Scan of document confirming drone registration
- Scan of insurance (if required in your country)
- Satellite map photos with coordinates of the locations where we plan to operate the drone
All these documents should be sent as attachments to the employee who has been assigned to us.
Please note that the Institute employee may ask us beforehand to send photos of our identity document in order to verify us and register us in their database for future registrations. All applications should be submitted at least 5 days before the planned flight.
Drone registration is FREE!
The document authorizing drone operation should be received within a maximum of two weeks from submitting the application. It is worth taking this into account and organizing all documentation well in advance!
Summary
Many people bringing drones to the Dominican Republic disregard the law in force there. Unfortunately, this results in the current law being tightened. Very often, accidents also occur in which third parties suffer. As you can see, organizing a permit is not a complicated process and it is worth taking a moment to obtain it. In the event of any inspection by the authorities, we will have a document that will allow us to avoid problems.
UPDATE 27.02.2024
Information has appeared on many online forums stating that in the Dominican Republic there is no obligation to register drone flights if the drone weighs less than 250 grams. I previously contacted IDAC (as a reminder, the Aviation Institute in the Dominican Republic) regarding this matter, which assured me that every drone flight should be registered in advance.
However, I decided to delve deeper into the topic and thoroughly examine Dominican aviation law. UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) flight is regulated by a law for which several regulations have been issued. We must focus on RAD48, which formalizes the conditions for UAV flight registration. Below I include the most important points:
Section 48.1 Application
The following regulation contains registration and identification requirements for small remotely controlled unmanned aerial vehicles weighing less than 0.55 pounds (250g) and less than 55 pounds (25kg), which form part of the small unmanned aerial vehicle aviation system (RPAS), as defined in RAD 1.
Section 48.7 RPA Operation Criteria
No person may operate a UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) unless the following requirements are met:
- The owner registers and marks the UAV in accordance with the current RAD
- A small remotely controlled UAV that weighs less than 0.55 pounds (250g) at takeoff.
Section 48.15 On RPA Registration
Every owner of a UAV weighing no more than 25kg should register it with the IDAC National Aircraft Registry Department
Explanation
Section 48.7, subsection (b) states that drone flights up to 250 grams are permitted. However, section 48.15 specifies that every owner of a UAV weighing no more than 25kg should register it with the IDAC National Aircraft Registry Department.
Note
Furthermore, according to IDAC regulations, when entering the Dominican Republic, customs services may confiscate a drone if the holder does not have the appropriate permit.
Jędrzej Pacak
