Can I fly my drone over people under Part 107?

Yes, but only in one of the four categories in Subpart D of Part 107. Category 1 covers aircraft weighing 0.55 pounds or less with no exposed rotating parts that would lacerate skin. Categories 2 and 3 require the aircraft to be listed on an FAA-accepted declaration of compliance and labeled for the category. Category 4 requires an airworthiness certificate issued under Part 21.

What is the weight limit for flying over people?

0.55 pounds (250 grams) counts everything on board or attached to the aircraft for Category 1. A heavier drone needs Category 2 or Category 3 eligibility from its manufacturer, or a Part 21 airworthiness certificate for Category 4 operations.

What is a declaration of compliance?

It is the document a manufacturer or applicant submits to the FAA showing that the aircraft meets the Category 2 or Category 3 requirements, including the kinetic energy threshold and the requirement that it has no exposed rotating parts that would lacerate human skin. Once the FAA accepts it, the aircraft must be labeled as eligible for that category.

Can I fly over an open-air assembly of people?

Category 3 aircraft may never operate over open-air assemblies of human beings. Category 1, Category 2 and Category 4 aircraft may not conduct sustained flight over open-air assemblies unless the operation meets the Remote ID requirements in 14 CFR 89.110 (standard Remote ID) or 89.115(a) (broadcast module).

Do I need Remote ID to fly over people?

No, but you need it before sustained flight over an open-air assembly. Remote ID under Part 89 is a separate requirement from the operations-over-people categories, and the two rules come together in that specific situation.

Can I fly over moving vehicles?

Only if the operation meets 14 CFR 107.145. For Category 1, 2 and 3, the aircraft must remain within or over a closed- or restricted-access site where everyone inside a moving vehicle is on notice, or it must not maintain sustained flight over moving vehicles. Category 4 requires a Part 21 airworthiness certificate and operating limitations that do not prohibit it.

Do I still need a waiver to fly over people?

No. Before the 2021 rule the only route was an individual waiver under 107.205. Amendment 107-8, effective April 21, 2021, created Subpart D, so an aircraft that is compliant with its category can operate over people without a waiver.

What if the category label on my drone is missing?

Under 107.135, the remote pilot in command must label the aircraft in English, legibly and prominently, correctly identifying the category or categories it is qualified for, before conducting operations over human beings.

Part 107 Operations Over People: Categories 1-4 Explained (2026)

What Subpart D Changed

For the first five years of the Part 107 rule, flying over people was effectively off limits. Section 107.39 allowed it only when the person was directly participating in the operation, or was under a covered structure or inside a stationary vehicle that could protect them from a falling drone. Everyone else needed an individual waiver under 107.205, and those waivers were slow to obtain.

Amendment 107-8, published on January 15, 2021 and effective April 21, 2021, added Subpart D to Part 107 and created four categories of operation over human beings. Instead of proving safety operation by operation, manufacturers now demonstrate it on the aircraft, and pilots operate according to the category the aircraft is eligible for.

The Four Categories at a Glance

Category	What the aircraft needs	Key operating limits
Category 1	0.55 lb or less on takeoff, including everything on board, with no exposed rotating parts that would lacerate skin	No sustained flight over open-air assemblies unless Remote ID requirements are met
Category 2	Listed on an FAA-accepted declaration of compliance, labeled, no lacerating rotating parts, no safety defects	Injury no greater than a transfer of 11 foot-pounds of kinetic energy. No sustained flight over open-air assemblies unless Remote ID requirements are met
Category 3	Listed on an FAA-accepted declaration of compliance, labeled	Injury no greater than a transfer of 25 foot-pounds of kinetic energy. Never over open-air assemblies, and only over people in a closed or restricted site on notice, or with no sustained flight over uninvolved people
Category 4	Airworthiness certificate issued under Part 21, maintained under Part 43 and Part 91 subpart E	Operated within the flight manual limitations, which must not prohibit operations over people

Category 1: The Sub-250 Gram Route

Category 1 is the simplest path and the one most consumer drones fall into. The aircraft must weigh 0.55 pounds or less on takeoff and throughout the flight, counting the battery, the payload, the propeller guards and anything else attached. It also must not have exposed rotating parts that would lacerate human skin on impact, which is why prop guards matter on a drone you intend to fly over people.

You do not need a declaration of compliance for Category 1, and there is no label to check. The catch is that the weight limit applies throughout the operation, so a sub-250 gram drone with a heavy camera payload stops qualifying.

Category 2: Declared Compliance, 11 Foot-Pounds

Category 2 covers aircraft whose impact will not cause injury equivalent to or greater than a transfer of 11 foot-pounds of kinetic energy from a rigid object. The manufacturer proves that with test, analysis or inspection, and files a means of compliance and a declaration of compliance with the FAA. When the FAA accepts the declaration, the aircraft must carry a permanent, legible English label stating that it is eligible for Category 2 operations.

As a pilot, your job is to check the label and the remote pilot operating instructions. You also need to know that a repaired or modified aircraft can lose its eligibility if the repair changes the characteristics the declaration was based on.

Category 3: Higher Energy, Stricter Rules

Category 3 raises the kinetic energy threshold to 25 foot-pounds, which covers heavier aircraft, but it comes with operating restrictions that Category 2 does not have. A Category 3 aircraft may not operate over open-air assemblies of human beings at all, with no Remote ID exception. To fly over people it must either stay within or over a closed- or restricted-access site where everyone inside is on notice that a drone may fly over them, or avoid sustained flight over anyone who is not directly participating in the operation, under a covered structure, or inside a stationary vehicle.

If you fly over a construction site, a closed set, or a fenced inspection area with a Category 3 aircraft, you are working inside the first condition. If you fly over a public park, you are not.

Category 4: Airworthiness Certificate

Category 4 is the aircraft route. The drone must hold an airworthiness certificate issued under Part 21, be maintained under Part 43 or an equivalent program, and be flown within operating limitations that do not prohibit operations over people. This is the category used by larger commercial platforms and by operators who need to fly at higher weights over people on a regular basis.

Open-Air Assemblies and Remote ID

Sustained flight over an open-air assembly is the line the rule draws most firmly. Categories 1, 2 and 4 may do it only when the operation satisfies 14 CFR 89.110, meaning the aircraft broadcasts standard Remote ID, or 89.115(a), meaning it carries a Remote ID broadcast module. Category 3 may not do it under any circumstances. If you are not sure whether your aircraft qualifies, read our guide to Remote ID and check the FAA's Declaration of Compliance database before you plan the flight.

Operations Over Moving Vehicles

Section 107.145 handles people inside moving vehicles, and it does not come free with any category. For Categories 1, 2 and 3 the aircraft must remain within or over a closed- or restricted-access site where all occupants are on notice, or it must not maintain sustained flight over moving vehicles. Category 4 aircraft must have an airworthiness certificate and limitations that do not prohibit it. If your commercial job involves filming traffic or a moving production vehicle, this is the paragraph that decides whether the flight is legal.

How to Confirm Your Category Before You Fly

Weigh the aircraft as flown, with payload, and record it. That number decides whether Category 1 is even in play.
Look for the category label on the airframe and keep the remote pilot operating instructions with the aircraft.
Check the FAA's Declaration of Compliance database for the aircraft model and the categories it is eligible for.
Confirm Remote ID status before any flight over an open-air assembly.
Review the site for moving vehicles and uninvolved people, and write the plan into your preflight per 107.49.

Operations over people is one of the 13 knowledge areas in 107.73, so category questions show up on both the initial UAG test and the recurrent test. For the full breakdown of the 60-question exam, start with our Part 107 study guide, and pair this article with the Remote ID guide so the two overlapping rules stay straight in your head.