Table of Contents
Introduction
If you enjoy traveling and yet at the same time, you need to take your drone with you wherever you go, you will want to ensure that you do not travel to a country where they ban drones. That would be a challenging thing to face if you put in all of that work, money, and time to plan for a trip, and then you find out that you cannot use your drone there. That is why no matter where you plan to travel, you have to do your homework. Now, let’s take a look and see what countries do not allow you to use drones.
Algeria
According to the country’s national aviation authority, you cannot fly drones in Algeria. Do not attempt to enter Algeria with a drone, or customs will immediately confiscate it. You may never see it again either, which will be pretty heartbreaking if you love your drone. Therefore, Algeria is off-limits when it comes to flying drones.
Antarctica
Antarctica is not a country, but it is a frozen continent where tourists visit during the austral summer, from November to March. According to the Antarctic Treaty, you cannot bring anything into the continent to disrupt its ecosystem, including drones, as that could harm its fragile environment.
Bahrain
Don’t attempt to bring a drone if you want to visit Bahrain. The Kingdom of Bahrain Ministry of Interior Customs Affairs states that any traveler cannot enter the country by bringing wireless electronic aircraft, including model airplanes and drones. The customers will confiscate the drone right away upon entry.
Bhutan
If you want to fly a drone in Bhutan, you have to be part of a governmental organization as that is the only time the country will approve the use of drones. Otherwise, if you are an ordinary traveler, customs will not hesitate to confiscate a drone if you attempt to bring a drone into the country.
Brunei
When it comes to drones and multi-copters, Brunei does not have a law that handles them. Therefore, the country does not allow any application of drones and will continue to keep the ban until they complete the legal framework. Consequently, it is not in your best interest to attempt to bring a drone there.
Cuba
The Civil Aviation Institute of Cuba or IACC does not permit the operation of drones in that country. Therefore, if you hope to fly drones on the beaches there, you will be disappointed to learn that you cannot do that as Cuba bans drones. Therefore, don’t attempt to bring them into the country. Customs will take them away.
Cote d’Ivoire
Another country where you will not want to travel to if you love your drone is Cote d’Ivoire, as customs will immediately take it away if you attempt to bring it into the country. And you may never see your drone again either. So, therefore, you do not want to risk doing that—Cross Cote d’Ivoire off of your list of countries to travel to then.
India
India does not necessarily ban drones, but the country requires you to send an application for a permit if you want to fly drones. That is the only way you can do so, and that is almost impossible to do if you are a foreign traveler. If you don’t apply, or if you do and they deny it, they will confiscate your drone at the border, and you will never see it again.
Iran
Iran bans drones, according to the Civil Aviation Organization of Iran. Do you remember the story about an Australian couple who traveled the world that brought their drones to the Iranian border? They could sneak in their drone, but law enforcers detained them in Iran after they caught them flying it.
Iraq
The Iraq Civil Aviation Authority or ICAA states that you cannot fly drones. Therefore, if you want to head over to Bagdad to do some shopping or explore the Iraqi culture, you will have to leave your drone at home, or else you will find yourself having customs take it away and never seeing it again.
Kuwait
Another country to cross off of your traveling bucket list is Kuwait if you love flying your drone. Kuwait’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation or DGCA does not permit drones and does not attempt to bring one into the country. Like the others that have a ban on drones, you will find that the customs will take your drone away.
Kyrgyzstan
According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Kyrgyzstan or the CAA, you cannot fly drones in that country either. If you attempt to bring your drone to Kyrgyzstan, you will find that customs will take it away, and you will never see it again. Therefore, do not bother going there!
Madagascar
If you have been to Madagascar before March 2015, you likely remember that there was no problem flying your drone on the beaches there. However, after March of 2015, the country banned drones. You can attempt to gain permission from the Civilian Aviation Directorate of Madagascar to fly one, but you will not likely be successful in doing so.
Morocco
Morocco is a popular travel destination because you have incredible beaches and scenery there with the desert landscapes. However, it is a problem for drone lovers because the country strictly prohibits drones, and you do not want to attempt to bring one into the country, or you won’t see it again.
Nicaragua
Like many other countries, you may enjoy heading to Nicaragua for the beaches as the scenery is lovely and relaxing. However, if you want to fly your drone there, you will not be able to do so because drones are illegal there, and customs will take it away upon entry.
Oman
If you need to fly a drone for commercial purposes in Oman, or if you are part of a governmental organization, then you have permission to fly a drone there. However, if you want to fly a drone for recreational purposes, you cannot do that as Oman placed a ban on flying drones for that reason.
Senegal
The Senegalese government does not allow drones as it has a strict ban on them. Senegal is another country to cross off of your travel bucket list if you want to travel to exotic places and fly your drones simultaneously. Customs will confiscate it upon entry.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka permitted the use of drones before Easter of 2019 when there were bombings, and after that, the country placed a ban on them. However, now, you can apply to fly drones if you want to visit Sri Lanka, but there is a lot of red tape to cut through, and you may or may not be successful with the application. There is no point in attempting to do that if you want to visit Sri Lanka.
Syria
Syria is another country where travelers cannot take drones without customs taking them away upon entry. Therefore, if you intend to travel to Syria and you want to fly your drone, you will want to think before doing so because if you try to bring it in, you will not see it again.
Uzbekistan
Not only is it illegal to fly drones in Uzbekistan, but customs catch you bringing one upon entry; not only will they confiscate it, but you are risking the possibility of ending up in jail. Therefore, is it worth taking that risk if you want not only to see Uzbekistan but fly a drone there?
Conclusion
The good news is if you want to travel to countries in North America, Central and South America (except Nicaragua), most of Europe, and Oceania and fly a drone – you can do so without any problems. However, only because countries on those continents allow you to fly drones will you want to check on any other legal requirement when it comes to doing so. In addition, just because drones may be legal to fly in certain countries, there are rules and regulations to know that go with the laws. Finally, any country that is not on the ban list in Africa and Asia may not necessarily allow drones either, so you will want to check into those as well if you plan to travel there.