{"id":12947,"date":"2025-03-25T12:28:29","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T12:28:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/safety\/regulations\/open-category\/"},"modified":"2025-05-20T16:49:36","modified_gmt":"2025-05-20T16:49:36","slug":"open-category","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/safety\/regulations\/open-category\/","title":{"rendered":"Open category"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"l-section wpb_row height_custom full_height valign_top\"><div class=\"l-section-h i-cf\"><div class=\"g-cols vc_row via_grid cols_1 laptops-cols_inherit tablets-cols_inherit mobiles-cols_1 valign_top type_default stacking_default\"><div class=\"wpb_column vc_column_container\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><p>The <strong>Open category<\/strong> is divided into <strong>three subcategories<\/strong>: <strong>A1<\/strong>, <strong>A2<\/strong> and <strong>A3<\/strong>. Each has different requirements regarding safety and distance from people and buildings. You can review the requirements by <strong>Subcategory<\/strong> described below.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><h2><b>Subcategory A1\u00a0<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><strong>Flying close to people but not over them (can also fly in subcategory A3)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This category includes drones with classes <strong>Others A1<\/strong>, <strong>C0<\/strong> and <strong>C1<\/strong> and has the following requirements:<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><div class=\"w-tabs style_default switch_click accordion type_togglable has_scrolling\" style=\"--sections-title-size:inherit\"><div class=\"w-tabs-sections titles-align_none icon_plus cpos_right\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section\" id=\"kd20\"><button class=\"w-tabs-section-header\" aria-controls=\"content-kd20\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><h5 class=\"w-tabs-section-title\">Class C0 (&lt;250g)<\/h5><div class=\"w-tabs-section-control\"><\/div><\/button><div  class=\"w-tabs-section-content\" id=\"content-kd20\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section-content-h i-cf\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Subcategory<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>A1 (can also fly in subcategory A3)<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Operational restrictions<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; No flight over assemblies of people;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Maintain flight altitude below 120m above ground level.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Drone operator registration<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">No, unless camera \/ sensor on board and a drone is not a toy.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot competence<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Read carefully the user manual<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot minimum age<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>16*, no minimum age if drone is a toy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">*<strong>Note<\/strong>: <em>A State may lower the remote pilot minimum age to 12. In that case, the lowered age limit will apply only in that State.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-tabs-section\" id=\"ee29\"><button class=\"w-tabs-section-header\" aria-controls=\"content-ee29\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><h5 class=\"w-tabs-section-title\">Class C1 (&lt;900g)<\/h5><div class=\"w-tabs-section-control\"><\/div><\/button><div  class=\"w-tabs-section-content\" id=\"content-ee29\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section-content-h i-cf\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Subcategory<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>A1 (can also fly in subcategory A3)<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Operational restrictions<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; No flight expected over uninvolved people (if it happens, overflight should be minimised);<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; No flight over assemblies of people;<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Maintain flight altitude below 120m above ground level.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Drone operator registration<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>Yes<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot competence<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Read carefully the user manual<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Obtain a \u2018Proof of completion for online training\u2019 for A1\/A3 \u2018open\u2019 subcategory by:<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1. Completing the online training<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n2. Passing the online theoretical exam<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot minimum age<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">16*<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">*<strong>Note<\/strong>:<em> A State may lower the remote pilot minimum age to 12. In that case, the lowered age limit will apply only in that State.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-tabs-section\" id=\"of01\"><button class=\"w-tabs-section-header\" aria-controls=\"content-of01\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><h5 class=\"w-tabs-section-title\">Class Others \u04101 (&lt;250g)<\/h5><div class=\"w-tabs-section-control\"><\/div><\/button><div  class=\"w-tabs-section-content\" id=\"content-of01\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section-content-h i-cf\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><p><strong>Privately built and drones placed on the market\u00a0before 01\/01\/2024 (under 250 g)<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Subcategory<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>A1 (can also fly in subcategory A3)<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Operational restrictions<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; May fly over uninvolved people (should be avoided when possible)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; No flight over assemblies of people<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Drone operator registration<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>No, unless camera \/ sensor on board and a drone is not a toy<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot competence<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>No training required<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot minimum age<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>No minimum age<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><h2><strong>Subcategory <\/strong><b>A2<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><strong>Flying close to people<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This <strong>Subcategory A2<\/strong> includes drones with <strong>C2<\/strong> classes<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><div class=\"w-tabs style_default switch_click accordion type_togglable has_scrolling\" style=\"--sections-title-size:inherit\"><div class=\"w-tabs-sections titles-align_none icon_plus cpos_right\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section\" id=\"g387\"><button class=\"w-tabs-section-header\" aria-controls=\"content-g387\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><h5 class=\"w-tabs-section-title\">Class C2 (&lt;4 kg)<\/h5><div class=\"w-tabs-section-control\"><\/div><\/button><div  class=\"w-tabs-section-content\" id=\"content-g387\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section-content-h i-cf\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Subcategory<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>A2 (can also fly in subcategory A3)<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Operational restrictions<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Must not overfly uninvolved people;<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Maintain a horizontal distance of 30 m from uninvolved people (can be reduced to 5 m if the low-speed function is activated);<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Maintain flight altitude below 120m above ground level.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Drone operator registration<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>Yes<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot competence<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Read carefully the user manual<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Obtain a \u2019Remote pilot certificate of competency\u2019 for A2 \u2018open\u2019 subcategory by:<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1. Having a \u2018Proof of completion for online training\u2019 for A1\/A3 \u2018open\u2019 subcategory<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Conducting and declare a practical self- training<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">3. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Passing an additional theoretical exam at the NAA or proctored online<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot minimum age<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">16*<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>*<strong>Note<\/strong>: <em>A State may lower the remote pilot minimum age to 12. In that case, the lowered age limit will apply only in that State.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><h2><b>Subcategory A3 <\/b><\/h2>\n<p><strong>Flying away from people and settlements<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This <strong>Subcategory A3<\/strong> includes drones with classes <strong>C3<\/strong>, <strong>C4<\/strong> and <strong>Other A3<\/strong> (as well as classes C0, C1 and Others A1, which can also fly in this subcategory and are described above under <strong>Subcategory A1<\/strong>) and have the following requirements:<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><div class=\"w-tabs style_default switch_click accordion type_togglable has_scrolling\" style=\"--sections-title-size:inherit\"><div class=\"w-tabs-sections titles-align_none icon_plus cpos_right\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section\" id=\"q67c\"><button class=\"w-tabs-section-header\" aria-controls=\"content-q67c\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><h5 class=\"w-tabs-section-title\">Class C3 (&lt;25 kg)<\/h5><div class=\"w-tabs-section-control\"><\/div><\/button><div  class=\"w-tabs-section-content\" id=\"content-q67c\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section-content-h i-cf\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Subcategory<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>A3<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Operational restrictions<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Must not overfly uninvolved people;<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Maintain a horizontal distance of 150 m from uninvolved people and urban areas;<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Maintain flight altitude below 120m above ground level.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Drone operator registration<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>Yes<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot competence<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Read carefully the user manual<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Obtain a \u2018Proof of completion for online training\u2019 for A1\/A3 \u2018open\u2019 subcategory by:<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1. Completing the online training<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2. Passing the online theoretical exam<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot minimum age<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">16*<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>*<strong>Note<\/strong>: <em>A State may lower the remote pilot minimum age to 12. In that case, the lowered age limit will apply only in that State.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-tabs-section\" id=\"n76a\"><button class=\"w-tabs-section-header\" aria-controls=\"content-n76a\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><h5 class=\"w-tabs-section-title\">Class C4 (&lt;25 kg)<\/h5><div class=\"w-tabs-section-control\"><\/div><\/button><div  class=\"w-tabs-section-content\" id=\"content-n76a\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section-content-h i-cf\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Subcategory<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>A3<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Operational restrictions<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Must not overfly uninvolved people;<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Maintain a horizontal distance of 150 m from uninvolved people and urban areas;<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Maintain flight altitude below 120m above ground level.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Drone operator registration<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>Yes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot competence<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Read carefully the user manual<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Obtain a \u2018Proof of completion for online training\u2019 for A1\/A3 \u2018open\u2019 subcategory by:<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1. Completing the online training<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2. Passing the online theoretical exam<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot minimum age<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">16*<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>*<strong>Note<\/strong>: <em>A State may lower the remote pilot minimum age to 12. In that case, the lowered age limit will apply only in that State.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-tabs-section\" id=\"t846\"><button class=\"w-tabs-section-header\" aria-controls=\"content-t846\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><h5 class=\"w-tabs-section-title\">Class Others \u04103 (&lt;25 kg)<\/h5><div class=\"w-tabs-section-control\"><\/div><\/button><div  class=\"w-tabs-section-content\" id=\"content-t846\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section-content-h i-cf\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><p><strong>Privately built and drones placed on the market before 01\/01\/2024 (under 25 kg)<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Subcategory<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span>A3<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Operational restrictions<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Must not overfly uninvolved people;<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Maintain a horizontal distance of 150 m from uninvolved people and urban areas;<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &#8211; Maintain flight altitude below 120m above ground level.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Drone operator registration<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>Yes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot competence<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Read carefully the user manual<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&#8211; Obtain a \u2018Proof of completion for online training\u2019 for A1\/A3 \u2018open\u2019 subcategory by:<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1. Completing the online training<\/span><br \/>\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2. Passing the online theoretical exam<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Remote pilot minimum age<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">16*<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>*<strong>Note<\/strong>: <em>A State may lower the remote pilot minimum age to 12. In that case, the lowered age limit will apply only in that State.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><h2>Summarized information with all subcategories<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><div class=\"w-tabs style_default switch_click accordion type_togglable has_scrolling\" style=\"--sections-title-size:inherit\"><div class=\"w-tabs-sections titles-align_none icon_chevron cpos_right\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section\" id=\"gea8\"><button class=\"w-tabs-section-header\" aria-controls=\"content-gea8\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section-title\">Summarized information here<\/div><div class=\"w-tabs-section-control\"><\/div><\/button><div  class=\"w-tabs-section-content\" id=\"content-gea8\"><div class=\"w-tabs-section-content-h i-cf\"><div class=\"w-image align_none\"><a ref=\"magnificPopup\" href=\"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Class-and-Cat.png\" aria-label=\"Class and Cat\" class=\"w-image-h\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1708\" height=\"1208\" src=\"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Class-and-Cat.png\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Class-and-Cat.png 1708w, https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Class-and-Cat-300x212.png 300w, https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Class-and-Cat-1024x724.png 1024w, https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Class-and-Cat-1536x1086.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1708px) 100vw, 1708px\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Open category is divided into three subcategories: A1, A2 and A3. Each has different requirements regarding safety and distance from people and buildings. You can review the requirements by Subcategory described below. Subcategory A1\u00a0 Flying close to people but not over them (can also fly in subcategory A3) This category includes drones with classes...","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12209,"parent":12907,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-12947","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12947"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12947\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13055,"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12947\/revisions\/13055"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12907"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12209"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bulgariadropview.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}