Drone Laws in Turkey

Turkey Drone Regulations

According to Turkey’s national aviation authority, the States Airport Administration of Turkey (SAMA), flying a drone is legal in Turkey, but we recommend being aware of and compliant with the drone regulations listed below before doing so.

If you’d like to contact SAMA directly before you travel with any questions you might have, here is their contact information: iletisimmerkezi@dhmi.gov.tr / +90 0312 204 20 00

Why fly a drone in Turkey? To get great aerial shots like these!

General Rules for Flying a Drone in Turkey

Based on our research and interpretation of the laws, here are the most important rules to know for flying a drone in Turkey.

• All drone pilots who wish to fly a drone weighing more than 500 grams must register with the Turkish government prior to flying. Register here.
• Approval is required prior to all commercial drone flights.
• Drones cannot fly above 120 meters (394 feet).
• Drones cannot weigh more than 4 kilograms (8.8 pounds) for private/personal flights.

For more information on Turkey’s drone laws, see this document issued by the government of Turkey.

Taking a Drone Through Customs in Turkey

Foreign nationality citizens cannot register as a drone pilot in Turkey. Moreover, your drone will be seized by customs unless you have received technical confirmation for your UAVs from the Turkish DGCA.

To apply for technical confirmation, use Form-336 found in the forms section of the Turkish DGCA website. You may also be required to submit your criminal record from your embassy.

Turkish citizens who wish to bring a UAV through customs must apply for a Technical Compliance Certificate. The application form and details of the application can be found here. Once the UAV has passed through customs, the vehicle is added to the General Directorate UAV Registry System.

Know something we don’t about drone laws in Turkey? Send us an email at support[at]horizonap[dot]com. We are not international aviation attorneys and do our best to keep this page up-to-date for drone pilots, but the reality is that given the pace of the small unmanned aerial system (sUAS) industry and how governments are responding, drone regulations in Turkey can change throughout the year, and those changes can be hard to track. If we missed something, please reach out to let us know.

Want to get a feel for the kind of footage you could get flying a drone in Turkey? Here you go: