Operating drones professionally: registering as an operator with AESA

European regulations (Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 and Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945) no longer distinguish between professional and recreational use: obligations depend on the risk of the operation. Even so, anyone flying to invoice clients (photography, inspection, topography, agriculture, audiovisual) is almost always obliged to register as an operator.

Any natural person resident in Spain or legal entity with its main centre of activity in Spain operating in the specific category must register in the AESA UAS operator register, or in the open category unless the drone weighs less than 250 grams and has no camera or any sensor capable of capturing personal data (or is a toy). In practice, any working drone requires registration.

Registration is done online at the AESA electronic office and has no tasa (official fee): it is free. Upon completion you obtain a unique operator registration number, valid throughout the European Union, which you must visibly label on all your drones and load into the remote identification system of the aircraft that incorporate it (RD 517/2024, article 48, and Regulation 2019/947, article 14). Only a single registration per operator is allowed in the entire EU.

Do not confuse operator and pilot: the operator is the person or company responsible for the activity (who registers and takes out the insurance), the remote pilot is the one who flies the drone and who needs the training certificates. The same autónomo (freelancer) is usually both things, a company can have a single operator registration and several pilots.

The open category covers lower risk operations: drones under 25 kg, flight always within the pilot's visual line of sight (VLOS), maximum height of 120 metres, without flying over crowds of people, without transporting dangerous goods and without dropping materials. It does not require prior authorisation or declaration: the operator registration, the corresponding training and insurance when applicable are enough.

Within the open category there are three subcategories: A1 (class C0 and C1 drones, the lightest, which can fly near people with limits), A2 (class C2, up to 30 metres from uninvolved people, or 5 metres in low speed mode) and A3 (classes C3 and C4, away from people and 150 metres or more from residential, commercial, industrial or recreational areas). From 1 January 2024, drones without CE class marking can only fly in A1 (if they weigh less than 250 grams) or in A3.

The specific category comes into play when the operation exceeds the limits of the open category: flight beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS), more than 120 metres, urban environments with heavier drones, complex night flights or any medium risk operation. It requires, in addition to registration, an operational declaration in accordance with a standard scenario or an operational authorisation issued by AESA, and an operations manual.

There is a third category, the certified one, for high risk operations (transport of people or dangerous goods), with requirements comparable to manned aviation. It falls outside the scope of this guide.

For A1 and A3, AESA offers an online training course with a telematic exam, free of charge, in its virtual classroom: upon passing it you obtain proof of completion of the online training (the A1/A3 certificate). With class C0 drones it is enough to familiarise yourself with the manufacturer's manual, although the A1/A3 course is recommended and is usually the basis for everything else.

For A2 you need, in accordance with Regulation 2019/947, the A1/A3 proof, a declaration of having completed practical self-training in safe conditions and passing an additional AESA exam, which today is carried out telematically and remotely invigilated (webcam, microphone and shared screen), with enrolment open all year round at the electronic office.

For the specific category under standard scenarios you need the STS theoretical knowledge certificate, which is obtained with an AESA exam that is also telematic and remotely invigilated, without a tasa, and an accreditation of practical training completed before a recognised entity or a UAS operator declared to provide it, in accordance with Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 (Appendix 3).

The A1/A3, A2 and STS theoretical certificates are valid for 5 years. Revalidation is requested in the 3 months prior to expiry through a telematic AESA exam, without a tasa, which extends the validity for another 5 years.

Managora checks exactly which certificates your operation requires before processing your registration, so that you do not pay for training you do not need nor lack the training AESA will demand.

The national standard scenarios STS-ES-01 and STS-ES-02 ceased to be valid on 31 December 2025: AESA confirmed that from 1 January 2026 operations cannot be carried out under STS-ES declarations. Anyone who continues flying with a national declaration is operating without legal coverage.

From 2026 the declarative route is the European standard scenarios: STS-01 (VLOS flight over a controlled ground area in a populated environment, with a class C5 drone) and STS-02 (BVLOS flight with airspace observers, over a controlled ground area in a sparsely populated environment, with a class C6 drone). The operational declaration is submitted at the AESA electronic office, has no tasa, and you can start operating when AESA sends you the confirmation of receipt and completeness.

If your operation does not fit into an STS (due to the drone, the area or the type of flight), you need an operational authorisation from AESA, based on a predefined risk assessment (PDRA) or a full SORA study. The electronic office sets a maximum resolution period of 6 months and administrative silence is negative, so it is advisable to submit a flawless application the first time.

In both cases AESA reviews the operations manual in detail: procedures, organisation, maintenance, emergencies and operation limitations. It is the document where most applications stumble. Managora drafts the operations manual, the risk assessment and the declaration or application, and submits the complete file for you.

Remember also that, before each flight, you must check the published UAS geographical zones (ENAIRE) and obtain the appropriate zone permits: the operator registration authorises the activity, not a specific airspace.

Article 8 of RD 517/2024 establishes the current regime. With drones of 20 kg or more maximum take-off mass (MTOM), insurance is always mandatory in accordance with Regulation (EC) 785/2004. With drones under 20 kg, civil liability insurance is mandatory to operate in subcategory A2 of the open category and in the specific and certified categories, with the coverage of Ley 48/1960 (articles 126 and 127) and the limits of RD 37/2001.

Other operations with drones under 20 kg (subcategories A1 and A3) are exempt from the insurance obligation. Even so, flying professionally without insurance means assuming any damage to third parties with your own assets, so in practice every professional operator takes out a policy.

The policy can continuously cover all the operator's activity or be contracted per operation or group of operations. The copy of the policy is one of the documents that make up the registration file: Managora reviews it to check that the coverage fits the operation you are going to declare.

The sanctioning regime is that of Ley 21/2003 (the Air Safety Act). For companies and those carrying out aeronautical activities for commercial purposes, fines range from €4,500 to €70,000 (minor), from €70,001 to €250,000 (serious) and from €250,001 to €4,500,000 (very serious). For all other subjects, from €60 to €45,000 (minor), from €45,001 to €90,000 (serious) and from €90,001 to €225,000 (very serious).

The infractions that AESA sanctions most frequently with drones are flying without being registered as an operator, without mandatory insurance, without the required training, in restricted geographical zones without permission, above 120 metres or flying over people outside the permitted cases.

If you are already flying and charging without having your situation in order, the correct route is to regularise yourself as soon as possible: suspend uncovered operations, register as an operator, obtain the pilot certificates, take out insurance, prepare the operations manual and submit the STS declaration or the corresponding authorisation application. Regularising does not erase past infractions, but it cuts the risk of sanction from that moment and allows you to invoice with contracts and administrations that already require the operator number.

Managora takes care of the entire process: the operator registration with AESA, the operations manual, the risk assessment and the operational declaration or authorisation. You provide your documentation and we prepare and submit the file. You can see the updated amount of our fees in the Drone Operator Registration (AESA) and Operations Manual procedure file, the registration with AESA itself has no tasa. Start today and fly invoicing with total security.