Destination guide · Directorate General of Civil Aviation (SHGM)

Flying a drone in Turkey

Doable with prepOfficial source re-checked 2026-06-12

Sub-500 g (all DJI Mini class) is exempt from registration under SHT-İHA; 500 g and above is hard for tourists (Turkish ID wall, conformity letter).

Can a tourist register?

No. A Turkish ID number (TC Kimlik) is required for normal SHGM registration; short-stay tourists cannot get one. An FR-03 conformity-letter email path for foreigners bringing 500 g+ drones is reported by secondary sources, not on the official page.

Key limits

RegistrationRequired from 500 g

Altitude limit120 m

Test / trainingNot required

InsuranceUnclear

The 500 g registration threshold comes from the SHT-İHA instruction (İHA0 class starts at 500 g; below 500 g is exempt from the SHGM registry). The FR-03 email path for foreigners is reported by secondary sources, not on the official page. No licence below 4 kg (İHA0); İHA1 (4-25 kg) requires approved training. Portal: SHGM IHA system (requires Turkish ID number / TC Kimlik).

Customs & entry

Under 500 g is exempt from registration (SHT-İHA). The SHGM import page exempts model aircraft up to 20 kg (sport/entertainment, no autonomous flight) and UAVs under 4 kg / under 50 km/h / max altitude 100 m from import conformity; typical camera drones do not cleanly meet the 100 m-altitude condition — customs treatment of declared sub-500 g camera drones is not officially confirmed. Drones of 500 g+ should be declared with an SHGM conformity letter or risk airport confiscation. Flying unregistered: fine of roughly 78,700 TL.

Official map / portal

https://iha.shgm.gov.tr

Sources

Confidence: medium

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This is general information, not legal advice. Rules change — always verify with Directorate General of Civil Aviation (SHGM) before flying. FlyCheck covers national rules only; local restrictions (airports, parks, cities) also apply.