Remote pilot competency in Denmark

What the rules say

Each line is resolved from published facts of Denmark. "Not resolved" means the corpus does not answer it in a machine-checkable way — never that the law is silent.

• Competency requiredConditional
• Training requiredConditional
• Examination requiredConditional
• Proof of competency issuedConditional
• Operation-specific qualificationConditional
• Validity periodConditional
• Renewal or recurrent trainingConditional
• Minimum age16 yearsConditional
• Weight-based trigger0.25 kgConditional

What changes the answer

The published rules distinguish the a1 category of operation.

• altitude

  Flight altitude at or below 100 m

• altitude

  Flight altitude at or below 120 m

• altitude

  Flight altitude at or below 30 m

• altitude

  Flight altitude at or below 40 m

• location

  Horizontal distance at or above 1 km

The rules behind this answer

• Binding lawNational rule

  Automatic Digital Logbook Requirement

  A drone operator must maintain a digital logbook of all drone operations using the data automatically logged by the drone itself, including the remote pilot's name and certificate details.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  BEK nr 1649 af 12/12/2023, § 7 - section overview

  This section establishes the requirements for extending a remote pilot certificate in Denmark, specifying that it must be renewed every five years by passing a supplementary multiple-choice exam with at least 40 questions and a passing score of 75%.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Default Distance Limit from IMC Aerodromes and Military Air Stations

  Drone operations must not take place closer than 8 km horizontal distance from a runway at an IMC-flyveplads or a military air station, except as provided in stk. 2-4.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Deviation Permit for Seaplane Airport Zones

  Trafikstyrelsen may grant permission to deviate from seaplane zone restrictions if the operation has a societal, research, or commercial purpose, the pilot holds a competency certificate, and (for commercial operations) the drone is necessary and alternative methods would significantly impair the task (unless ordered by the airport itself).

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Deviation permit for VMC airfield restrictions

  The Danish Civil Aviation Authority (Trafikstyrelsen) may grant permission to deviate from the restrictions in stk. 1-3 if the operation has a societal, research, or commercial purpose, meets necessity criteria for commercial tasks, and the pilot holds a competency certificate.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Exception for certified pilots near VMC airfields

  If the remote pilot holds a competency certificate, drone operations may take place between 4 km and 2 km horizontal distance from a VMC airfield runway, provided the altitude does not exceed 40 meters (between 4 km and 3 km) or 30 meters (between 3 km and 2 km) above runway height.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Exemption from commercial necessity test for airfield-ordered tasks

  The commercial necessity requirement for a waiver does not apply if the publicly approved airfield or military air station itself has ordered the task.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Exemption from commercial necessity test for hospital-ordered tasks

  The commercial necessity requirement for a deviation permit does not apply if the hospital where the HEMS airfield is located has ordered the task.

  Open the requirementOfficial source

Official sources

• BEK nr 1649 af 12/12/2023 - supplerende bestemmelser til (EU) 2019/947 (konsolideret med BEK nr 527 af 21/05/2025) — Trafikstyrelsen (Danish Civil Aviation and Railway Authority)Open
• BEK nr 527 af 21/05/2025 - aendring af dronebekendtgorelsen (amending order) — Trafikstyrelsen (Danish Civil Aviation and Railway Authority)Open

Known limitations

• Binding law and official guidance disagree on pilot_competency.validity; the binding position is published.

Other drone rules in Denmark

• Do I need to register my drone in Denmark?Registration in Denmark is governed by a published mass threshold of 0.25 kg, alongside the further conditions cited below. Whether it applies to a given flight depends on those conditions, each cited to its rule.
• What is the maximum drone altitude in Denmark?Drone flights in Denmark are held to a published general height limit of 120 m above_nearest_obstacle. The limit is not absolute: the published conditions that change it are cited below.
• Can I fly a drone near an airport in Denmark?Drone flights near aerodromes in Denmark are governed by airspace and aerodrome restrictions: whether permission is needed depends on the airspace, distance or aerodrome type published below.
• When does a drone operation need authorisation in Denmark?Whether an operation in Denmark needs prior authorisation depends on the operational category, risk class or location: the published triggers below decide it.
• Do I need drone insurance in Denmark?Drone insurance in Denmark is published with a minimum third-party cover of 0.75 million SDR. Whether cover is required for a given flight depends on the published conditions below.

All drone laws in Denmark