Flying a drone near airports in Finland

What the rules say

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

• Distance restriction600 mConditional
• Aerodrome permissionConditional
• Controlled airspace permissionConditional
• Protected facilitiesConditional
• Digital authorisationConditional
• Altitude relationshipConditional
• ExceptionsConditional

What changes the answer

The published rules distinguish the bvlos and specific categories of operation.

• altitude

  Flight altitude at or above 1000 ft

• altitude

  Flight altitude at or above 300 m

• location

  Radius of 600 m

• altitude

  Flight altitude at or above 150 m

The rules behind this answer

• Binding lawNational rule

  Aerodrome control discretion on prefix use after first call

  Aerodrome control may, after the first call, discontinue or continue using the prefix 'Remote' at its discretion.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  ATS discretion on prefix 'Remote' after initial call

  After the initial call, the Air Traffic Services (ATS) unit may, at its discretion, stop or continue using the prefix 'Remote'.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational ruleOPS M1-32 · Article 5

  BVLOS approvals in Finland

  Where an operation does not meet the 'open' category requirements — as is the case for BVLOS — the UAS operator must obtain an operational authorisation from Traficom as the competent authority of the Member State of registration, and must perform a risk assessment and submit it with the application, including adequate mitigating measures.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational rule

  Controlled Airspace and ATC Compliance for Military RPAS

  Military RPAS operations must be conducted within controlled airspace and in compliance with local air traffic control instructions and operating procedures.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational ruleOPS M1-32 · OPS M1-29 kohta 4.2

  Finnish UAS geographical zones

  Unmanned aviation is permitted above the sites and areas identified by the coordinates in Annex 2 to OPS M1-29 solely on the separately defined conditions presented with each zone.

  Open the requirementOfficial source
• Binding lawNational ruleOPS M1-32 · OPS M1-29 liite 2

  Flying near Finnish aerodromes

  In a restrictive UAS geographical zone established around a controlled or AFIS aerodrome, UAS operations within the zone are permitted during the ATS unit's opening hours only with the permission of the air navigation service provider, and outside the ATS unit's opening hours only with the permission of the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom.

  Open the requirementOfficial source

Official sources

• Traficom regulation OPS M1-1 – Suomessa sovellettavat lentosäännöt (2025) — Finnish Food Authority (Ruokavirasto)Open
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947 on the rules and procedures for the operation of unmanned aircraft — consolidated text — Finnish Food Authority (Ruokavirasto)Open
• Traficom regulation OPS M1-29 – UAS-ilmatilavyöhykkeet (TRAFICOM/889098/03.04.00.00/2025) — Finnish Food Authority (Ruokavirasto)Open

Other drone rules in Finland

• Do I need to register my drone in Finland?Registration in Finland 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.
• Do I need Remote ID in Finland?Remote identification in Finland is framed by a published mass threshold of 25 kg, together with the aircraft and operation conditions cited below. Whether a given flight must carry or broadcast an electronic identity depends on those conditions.
• What is the maximum drone altitude in Finland?Drone flights in Finland 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 at night in Finland?No. A published rule in Finland prohibits night operations for the operations covered here.
• When does a drone operation need authorisation in Finland?Whether an operation in Finland needs prior authorisation depends on the operational category, risk class or location: the published triggers below decide it.
• What training do I need to fly a drone in Finland?Remote pilot competency in Finland scales with the operation: which training, examination or proof of competency applies is set by the published conditions below.
• Do I need drone insurance in Finland?Drone insurance in Finland 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 Finland