Germany: what federal law adds
Regulation (EU) 2019/947 is the same in Hamburg as in Marseille. What changes in Germany is who issues what, who supervises what, and above all a list of geographical zones written article by article in the Luftverkehrs-Ordnung. Zitierte Fassung: nichtamtliche konsolidierte Fassung, Stand 02/09/2026.
Key points
- Two authorities, not one. The Luftfahrt-Bundesamt runs the examinations and issues the credentials (§ 21a Abs. 1 LuftVO); the aviation authority of the Land supervises operations (§ 21a Abs. 3) and can authorise a flight in a geographical zone (§ 21i).
- The operator registers with the LBA under § 66a LuftVG from 250 grams with more than 80 joules on impact, as soon as a sensor can record personal data, or for any machine in the ‘specific’ category. Mind the first criterion: the German text cumulates the 250 grams and the 80 joules, where Article 14(5) of the European regulation sets them as an alternative. A single number covers all his machines.
- Third-party liability insurance is compulsory: § 43 Abs. 2 LuftVG for the principle, § 102 Abs. 2 LuftVZO referring to § 37 Abs. 1 LuftVG for the amount, that is 750,000 units of account below 500 kg. The policy number is asked for at registration.
- The minimum age of the remote pilot is sixteen, with only the exceptions in Article 9 of Regulation (EU) 2019/947. A minor has to produce the agreement of his legal representative to be admitted to the A2 examination, and to that one alone: § 21a Abs. 2 LuftVO covers only the certificate of point UAS.OPEN.030 Nr. 2 Buchst. c. The A1/A3 examination, covered by Abs. 4, does not impose that condition.
- § 21h Abs. 3 LuftVO lists eleven families of zones: aerodromes and airports, industrial sites and prisons, institutional and police sites, federal roads, waterways and railways, protected natural areas, residential land, swimming pools and beaches, control zones, hospitals, sites of emergency operations.
- Each family has its own way out: the ‘specific’ category, the express agreement of the manager, a geometric condition, a condition on times, or an air traffic control clearance. There is no single rule: it is the list you have to know.
- The A1/A3 examination is taken online with the LBA after the free course, 40 questions; the A2 examination is taken at a Prüfstelle für Fernpiloten designated by the LBA, which remains the only route for filing the application. The certificates are valid five years.
- Every German quotation reproduced in this course is reproduced without any change and with its source: § 5 Abs. 2 UrhG makes free reuse of official works subject to a ban on modification and to an obligation to state the source.
The trap. German trap number 1 is § 21j Abs. 1 LuftVO: a zone under § 21h applies even if it has not been designated or published for geo-awareness. The map helps, it does not make the law: a sector missing from the display stays prohibited. Trap number 2: around a Flughafen the ‘open’ category has no way out through consent, unlike the other Flugplätze.
Source
LuftVO §§ 21a, 21e, 21h, 21i, 21j (BJNR189410015); LuftVG §§ 1, 37, 43, 66a (BJNR006810922); LuftVZO § 102 (BJNR003700964); nichtamtliche konsolidierte Fassung, Stand 02/09/2026; Quellenangabe: gesetze-im-internet.de, Bundesamt für Justiz. Publications of the Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (lba.de) accessed on 02/09/2026.