Canada makes it difficult for non citizens to Fly drone

[Treeman]

I'm a US Citizen, and before I prepared to take the Transport Canada Drone Cert Test I thought I'd register my drone first. While filling out the registration form, I came to "Foreign residents are not eligible to register or operate a drone in Canada. If you are a foreign resident and wish to operate a drone in Canada, you must
1. apply for a Special Flight Operations Certificate. (SFOC)" "Extra rules apply if you're a foreign operator (you are not Canadian and you fly in Canadian airspace). You must have an approved certificate to fly a drone for work or research " It appears Canada assumes if your not from Canada your not flying for recreation.
2. The SFOC requires non-Canadian citizens to go to an approved Canadian Flight School
3. Send the form and documents to the Civil Aviation regional office in the region where you intend to fly

It's no secret Liberal Canada hates drones. Such a hobby and tourism Killer.

Any Non-Canadian citizens out there got their drone registered in Canada / gone through all of this ridiculous non-resident Drone Operator certification process? I'd like to hear from you......

 

[WV. Rootman]

If they don’t allow a reasonable means to obtain a permit for a foreigner, then there is going to be a lot more illegal flying and a greater possibility of incidences.

 

[N017RW]

Treeman,

You said:
"It appears Canada assumes if your not from Canada your not flying for recreation."
and:
"It's no secret Liberal Canada hates drones. Such a hobby and tourism Killer."

Is your intent to fly for fun/hobby/tourist?

Applying for a Special Flight Operations Certificate (current rules) - Transport Canada

This webpage above says:

You must apply for a Special Flight Operations Certificate if you meet any of these 3 conditions:

• Your drone, which you fly only for fun, weighs more than 35 kg
• Your drone, which you fly for work or research, weighs more than 25 kg
• You aren’t able to comply with the exemption conditions

It would seem if recreation and tourist activities are your intent, you're good-to-go!

Anyone else???

 

[trcsmith]

General Rules for Flying a Drone in Canada
*The following rules are currently in effect. New rules will take effect on June 1, 2019. Click here to scroll down to the new rules.*
Drone Laws in Canada | UAV Coach (2019)

 

[Treeman]

Treeman,

You said:
"It appears Canada assumes if your not from Canada your not flying for recreation."
and:
"It's no secret Liberal Canada hates drones. Such a hobby and tourism Killer."

Is your intent to fly for fun/hobby/tourist?

Applying for a Special Flight Operations Certificate (current rules) - Transport Canada

This webpage above says:

You must apply for a Special Flight Operations Certificate if you meet any of these 3 conditions:

• Your drone, which you fly only for fun, weighs more than 35 kg
• Your drone, which you fly for work or research, weighs more than 25 kg
• You aren’t able to comply with the exemption conditions

It would seem if recreation and tourist activities are your intent, you're good-to-go!

Anyone else???

I really do wish I was wrong here and you are correct, but I don't think so. When any non-Canadian goes into REGISTER your drone, this is where your told you MUST fly with a Special Flight Operation Certificate. For some reason they don't tell you this when you research the pilot cert/license process. The SFOC is a very difficult process to go thru, its not something you can do online.

 

[Treeman]

General Rules for Flying a Drone in Canada
*The following rules are currently in effect. New rules will take effect on June 1, 2019. Click here to scroll down to the new rules.*
Drone Laws in Canada | UAV Coach (2019)

This list of rules assumes your a Canadian citizen. If your not, your outta luck when you go to register your drone for recreational use.

 

[Speedmeister]

Does this law apply when you are flying on private lands that you have permission to fly.

 

[N017RW]

This list of rules assumes your a Canadian citizen. If your not, your outta luck when you go to register your drone for recreational use.

You don't need to register and you do not need to take a Cert. test for hobby flying a drone under 35kg.
Only for work or research.
At least until June.

Disagree? Please post this requirement as I don't see it.

Simply select the non-citizen option and you'll see that you do not need apply for a SFOC.

 

[Treeman]

You don't need to register and you do not need to take a Cert. test for hobby flying a drone under 35kg.
Only for work or research.
At least until June.

Disagree? Please post this requirement as I don't see it.

Simply select the non-citizen option and you'll see that you do not need apply for a SFOC.

Yes we are OK until June. But right now when you go into Register your drone (to obtain a Registration # all drone operators must have in Canada come June) the last question on the 1st page asks if your a Canadian Citizen & states FOREIGN RESIDENT ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO REGISTER A DRONE IN CANADA. IF YOUR A FOREIGN RESIDENT AND WISH TO OPERATE A DRONE IN CANADA, YOU MUST APPLY FOR A SPECIAL FLIGHT OPERATION CERTIFICATE. So this is where the requirement is coming from, and how Canada is going to keep any non residents from flying a drone for recreation in Canada (without going thru a very burdensome and process).

• All drones that weigh between 250 g and 25 kg must be registered with Transport Canada. Pilots must mark their drones with their registration number before they fly.

From the link below click on "register your drone" and then ya gotta give yourself a username & password....then once your in, you see what I mentioned above.
Drone safety - Transport Canada

Thanks and please let me know your thoughts.

 

[jsmichel]

I'm from Australia. I spoke to Transport Canada a few weeks ago.
They told me that they are working on a new SFOC form for tourists. It won't be as complicated as the current form.
Moreover, tourists won't need to sit the 'basic pilot ' course.
She said to look out for the new form around April 2019.

 

[Treeman]

I'm from Australia. I spoke to Transport Canada a few weeks ago.
They told me that they are working on a new SFOC form for tourists. It won't be as complicated as the current form.
Moreover, tourists won't need to sit the 'basic pilot ' course.
She said to look out for the new form around April 2019.

I'm from Australia. I spoke to Transport Canada a few weeks ago.
They told me that they are working on a new SFOC form for tourists. It won't be as complicated as the current form.
Moreover, tourists won't need to sit the 'basic pilot ' course.
She said to look out for the new form around April 2019.

Interesting - thanks for posting that jsmichel. That's the first reasonable approach I've heard. I'll keep an eye on the Transport Canada site in April and keep my fingers crossed.

 

[Daechyr]

I'm from Australia. I spoke to Transport Canada a few weeks ago.
They told me that they are working on a new SFOC form for tourists. It won't be as complicated as the current form.
Moreover, tourists won't need to sit the 'basic pilot ' course.
She said to look out for the new form around April 2019.

Any news on that topic?

 

[apachewolf]

Grrr...I have US and Canadian Citizenship. I currently live in the US and have my drone registered in the US. Transport Canada says I would have to deregister my drone in the US then register it with Canada if I want to fly it in Canada, otherwise I would have to apply for SFOC as foreign national. Yet as a Canadian Citizen I can apply for Basic or Advanced certification. Supposedly you can only register an aircraft to one country. So how can I deregister it with the US and still fly it here as a US Citizen? I guess I'll have to buy another drone just for Canada flying! Lol.

 

[BigAl07]

Contact your local FSDO and pose that question to them as they are the only authority that can give you a definitive answer.

Let us know and WELCOME to the forum.

 

[WV. Rootman]

Grrr...I have US and Canadian Citizenship. I currently live in the US and have my drone registered in the US. Transport Canada says I would have to deregister my drone in the US then register it with Canada if I want to fly it in Canada, otherwise I would have to apply for SFOC as foreign national. Yet as a Canadian Citizen I can apply for Basic or Advanced certification. Supposedly you can only register an aircraft to one country. So how can I deregister it with the US and still fly it here as a US Citizen? I guess I'll have to buy another drone just for Canada flying! Lol.

What’s difference? If you register it in Canada and it’s registered in the US. Do they cross check everything? When it comes down to it, register in in Canada first. They’re the strict ones. Now here is the funny point. Read what it takes for a person outside the US to fly here.
Visiting the U.S. and Flying Your Drone for Fun
If you are not a U.S. citizen and you intend to fly your drone in the United States for hobby or recreation only, here's what you need to know:

• Determine if you are eligible to fly under the under the Special Rule for Model Aircraft by reviewing the requirements to fly, including FAA Advisory Circular 91-57A.
• Visit the FAA's DroneZone portal and complete the process provided to "Fly Model Aircraft under Section 336" flying your aircraft in the U.S. The FAA will consider the certificate issued to be a recognition of ownership rather than a certificate of U.S. aircraft registration.

 

[Meta4]

Grrr...I have US and Canadian Citizenship. I currently live in the US and have my drone registered in the US. Transport Canada says I would have to deregister my drone in the US then register it with Canada if I want to fly it in Canada, otherwise I would have to apply for SFOC as foreign national. Yet as a Canadian Citizen I can apply for Basic or Advanced certification. Supposedly you can only register an aircraft to one country. So how can I deregister it with the US and still fly it here as a US Citizen?

If you have registered with the FAA for recreational flying (like most people), you haven't registered your drone at all.
You would only have registered yourself as a drone owner and the FAA has no details of whatever drones you might own.

 

[BigAl07]

If you have registered with the FAA for recreational flying (like most people), you haven't registered your drone at all.
You would only have registered yourself as a drone owner and the FAA has no details of whatever drones you might own.

Excellent point!! That concept totally slipped by my thought process but it's perfectly right.

 

[Northern Observer]

Anyone else considering dropping the hobby in Canada like me? Canada, as usual has made things difficult for its citizens.

 

[Chrislaf]

Anyone else considering dropping the hobby in Canada like me? Canada, as usual has made things difficult for its citizens.

I do agree that the rules are becoming more stringent but this is happening in other countries too (US and Australia) and incidents like Gatwick do not help.

I too had been thinking about possibly giving up flying my P3S and Spark and just using my Tello which doesn't have to be registered and doesn't require a pilot certificate to fly, but then I would have greatly restricted my flying opportunities. In the end, I took the basic exam and got my pilot's certificate and registered my two drones. Although the new rules are stringent, come June 1st, I will be able to fly at night with positional lighting active. This is not possible under the current rules.

As for Non-Canadian tourists, it does look like you will have to apply for a SFOC and check off the 'Foreign operator or Pilot' box on the SFOC. You can send the form via email so hopefully they will give approval in a timely fashion for those who want to fly on their vacation in Canada. Has anyone planning on travelling to Canada after June 1st, applied for a SFOC? If so, how long did it take to get approval? I imagine there will be a lot of tourists this summer who arrive in Canada and are not aware of the new rules and will be disappointed when they find out they will not be able to fly their drone.

Chris

 

[mrPOVO]

Hi Guys & Girls, I’m new to the forum and came across this post by chance... and thought I would post my experience so far regarding the process to (NOT) obtaining a SFOC in Canada - aka the form 26-0835E (Application for a Special Flight Operation Certificate - SFOC) - hopefully this info is useful for any other Aussie drone enthusiast thinking of taking there drone to Canada for "Happy Snaps".


btw..I’m an enthusiast, who fly's on weekends, under 2kg excluded category + flying for fun I don't need a licence or certification.


With that said...
I’m from Australia and heading to Canada for a holiday, in the next few weeks (Aug 2019), and was hoping to take my Mavic Air to get a few cool “selfies” hahaha, but I have been struggling to get my head around on how to get my drone registered and obtaining the SFOC permit as a ‘foreign pilot’ with Transport Canada.

Before, I submitted my official online application, I sent them an email (25th June) direct to: [email protected] stating my intent to fly recreationally for my upcoming family holiday and that most of the questions on the 26-0835E SFOC form didn't seem to be applicable to a casual drone operator. (btw, I just received a response today - 9th August ) see below...
- - -
Hello, You will need to apply for a SFOC via this form.
We do not differentiate between recreation or commercial use. Regards,

Civil Aviation Safety Inspector- Flight Operations
RPAS Center for Expertise Transport Canada/Government of Canada

- - -
I ended up submitting my 26-0835E SFOC form a few days later anyway (29th June) which I also just received a response (8th Aug), also, at the same time I applied for a GCKey, and upon submitting this error message appeared

Attention

1. It is not possible to continue registering for an account as you must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada. If you are a foreign resident and wish to operate a drone in Canada, you must apply for a Special Flight Operations Certificate.

- - -

Also, this was the response I received today (9th August) - (from my 26-0835E SFOC form application, remembering I sent this on the 29th of June)

Thank you for submitting your SFOC request to Transport Canada – RPAS Centre of Expertise.
Your reference number is ATS-19-20-xxxxxxxxxxxx ** Please include this reference number in the subject of your e-mails and any correspondence related to this request **
In order to obtain a Special Flight Operations Certificate (SFOC) to operate Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) in Canada as a Foreign Operator or Pilot, please complete the following;
1. Provide the following documents:
a. Completed application Form 26-0835E if you have not already done so;
b. Completed checklist;
c. Copy of your passport;
d. Copy of your TP-15263 compliant training certificate;
e. Copy of Flight Review appointment confirmation (Advanced Operations ONLY);
f. Foreign RPAS pilot certificate (if available);
g. Foreign RPAS registration certificate (if available); and
h. Any other documents that may support your application, as per Section D of the checklist.
2. You are required to read and understand the Canadian Aviation Regulations – Part IX
3. Familiarize yourself with the attached checklist, confirm each item with a check mark (YES-NO-N/A) and provide additional information where necessary. Information can be written directly onto the checklist itself or in your reply email by specifying the item number for which the information pertains to.
4. Complete training from a Canadian self-declared training provider based on Transport Canada TP-15263. Some of these courses are offered online while others are offered in a classroom setting.
NOTE: If applying for Advanced Operations: a Flight Review must also be completed once you arrive in Canada. Completion of the flight review will be a condition on your SFOC.
5. E-mail the completed form, supporting documentation, and checklist to [email protected] and mention “ATS-19-20-xxxxxxxxxxxx – YOUR NAME - SFOC Application – Foreign Operator/Pilot” in the “SUBJECT” line.
Please note that once an SFOC is issued, it will be the responsibility of the Applicant to ensure all conditions of the SFOC are complied with. Failure to comply with any condition of the SFOC may result in fines of up to $1000.00 for an individual or $5000.00 for a corporation.
Processing times for SFOC applications are up to 30 working days. Incomplete applications or missing information will result in processing delays.
Kindest regards,
RPAS - Centre of Expertise
Transport Canada
[email protected]

In addition, you will need to complete the Checklist for SFOC – RPAS – CAR 903.01(c) – Operation of a RPAS by a foreign operator or pilot – Basic and Advanced Operations and meet the requirements within - note dot point 1d, and 4 which need to be completed in Canada, and then wait up to another 30days for possible approval...

by the time I receive this, I will most likely be back in Australia drinking an Aussie Fosters beer...JK (that stuff is gross hahaha)

So in summary, seems that Transport Canada don't want foreign "enthusiast" drone pilots flying while on holiday, and it's virtually impossible to obtain a SFOC if you are a non-Canadian resident...

In contrast I applied for a permit with FAA to fly in the USA, and it literally took 5 minutes to be approved and cost me $5USD...

I'm departing in a few weeks...so no flying in Canada for me sadness.....
Please let me know if anyone else has been in the same boat and had any luck with obtaining a SFOC in Canada?

​

Thanks everyone for reading -