Drone laws in Georgia work on two levels: the FAA sets the federal rules every operator in the state must follow, and Georgia adds its own layer through O.C.G.A. § 6-1-4, which largely blocks cities and counties from regulating drones, plus surveillance statutes that apply when a drone carries a camera. Get it wrong and you are looking at federal civil fines up to $75,000 per violation, state misdemeanor charges, or in the worst case a felony carrying up to ten years in prison.
Federal Rules You Have to Follow First
Before any Georgia-specific rule kicks in, the FAA’s framework applies to every flight, recreational or commercial.
Registration and TRUST
Any drone weighing 0.55 pounds (250 grams) or more must be registered with the FAA before its first flight. Registration is $5 and lasts three years.1Federal Aviation Administration. How to Register Your Drone Recreational flyers also have to pass the Recreational UAS Safety Test (TRUST), a free online exam covering airspace and safe operation. Keep your completion certificate. If you lose it, the test administrators do not keep records, and you will have to take the test again.2Federal Aviation Administration. The Recreational UAS Safety Test (TRUST)
Part 107 for Any Business Use
Flying for any business purpose requires a Remote Pilot Certificate under Part 107. To get one, you pass the FAA’s Unmanned Aircraft General knowledge test, be at least 16, and be able to read, write, and speak English.3Federal Aviation Administration. Certificated Remote Pilots Including Commercial Operators The core operating limits:
- 400 feet above ground level maximum, unless you stay within 400 feet of a structure.
- Daylight or civil twilight only (30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset), with anti-collision lighting during twilight.
- 100 mph maximum groundspeed.
- At least three miles of visibility from your control station.
- Unaided visual line of sight, held either by you or a co-located visual observer, at all times.
The FAA can waive these limits for specific operations, including night flights, flights over people, and beyond-visual-line-of-sight work.4Federal Aviation Administration. Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Regulations (Part 107)
Remote ID
Since March 2024, the FAA has enforced Remote ID, which requires most drones to broadcast identification and location during flight. Newer drones have it built in. Older drones need an FAA-approved broadcast module, and drones using a module have to stay within visual line of sight and cannot get future beyond-visual-line-of-sight approvals.1Federal Aviation Administration. How to Register Your Drone Flying without Remote ID outside an FAA-recognized identification area is a violation.
Flying Over People
The FAA sorts drones into categories by weight and design. Category 1 drones (0.55 pounds or less with no exposed rotating parts) can fly over people and even sustained flight over open-air gatherings if they have Remote ID. Heavier drones have to meet stricter manufacturer-certified safety standards before flights over bystanders are allowed. Recreational flyers, whatever category their drone falls in, still have to keep the aircraft within visual line of sight and away from other aircraft.5Federal Aviation Administration. Recreational Flyers and Community-Based Organizations
What Georgia’s Own Statute Actually Does
Georgia’s primary drone law, O.C.G.A. § 6-1-4, does not create a detailed operating code. Its main job is to sort out who can regulate drones. The answer is: mostly not local governments.
Any county or city ordinance regulating drone testing or operation is void, with three narrow exceptions:6Justia Law. Georgia Code 6-1-4 – Unmanned Aircraft System Defined; Preemption for Unmanned Aircraft Systems; Operations
- Ordinances adopted on or before April 1, 2017 are grandfathered.
- Ordinances that enforce existing FAA restrictions are allowed.
- A city can regulate where drones take off and land on its own public property, but it cannot bar commercial operations from using that property.
State agencies have the same launch-and-landing authority over state-owned public property.6Justia Law. Georgia Code 6-1-4 – Unmanned Aircraft System Defined; Preemption for Unmanned Aircraft Systems; Operations
The practical takeaway catches many operators off guard. A Georgia city cannot create a blanket no-fly zone over downtown, set its own altitude limits, or ban nighttime flights. It can say drones may not launch from a specific park. Once the drone is airborne, state and federal law take over. The FAA has also made clear that it holds exclusive authority over airspace safety and efficiency, and that state or local rules trying to create airspace restrictions or low-altitude trespass liability run into preemption problems.7Federal Aviation Administration. State and Local Regulation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Fact Sheet
If a local ordinance seems to restrict drones beyond these three exceptions, it may not be enforceable. Fighting a city over it is another matter, so check local rules before you fly and decide how you want to handle any conflict.
Privacy and Surveillance Limits
Georgia’s strongest privacy rule for drone operators is not drone-specific. It is O.C.G.A. § 16-11-62, which makes it illegal to use any device to photograph, record, or observe someone’s activities in a private place and out of public view without the consent of everyone being observed. It also prohibits entering someone else’s premises to secretly observe them.8Justia Law. Georgia Code 16-11-62 – Eavesdropping, Surveillance, or Invasion of Privacy A drone hovering outside a bedroom window with a camera fits the statute, even though it was written long before consumer drones existed.
The dividing line is whether the activity is in a private place and out of public view. Filming a backyard cookout visible from the street is a gray area; recording through a window into a room with closed blinds is not. Distributing such recordings without consent is a separate offense under the same statute.8Justia Law. Georgia Code 16-11-62 – Eavesdropping, Surveillance, or Invasion of Privacy
Law enforcement in Georgia generally needs a search warrant before using a drone for surveillance, with exceptions for emergencies, fugitive searches, and situations where traditional warrantless-search doctrines already apply.
Penalties If You Get It Wrong
The penalties come from three directions: federal civil, federal criminal, and Georgia state law. The numbers that circulate online are often out of date.
Federal Civil Penalties
The FAA can assess civil penalties up to $27,500 for failing to register a drone that requires registration.9Federal Aviation Administration. Is There a Penalty for Failing to Register? For other operational violations, including flying in restricted airspace, breaking altitude limits, or running unauthorized commercial flights, the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 raised the ceiling to $75,000 per violation.10Federal Aviation Administration. FAA Proposed $341,413 in Civil Penalties Against Drone Operators The FAA can also suspend or revoke a Remote Pilot Certificate, which shuts down a commercial operation.
Federal Criminal Penalties
Operating an unregistered drone that requires registration can also carry criminal exposure: fines up to $250,000 and imprisonment up to three years.9Federal Aviation Administration. Is There a Penalty for Failing to Register? Criminal charges are usually reserved for egregious or repeat conduct rather than a first-time recreational miss.
Georgia State Penalties
Violating Georgia’s surveillance statute with a drone is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to 12 months in jail, a fine up to $1,000, or both.11Justia Law. Georgia Code 17-10-3 – Punishment for Misdemeanors
Around correctional facilities, the stakes jump. Using a drone to deliver prohibited items to a prison is a felony carrying one to ten years. Using a drone to photograph or record a correctional facility for criminal purposes is an even heavier felony, five to ten years.12Justia Law. Georgia Code 42-5-18 – Items Prohibited for Possession by Inmates These are among the stiffest drone-related penalties in Georgia law.
Insurance and Liability
Georgia does not require drone operators to carry insurance. Flying without it is a gamble most commercial operators cannot afford. A drone that drops onto a car, hits a person, or damages property creates immediate personal liability, and Georgia law holds operators responsible for the harm their drones cause.
Standard drone liability policies cover third-party property damage and bodily injury. What they typically leave out is privacy. Coverage for invasion of privacy or reputational harm usually sits under a separate “personal and advertising injury” endorsement. If your work involves aerial photography, surveying, or any recording, check whether your policy includes that endorsement before you assume you are covered.
Many commercial clients require proof of at least $1 million in liability coverage before signing a contract. Annual premiums for that level of coverage generally run a few hundred dollars.
Defenses If You’re Charged
Operators facing drone-related charges in Georgia have a few plausible defenses depending on facts.
Federal preemption is the strongest shield when a state or local rule bumps up against FAA authority. Because the FAA controls airspace and aviation safety, a Georgia charge built on where or how you flew, rather than what you recorded, may not survive a preemption challenge. This is most useful when a city tries to enforce an ordinance that § 6-1-4 already voids.
Consent is a complete defense to a § 16-11-62 surveillance charge. If the property owner or the people being observed gave permission, the conduct is lawful.8Justia Law. Georgia Code 16-11-62 – Eavesdropping, Surveillance, or Invasion of Privacy Getting that consent in writing before you fly is the simplest protection.
Emergency use is a narrower exception. Drone operations during natural disasters, search-and-rescue missions, or other emergencies may fall outside normal restrictions. Georgia’s law enforcement drone provisions include emergency carve-outs, and the FAA has historically granted operational flexibility during declared emergencies. Document the circumstances if you fly in one.
One Bill Worth Watching: HB 205
Georgia’s legislature has been considering HB 205 during the 2025-2026 session. It would require the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency to create an approved list of drone systems cleared for government use, and it would bar state and local agencies from buying unapproved drones after January 1, 2028. The bill targets foreign-manufactured drones over data-security concerns and would add a fourth exception to § 6-1-4, letting cities regulate launch and landing of approved drones on public property. If you work on government contracts or run public-sector drone programs, this one matters.