China to Require Real-Name Registration for All New Drones
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China will soon mandate that all newly purchased drones be registered to their owners using real names before they can be activated — a sweeping regulatory shift aimed at tightening control over low-altitude airspace and curbing unauthorized flights.
According to two newly issued national standards released by the State Administration for Market Regulation, beginning May 1, 2026, drone users must complete real-name registration to activate their devices. Authorities will then monitor each drone’s flight status in real time.
Owners of existing drones will be given a 12-month grace period after the rule goes into effect to comply with supplementary registration requirements.
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- China will mandate real-name registration and activation for all new drones from May 1, 2026, enabling real-time flight monitoring and digital tracking.
- Existing drones have a 12-month grace period for registration; owners must submit verified personal and device information, with stricter rules on secondhand transfers.
- Drones must continuously broadcast identity and flight data; owners have 36 months to retrofit older drones or face fines up to 20,000 yuan.
- Guangzhou XAircraft Technology Co. Ltd.
- Guangzhou XAircraft Technology Co. Ltd. is a drone manufacturer in China. In the past, they instructed users to attach a QR code to their drones for registration. However, some consumer drones could be activated with only a mobile number registration.
- January 1, 2024：
- China's Interim Regulations on the Flight Management of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, the first dedicated administrative regulation for the drone industry, took effect.
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