The rules have two layers

Most people arrive at this section believing there is a single EU drone rulebook. There are two layers, and most of the confusion around drone rules comes from mixing them up.

The top layer is EU-wide and comes from two regulations. Regulation (EU) 2019/947 sets the rules of operation: the three categories (Open, Specific, Certified), the Open category's A1, A2 and A3 subcategories, and who may fly what, where. Regulation (EU) 2019/945 sets the product side: the C0 to C4 class marks a manufacturer puts on a drone, which is what determines which subcategory it can fly in. Both apply the same way in every EU member state. See EU classes and categories for what each category and class mark means in practice, and the EU category tool to work out where your own aircraft falls.

The layer underneath is national. Operator registration is an EU-wide obligation under Article 14 of 2019/947, but you register with the authority of the country where you live, not with the EU itself. Minimum age has an EU default of 16, but Article 9 of the same regulation lets each country lower it, by up to four years in the Open category and up to two years in the Specific category, so the age that applies to you depends on where you fly. The geographic zones where flying is restricted are designated by each country under Article 15, on the basis of its own risk assessment. Registration and competency covers what that means in practice.

FPV flying runs into one rule directly: the requirement to keep the drone in visual line of sight, VLOS, at all times. Flying on goggles puts your eyes on the drone's camera feed, not on the drone itself, which is the opposite of VLOS.

The Open category regulation allows for this through a named role: an unmanned aircraft observer. The observer stands next to the remote pilot, watches the drone directly, and is responsible for telling the pilot about any obstacle or hazard the pilot cannot see through the goggles. This is not a formality: without an observer performing that role, FPV flight under goggles is not compliant with the VLOS requirement in the Open category.

Which subcategory and class mark apply to a given FPV build still depends on its weight and, for a factory-built aircraft, its C-class label, the same as any other drone. A sub-250 g racer and a 3-inch freestyle build carrying a C1 mark do not follow the same rule set. Check EU classes and categories before assuming which one applies to your build.

Everything above describes the mechanism, not a ruling on your specific aircraft, location or flight. Regulations get amended, national authorities publish guidance that narrows how a rule is applied, and enforcement details differ by country. This page and the ones it links to are a starting point for understanding the structure, not a substitute for checking the current text yourself.

The binding source is always the regulation itself and your national aviation authority: EUR-Lex for the EU regulations, EASA for guidance that applies across the EU, and in Germany the Luftfahrt-Bundesamt for what applies specifically here. If a page on this site and your national authority disagree, the authority is right.