Do home inspectors need a Part 107 certificate to fly a drone?

The FAA has two sets of rules for small drones. Recreational flyers follow a limited exception in federal law and take a free online safety test. Everyone else follows 14 CFR Part 107, which the FAA says "enables certificated remote pilots to fly for work or business."

Many people assume, the FAA says, that a flight is recreational as long as nobody is paid for it. The FAA rejects that idea. Its recreational flyers page says "Compensation, or the lack of it, is not what determines if a flight was recreational or not." Its list of Part 107 examples includes roof inspections and taking photos to help sell a property.

The recreational exception covers flying purely for fun, and a drone over a client's roof is part of the job. When in doubt, the FAA says, assume Part 107.

The Remote Pilot Certificate is the card people call a Part 107 license. To qualify, a person must be at least 16 years old and able to read, speak, write, and understand English. The FAA also requires a physical and mental condition to fly safely. A first-time pilot then follows these steps from the FAA's Become a Certificated Remote Pilot page:

1. Create an Integrated Airman Certification and Rating Application (IACRA) profile to get an FAA Tracking Number.
2. Schedule the Unmanned Aircraft General, Small (UAG) knowledge test at an FAA-approved Knowledge Testing Center.
3. Bring a government-issued photo ID to the test center.
4. Pass the test.
5. Complete FAA Form 8710-13 in IACRA, using the 17-digit Knowledge Test Exam ID from the test.
6. Wait for the email saying the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) background check is done.
7. Print the temporary certificate from IACRA, as that email explains.

The printed temporary certificate is the sign it worked, and the permanent card follows by mail. One delay the FAA names comes at the IACRA form: a test result can take up to 48 hours to show up there.

The test carries a fee. As of October 2026, the FAA's pages say a fee is required but do not state the amount, so check it when booking. A pilot who already holds an FAA pilot certificate under Part 61, with a current flight review, takes a free online course instead.

The pilot keeps the certificate at hand on every flight. To keep using it, the pilot completes free online recurrent training every 24 calendar months.

Part 107 registration costs $5 per drone and lasts 3 years, as of October 2026, according to the FAA's drone registration page. It is done online at FAADroneZone. A drone registered as a recreational drone cannot be flown under Part 107, and the under-250-gram exception from registration applies only to recreational flying.

The registration number goes on the outside of the drone before it flies. The registration certificate, paper or digital, goes along on every flight.

Any drone that has to be registered also has to broadcast Remote ID, a signal that gives the drone's identity and location. A drone can meet it with built-in Remote ID or an add-on broadcast module. The rule took effect September 16, 2023. The FAA's grace period for operators who were not able to comply ended March 16, 2024. After that date, the FAA warned, an operator who does not comply faces possible fines and suspension or revocation of the certificate.

These Part 107 rules shape a flight over a house. Each row gives the rule and what it means on a residential job:

The over-people rule applies whenever people stand in the yard. Part 107 allows flight over a person who is directly taking part in the flight. It also allows flight over someone under a covered structure or inside a stationary vehicle. Otherwise the drone has to qualify under one of four categories. Category 1 is a drone of 0.55 pounds or less, counting everything attached, with no exposed rotating parts that would cut skin. Categories 2 and 3 need a drone listed on an FAA-accepted declaration of compliance and labeled for that category. Category 4 needs a drone with an FAA airworthiness certificate.

Near an airport, the address can sit inside controlled airspace. The Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC) lets a Part 107 pilot request authorization through FAA-approved apps. An approval can arrive in near-real time. Near airports without LAANC, the pilot applies through the FAA's manual process instead.

A temporary flight restriction (TFR) can close airspace for a wildfire, a hurricane, or a major sporting event. Check the Notices to Airmen first, the FAA says. Violations can bring anything from a warning or fine to a suspended or revoked certificate.

Neither main standard requires a drone or a roof walk. The InterNACHI Standards of Practice tell the inspector to inspect the roof "from ground level or the eaves." Walking on any roof surface is not required. The InterNACHI text does not mention drones.

The American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) 2014 Standard asks the inspector to describe the methods used to inspect the roofing. That text stays current until the 2026 text takes effect. ASHI's approved 2026 text keeps that rule and adds that the inspector is not required to walk on roofs. It also names drones outright. An inspector may use reasonable tools that the inspector judges necessary. Small unmanned aircraft systems, or drones, are on the list of equipment an inspector is not required to use.

So a drone is one method among several, and under ASHI the report states which one was used. In Russ Motyko's published view, from more than 3,000 inspections, a roof gets walked when conditions allow. Steep pitch, wet or mossy shingles, fragile old tile, and bad weather are his reasons to stay off. For his full take on roofs and ladders, see is being a home inspector physically demanding. For the side-by-side standards, see home inspection standards of practice.

A drone adds a risk that a ladder does not: it can fall on a person, a car, or the neighbor's roof. Whether a policy covers that depends on the carrier and the policy wording. Ask the carrier directly, and get the answer in writing.

One carrier spells out its own terms. InspectorPro says on its drone insurance page that its standard inspection policy includes general liability coverage for drones. For the rest of the insurance picture, see do home inspectors need errors and omissions (E&O) insurance.