Drone regulations and stock aerial footage

I've been reading about the FAA guidelines about registration and the Part 107 rules for commercial use of the drone. At this moment I understand that flying for the sole purpose of making stock footage (intention of making money) is considered commercial use and need to have the UAS remote pilot certificate.

My questions are more specific for which I couldn't find the answers easily.
1. Is the commercial use guideline for US nationals and permanent residents only? Does it apply to tourists and resident aliens (on temp. work permit)?
2. Is it also applicable if the intention of the drone use was personal videos (hobby/recreational or learning cinematography) but someone happens to be interested in licensing the footage from vimeo. Assuming the videos in Vimeo/Youtube had no ads.
3. Is it acceptable to shoot aerial footage, upload on stock sites for sale but do not accept a payout until the UAS Remote Pilot license is acquired by the individual?

Any help/suggestions and guidance from the Pro would be welcomed, thanks.

Quote: "ShutterLabs 18 Aug 2016 15:42
I've been reading about the FAA guidelines about registration and the Part 107 rules for commercial use of the drone. At this moment I understand that flying for the sole purpose of making stock footage (intention of making money) is considered commercial use and need to have the UAS remote pilot certificate.

My questions are more specific for which I couldn't find the answers easily.
1. Is the commercial use guideline for US nationals and permanent residents only? Does it apply to tourists and resident aliens (on temp. work permit)?
2. Is it also applicable if the intention of the drone use was personal videos (hobby/recreational or learning cinematography) but someone happens to be interested in licensing the footage from vimeo. Assuming the videos in Vimeo/Youtube had no ads.
3. Is it acceptable to shoot aerial footage, upload on stock sites for sale but do not accept a payout until the UAS Remote Pilot license is acquired by the individual?

Any help/suggestions and guidance from the Pro would be welcomed, thanks."


You really don't know the answers already. I believe you do. Of course you can twist any law or rule to suit your desires. Why would any law only apply to citizens or permanent residents? You know the answer already. Not accepting payment until legally licensed? Really what is your intent? That is what matters.

You need to understand no one here is a lawyer and will not give you legal advise. No one will support bending the law to help you. What anyone says here has no legal bearing or strength. Do what you feel is appropriate. When people ask these kind of questions it is silly. Even the FAA doesn't know what to do yet.

Best advise ... if you think anything is wrong then don't do it. It doesn't matter if it about flying a quad or speeding a car.

So probably better leave your "drone" home and shoot footage.
Best of luck.

This was the first forum post I've read on Pond5, and I am curious if all questions will be met with such rudeness.

Not rude but a straight answer. When someone asks how to avoid what they consider illegal and ask how to avoid it. He asked what he can do. The answer is easy don't do it if you think it's illegal. It's like don't get caught until the requirements are met. Answers to questions need straight answers. He already knew the answer but wanted justification. No one will help him or anyone skirt the law.

And welcome to Pond5, even Clinton guys are welcome ;) Get some clips online and best luck.

I do wish him and you the best luck and great sales.

If I would have known the answers already, I would have uploaded a lot of aerial footage from my drone :) I am trying to be aware of what the rules are.

I know a lot of folks already who come to US on a vacation and shoot a lot of aerial footage for stock, legally they are not doing any commercial activity in the US as they can go home and upload the footage or they are accepting payments in their non-US accounts.

@shutterlabs
Your question is very interesting and I am sorry that it has met such a harsh commentary.
I am extremely interested in drone legislation, but I am in Europe, where things are much more complex because every country has different regulations (if any)

I have my 107 so of course I am a us citizen and this applies to the US. If you got any form of payment, by using your drone in anyway, directly or indirectly, including anything taken with your drone, media, data, whatever, you need to be certified. It doesn't matter what your intention was at the time of flying. It matters if you profited by using their airspace. However the question about being in another country as a visitor can be a bit confusing I guess. But I just assume, wherever you're flying, as a responsible pilot you must follow the local laws. Just like driving a car anywhere, you follow their traffic laws which also goes for driving a truck commercially too. Same goes for drone regulations. It's their country and their airspace. In Canada, they now have stricter rules for drone hobbyist than the US has for commercial operation. You need to be certified to fly at all. So even if you purely use it for personal purposes never earn a cent, you still have to follow their stricter rules. However all their certification is online. So easily obtainable while visiting or from home if later you wanna sell your Canadian images. Now days there are a lot more info on drone rules and reg, FAA now has this info up https://www.faa.gov/uas/resources/foreign_operators/ So best thing to do is research or contact local drone pilots who would know or maybe can fly with or for you if you can't. Hope that gives you a better understanding. Safe and happy flying.