Part 107 waiver for BVLOS: how to apply

Beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) is the operation Part 107’s base certificate restricts hardest, and the FAA rulemaking around it moves faster than almost anything else in this niche. This page describes the confirmed, current pathway and flags exactly where the ground is still shifting.

The default rule: you must keep the aircraft in sight

Under 14 CFR 107.31 (Visual Line of Sight Aircraft Operation), the remote pilot in command, a visual observer, or both together must be able to see the small unmanned aircraft with unaided vision, glasses or contacts, throughout the entire flight. Vision correction like binoculars or a camera feed does not satisfy this requirement; it has to be an unaided view sufficient to know the aircraft’s location, and to see and avoid other air traffic or hazards. This is the rule that makes BVLOS a restricted operation in the first place, and it is why BVLOS matters commercially: infrastructure inspection, agricultural surveying, long linear-corridor mapping, and delivery all want flight distances well past what a pilot can keep in unaided sight.

The confirmed current pathway: an individual waiver

14 CFR 107.31 is listed as waivable under 107.205(c), meaning a remote pilot or operator can apply to the FAA for a Certificate of Waiver authorizing a specific BVLOS operation that does not meet the default visual-line-of-sight requirement. This is a case-by-case approval, not a blanket BVLOS license: the FAA evaluates a proposed safety case for the specific aircraft, route, and mitigations (technology such as detect-and- avoid systems, ground-based observers along the route, or a defined operating area) and grants or denies the waiver against that specific proposal.

Applications go through the FAA’s FAADroneZone waiver-application portal. A BVLOS waiver application is substantially more involved than the LAANC controlled-airspace process described on the LAANC page: expect to document a detailed operational safety case, not a same-day automated approval, and expect a processing timeline measured in weeks to months rather than minutes.

Why “check the current rule status” matters more here than anywhere else

The FAA has pursued a dedicated BVLOS rulemaking effort separate from the case-by-case waiver process for years, aimed at establishing standard categories or conditions under which BVLOS operation would be allowed without an individual waiver application, similar to how the 2021 rule change replaced individual night-operation waivers with a conditions-based path (see the night operations page). As of this page’s last verification pass, this rulemaking’s exact final status, effective date, and resulting rule text are not confirmed and are not repeated here as settled fact.

Do not plan a commercial BVLOS operation off this page alone. If BVLOS access is central to your business plan, confirm the live status of any dedicated BVLOS rule directly against faa.gov and FAADroneZone before committing to equipment, routes, or client commitments that assume a specific rule outcome or timeline. This is the one corner of the post-certification surface where “the rule I read six months ago” can already be out of date.

What a BVLOS waiver does not cover

A BVLOS waiver only addresses the visual-line-of-sight restriction under 107.31. It does not substitute for controlled-airspace authorization if your BVLOS route crosses controlled airspace (still needs LAANC or a separate authorization, see the LAANC page), and it does not substitute for operations-over-people eligibility if your route crosses over non-participants (see the operations-over-people page). A complex BVLOS operation over a populated corridor inside controlled airspace can require stacking multiple approvals, not just the one BVLOS waiver.

See the waivers & authorizations hub for the rest of the post-certification surface, or the free recurrent-training path if you are here to keep your certificate current rather than to expand what it covers.