FAA Remote ID (RID) Requirements

[ed. note 9/14/2023: updated effective date per FAA guidance]

FAA Remote ID (RID) requirements took effect September 16, 2023. DroneSense and Axon Air powered by DroneSense users will need to comply with the RID requirements except for certain covert operations.

UAS pilots and organizations seeking authorization to conduct UAS operations without broadcasting remote identification (RID) message elements are required to submit a request to the FAA’s System Operations Security Division. The FAA will then work with agencies on a case-by-case basis on the waiver. The authorization will expire after 2-3 years.

If you anticipate a need for security sensitive operations that require you operate without broadcasting Remote ID, send a justification letter on department letterhead to 9-ajr-uas-ops-security@faa.gov. 

A simple template you can use for these requests is available below.

For further agency questions about FAA Remote ID, please contact:

Sean Hook
Group Manager (A) | Air Traffic Management Security
UAS Security Group
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
Office: 202-679-4842
Email: sean.e.hook@faa.gov

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Mr. Travis Fiebelkorn
Director (A), System Operations Security
Federal Aviation Administration Air Traffic Organization FAA Headquarters
800 Independence Ave., SW Suite 300 West
Washington, DC 20591

Approved RID Relief Waver Missions

The following is a partial list of mission sets that agencies may wish to conduct and want relief from RID (CFR 89.105). If there are any missions your agency conducts that are not listed below please discuss the mission specifically with the FAA for further evaluation.

• Operations in support of Joint Terrorism Task Force Activity
• Other operations in support of Federal agencies, including but not limited to homeland security, border protection, counterdrug, and public resource protection
• Covert surveillance of illicit activity, including but not limited to (covert surveillance of illicit activity covers directed or targeted surveillance operations)
  • Gang violence
  • Weapons/arms trafficking
  • Multinational criminal activity
  • Human trafficking
  • Illicit use of public lands
  • Poaching of land or marine wildlife
  • Smuggling/illicit transport of prohibited animal, plant, mineral or archeological material
• Covert air operations in support of covert ground-based security and/or LE operations
• VIP protection support provided to the United States Secret Service (USSS) and/or U.S. Diplomatic Security Service (DSS)
• Counterdrug operations, including but not limited to narcotics operations, marijuana detection and eradication, and surveillance of clandestine illicit drug manufacturing labs
• Air operations in support of National Special Security Events (NSSE) and other Special Event Assessment Rating (SEAR) events such as the Super Bowl and national political party conventions
• Operations in which discovery by malicious actors could result in injury to security and LE personnel, or civilians, or damage to property in the air or on the ground
• Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) operations
• Operations to track and apprehend fugitives and fleeing suspects

Routine type missions that would not be approved for RID waiver are missions similar to the following:

• Traffic monitoring and enforcement
• Search and rescue
• Medevac
• Maintenance flights
• Training flights
• Firefighting
• Routine patrol flights
• Other overt air operations without security or safety risks

Sample Waiver Request Template

You can use the following template as the basis of your agency's request for relief from Remote ID requirements for specific mission types. Simply replace the BLUE BOLD text with what matches your agency's information and submit it on agency letterhead to the email address earlier in this article above:

List of FAA Compliant Drones

The FAA maintains a list of Remote ID compliant drones: https://uasdoc.faa.gov/listDocs