Selling or Transferring a Drone: What to Do With Registration

Selling a drone raises a question with two different answers, and which one applies to you depends entirely on how you fly. The registration model for recreational flyers and the model for Part 107 operators are structurally different, and most confusion online comes from advice written for one being applied to the other.

Recreational: the number follows you

As a recreational flyer you hold one registration number that covers every drone you own. It is issued to you as a person, not to a particular airframe, and you mark that same number on each of your aircraft. Add a drone to the collection and no new registration is needed; the existing number simply goes on the new aircraft too.

The consequence for selling is refreshingly simple: if you sell one of several drones, there is nothing to file. Your registration remains valid, still covers the drones you kept, and still expires on the same date. There is no inventory to update and no deregistration step, because the FAA record was never a list of your aircraft in the first place.

If you are selling the only drone you own and you are done with the hobby, you also do not need to cancel anything. The registration will lapse at the end of its 36-month term. Should you buy another drone before that date, the number you already hold still applies — see the renewal guide for how the term works.

Part 107: the registration belongs to the aircraft

Under Part 107, each aircraft is registered individually, with its own certificate, its own serial number on the record, and its own expiration date. That record is tied to the drone, so when the drone changes hands the record has to be dealt with. Sell or transfer an aircraft and you record the change in your FAA DroneZone account, then remove the aircraft from your inventory.

Doing this matters for the same reason the certificate exists: registration links a specific aircraft to a specific responsible operator. Leaving a sold drone on your inventory means a flight by its new owner still points at you — and if that flight ends in an incident, an airspace violation, or a complaint, you are the person the record identifies.

Removing a drone from your DroneZone inventory

Remote ID and serial numbers

Remote ID broadcasts the aircraft's serial-based identifier, which is a property of the drone rather than of your paperwork. That means the buyer will need the correct serial and, where a broadcast module is fitted, the module's serial too — so include those details in the sale. Conversely, do not treat the Remote ID serial as sensitive to you: it identifies the aircraft, not you, once the registration record is properly updated or no longer relevant.

Do check that a broadcast module you paid for is actually part of the sale, or actually removed from it, before shipping. Modules move between aircraft, and a buyer expecting one that never arrives is a common secondhand dispute.

If you are the buyer

A secondhand drone arrives with no usable registration attached, whatever the seller's paperwork said. Register it under your own details before flying: recreational flyers use their existing number if they already have one, or register once if they do not, and Part 107 operators register the specific aircraft. Then mark the aircraft with your number and remove any marking left over from the previous owner — two numbers on one airframe is worse than none.

Check the takeoff weight rather than trusting the listing: several popular models sit within a few grams of the 250 g threshold, and accessories fitted by the previous owner can push them over it. The drone weight checker settles that in a few seconds, and the registration checker confirms whether registration applies to how you plan to fly.

Re-marking the aircraft

Whether you are the buyer applying a new number or the seller stripping an old one, the marking rules are unchanged: the number must be readable on the exterior of the aircraft, or inside a battery compartment that opens without tools. Our guide on marking your drone with your FAA registration number covers labelling methods that survive heat, vibration, and rain — and the ones that do not.

Frequently asked questions

Can I transfer my drone registration to the buyer?

No. Registration is not transferable between people. The buyer registers the drone under their own details, or relies on their own recreational registration number.

Do I need to deregister my drone if I sell it recreationally?

Usually not. A recreational registration number is issued to you and covers all of your drones, so selling one aircraft does not change your registration. If you are selling the only drone you own and will not fly again, you can simply let the registration lapse.

What do I do under Part 107 when I sell an aircraft?

Part 107 registration is tied to the specific aircraft, so you record the sale or transfer in your FAA DroneZone account and remove the aircraft from your inventory.

Should I remove my registration number from the drone before shipping it?

Yes. The number stays associated with you, so leaving it on an aircraft you no longer control means someone else's flights could be traced back to your registration.

What should I give the buyer?

The serial number, the Remote ID serial or module details, the original packaging and manuals if you have them — and nothing containing your registration number or personal details.

Does the buyer need to register a drone bought secondhand?

The same rules apply as for a new drone: recreational flyers register if the takeoff weight is over 250 g, and every aircraft flown under Part 107 must be registered regardless of weight.