Sierra Leone SL

Sierra Leone's civil aviation regulator (SLCAA) has an adopted, detailed drone rulebook in force since February 2024 (SLCAR Part 6B), and it is unusually tourist-friendly on paper: a drone already registered with the aeronautical authority of any ICAO member state (which covers almost any country's national drone registration) can satisfy Sierra Leone's registration requirement without a separate local process, and no pilot licence at all is needed for standard flying away from aerodromes. Standard flying means visual line of sight, at or below 120 m (400 ft), by day, at least 30 m from uninvolved people, outside restricted/populated areas, and more than 4 km from any aerodrome. Some generic travel guides claim tourists must obtain a separate SLCAA import licence and flight approval letter before entering — this was not found in the official regulation itself and may reflect outdated or templated information, so confirm directly with SLCAA if you want certainty.

Draft: not yet reviewedUpdated 24 Sept 2026Sierra Leone Civil Aviation Authority (SLCAA)

67Fly score

62Import score

65Combined

Your plan

Choose your home country (top right) to see steps tailored to you.

1 thing to sort out before you fly

Register your drone in Sierra Leone
A UA may be registered either with SLCAA (per SLCAR Part 7) or, notably, with the aeronautical authority of any ICAO contracting state — which covers essentially any country's national drone registration. A tourist whose drone is already registered at home (e.g. FAA registration in the US, or another national register) can likely rely on that instead of registering separately in Sierra Leone, though carry proof (registration certificate/number) with you. No SLCAA fee schedule for local registration was found.
Bringing your drone in
No drone-specific customs allowance or duty rate was confirmed. SLCAR Part 6B (the aviation regulation itself) does not describe a separate import-licence requirement, but some generic travel/drone-law guides claim tourists must get an SLCAA import licence and flight-approval letter before entering — this conflicting claim was not corroborated in the official regulation and may be outdated or templated across multiple countries' pages. Batteries: No Sierra Leone-specific lithium-battery rule was found; standard international air-travel limits apply.
Before each flight
Every UA operated in Sierra Leone must be registered — either with SLCAA under SLCAR Part 7, OR with the aeronautical authority of any ICAO contracting state, OR under a reciprocal registration agreement with Sierra Leone (SLCAR Part 6B, 2.2.1). In practice this means a drone already registered in your home country typically satisfies the requirement without separate Sierra Leonean registration. · 'Standard operating conditions' (no permit needed beyond registration): VLOS, at or below 120 m (400 ft) AGL, by day, at least 30 m horizontally from uninvolved people, not in a prohibited/restricted area, not over a populated area, and not within 4 km of the movement area of a controlled aerodrome · No pilot licence/certification is required for standard operations unless the flight is on or within 4 km of an aerodrome — that proximity requires knowledge of aeronautical charts/airspace and, per 2.11.1(c), generally a remote pilot qualification

Flying

VisitorsAllowed

Max altitude120 m

Line of sightRequired

Night flightsRestricted

Every UA operated in Sierra Leone must be registered — either with SLCAA under SLCAR Part 7, OR with the aeronautical authority of any ICAO contracting state, OR under a reciprocal registration agreement with Sierra Leone (SLCAR Part 6B, 2.2.1). In practice this means a drone already registered in your home country typically satisfies the requirement without separate Sierra Leonean registration.
'Standard operating conditions' (no permit needed beyond registration): VLOS, at or below 120 m (400 ft) AGL, by day, at least 30 m horizontally from uninvolved people, not in a prohibited/restricted area, not over a populated area, and not within 4 km of the movement area of a controlled aerodrome
No pilot licence/certification is required for standard operations unless the flight is on or within 4 km of an aerodrome — that proximity requires knowledge of aeronautical charts/airspace and, per 2.11.1(c), generally a remote pilot qualification
Night flying is prohibited unless indoors, a 'shielded operation' (within 100 m of and below a natural/man-made object), or specifically authorised
Maximum gross mass under this open-category framework is 25 kg; 15–25 kg drones need construction/inspection approval by an SLCAA-approved person or organisation
Do not fly over a person unless they are involved in the operation, sheltered, or have given consent and you stay at least 15 m away (30 m without consent)

Commercial use: Operating outside standard conditions (near aerodromes, BVLOS, at night, or for commercial/complex operations) requires a UAS Authorization or UAS Operator Certificate (UOC) from SLCAA — a heavier process involving a chief remote pilot, safety management system, operational risk assessment and a certificate valid up to 3 years. This is built for established operators, not casual tourist flying.

Registration & classes

Registration	Yes (all drones) A UA may be registered either with SLCAA (per SLCAR Part 7) or, notably, with the aeronautical authority of any ICAO contracting state — which covers essentially any country's national drone registration. A tourist whose drone is already registered at home (e.g. FAA registration in the US, or another national register) can likely rely on that instead of registering separately in Sierra Leone, though carry proof (registration certificate/number) with you. No SLCAA fee schedule for local registration was found.
Pilot test	Sometimes (mixed) SLCAA Remote Pilot Licence. Not required for standard VLOS flying below 120 m and more than 4 km from any aerodrome. Required for flights on/within 4 km of an aerodrome, above 120 m, BVLOS, or other non-standard operations. Eligibility (age 18+) needs a theory exam and demonstrated competencies, but a foreign remote pilot licence, flight crew licence, ATC licence, or an equivalent military qualification recognised by SLCAA can satisfy this without a fresh Sierra Leonean exam (3.2.3).
Remote ID	No No Remote ID / in-flight broadcast identification requirement appears in SLCAR Part 6B.
Insurance	Unknown SLCAR Part 6B explicitly states it does not address insurance (left as a matter of national/economic discretion outside this regulation); no separate insurance mandate was found.
Foreign registration accepted	Yes SLCAR Part 6B, 2.2.1(b) explicitly accepts registration from 'the appropriate aeronautical authority of a contracting State of ICAO' — in practice this covers almost any country's national drone register, so most visitors do not need separate Sierra Leonean registration if their drone is already registered at home. No pilot licence is required for standard VLOS flying away from aerodromes; a foreign remote pilot licence, flight crew licence or equivalent can satisfy licensing requirements where they do apply (e.g., near aerodromes). This official-regulation picture is more permissive than some generic travel guides suggest — if your trip depends on being able to fly, verify directly with SLCAA given the conflicting secondary claims about import licensing.

Weight classes

Class	Weight	Rules
Open category	≤ 25 kg gross (incl. payload)	Standard VLOS/altitude/registration rules apply; this is the category covering ordinary consumer/tourist drones.
15–25 kg	15 kg – 25 kg	Additional requirement: the UA and any modifications must be constructed under, or inspected and approved by, an SLCAA-approved person or organisation.
Over 25 kg	> 25 kg gross	Not permitted to operate under SLCAR Part 6B at all (2.18.1 sets an absolute 25 kg ceiling for this Part) — not relevant to typical tourist equipment.

Import & export

ImportRestricted

Customs dutyVaries

VAT / sales taxUnknown

Radio certificationUnknown

No drone-specific customs allowance or duty rate was confirmed. SLCAR Part 6B (the aviation regulation itself) does not describe a separate import-licence requirement, but some generic travel/drone-law guides claim tourists must get an SLCAA import licence and flight-approval letter before entering — this conflicting claim was not corroborated in the official regulation and may be outdated or templated across multiple countries' pages.
No official SLCAA import-certification procedure was confirmed. Given the conflicting secondary-source claim of a required import licence, contact SLCAA directly before travelling if certainty matters.
Batteries: No Sierra Leone-specific lithium-battery rule was found; standard international air-travel limits apply.
Bring your drone's home-country registration certificate/number, since it may substitute for local SLCAA registration under SLCAR Part 6B, 2.2.1(b).
Some secondary sources (of uncertain reliability) claim an import licence and SLCAA approval letter are required before entering with a drone — this was not found in the official aviation regulation, but confirm with SLCAA if you want to be certain before travelling.
Declare the drone at customs and be ready to show its registration documentation.

Export

No drone-specific export rule was found in SLCAR Part 6B.

Costs

Operator registration	Unknown Validity: Not specified in SLCAR Part 6B (referred to SLCAR Part 7, Aircraft Registration and Marking, which was not available for this research).
SLCAA Remote Pilot Licence	Unknown
Import taxes	? % duty + ? % VAT Usually only for drones you buy abroad and bring in to keep.

Guides

Flying a drone in Sierra Leone as a visitor Visitors

Bring your home registration proof
If your drone is registered with your home country's aeronautical authority (an ICAO contracting state), that registration should satisfy Sierra Leone's requirement — carry the certificate/number with you. Open
Fly under standard conditions
Stay within visual line of sight, at or below 120 m (400 ft), by day, at least 30 m from uninvolved people, and outside restricted or populated areas — no permit or pilot licence is needed for this.
Stay clear of aerodromes
Keep more than 4 km from any aerodrome (controlled or uncontrolled) unless you hold a remote pilot qualification or have an agreement with the aerodrome operator.
Don't fly at night
Night operations are prohibited unless indoors, shielded near a structure, or specifically authorised by SLCAA.
Confirm customs treatment beforehand
Some travel guides claim an import licence is required; this isn't in the official aviation regulation, so contact SLCAA ahead of your trip if you want certainty before flying commercially or for anything beyond standard conditions.

Sources

Sierra Leone Civil Aviation Authority — SLCAR Part 6B: Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS), February 2024 · accessed 24 Sept 2026
Sierra Leone Civil Aviation Authority — official site · accessed 24 Sept 2026
drone-laws.com — Drone Laws in Sierra Leone · accessed 24 Sept 2026

How the score is built

Fly score 67

Operator registration−15
Pilot test (mixed)−8
Mandatory insurance−2
Night flight restricted−3
Visitors must register locally−5

Import score 62

Import restricted−25
Duty + VAT ≈ 15 %−9
Radio / type certification−4

Every score starts at 100 and loses points for each requirement. How scoring works