Recreational drone use

Introduction

You must have a concession (permit) from DOC to fly a drone on public conservation land for any reason.

Get more information about using drones on public conservation land. 

Drones are considered an aircraft. They are controlled by DOC on or over public conservation lands and waters under the Conservation Act 1987 and by the Civil Aviation Authority under the Civil Aviation Act 1990. See Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for more information.

If you're planning on using your drone for commercial gain, see commercial drone use.

Pre-application meeting

Applying for a concession for the first time can be complicated. To help your application we offer a free pre-application meeting.

We’ll help you to:

  • Understand the permission you will need to apply for.
  • Navigate our statutory planning documents, so you can consider whether the activity you wish to undertake is consistent with them.
  • Understand DOC’s responsibility to give effect to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi, which requires consultation with Treaty Partners on most applications. If you wish, DOC can help you contact the local iwi, hapū, and whānau to assess whether your proposed activity will have any cultural effects. Often this consultation can enhance the activity you are considering.

Find out more about the process and how to prepare your application.

Permissions application process

Preparing a permission application

Type of concession

Depending on what you want to do and when and how you want to do it, you will either need a one-off concession or a longer-term concession: 

One-off concession – for drone activities for a period of no longer than 3 months.

Your activity also must:

  • have only minor environmental effects that can easily be managed
  • have clearly defined limits (that is number of flights)
  • not take place in the same location more than once in any three-year period.

Longer-term concession – for any other drone activities.

Your DOC advisor will advise you what concession you will need in your pre-application meeting. You can also talk to them about areas where drone use is likely to be approved.

Apply for your concession

One-off activity

1. Fill in the relevant forms 

Fill in the one-off recreational drone use application form (PDF, 323K) or (Word, 122K)

Your application may be returned if you do not identify the specific location by conservation area name. Use DOC Maps to identify the specific locations name.

If applicable, fill out and attach the recommended location form:

If your application includes areas outside the recommended locations you must include the conservation area you want to access.

No further drone permits can be issued within Fiordland National Park until further notice. The recreational drone permit allocation limit under the Fiordland National Park Management Plan 2007 has been reached. 

2. Send us your application

Email the forms along with the relevant attachments to permissions@doc.govt.nz.

If your application is approved, we will send you a contract which you must sign and return before proceeding with your activity.

Longer term activity

1. Fill in the relevant forms 

Fill in the relevant concession application forms:

Your application must include the conservation area you want to access. It may be returned if you do not identify the specific location by conservation area name. Use DOC maps to help you identify this. See also Areas we recommend you apply to use a drone.

2. Send us your application

Email the forms along with the relevant documents requested to permissions@doc.govt.nz.

If your application is approved, we will send you a contract which you must sign and return before proceeding with your activity.

Fees and processing time

One-off activity

We will invoice you once we have processed your application. Your processing fee is likely to be $65 plus GST ($74.75 including GST) for each DOC region you apply to use your drone.

Longer term activity

We will invoice you once we have processed your application. The processing fee for a standard application is likely to be $2065 plus GST ($2374.75 including GST). If your application is assessed as complex, covers multiple regions, or includes more than 20 individual locations, this fee is likely to be higher. We will send you an estimate of costs once we have received your application.

If your proposed activity has to be notified to the public because there are likely to be significant environmental effects over the duration of your activity your fee will include the cost of public notification and hearings. We will provide an estimate of the likely application processing time and cost when your application is received.

Contact us

For more information or assistance with your permission contact the nearest of these DOC offices.

Back to top