Sign in

Guide · Airspace

Drone no-fly zones in Japan: how to check in five minutes

Japan has five kinds of restricted airspace. None of them is on a single map. This page tells you what each one is, which free map shows it, and what to do when your site is inside.

The five zones

1

Around airports

Airspace around airports and heliports, up to several kilometres out depending on the runway. Includes approach and departure surfaces.

How to check: DIPS 2.0 map (airport airspace layer) or the airport's published chart. When in doubt, ask the airport office.

If you are inside: Permit from the regional Civil Aviation Bureau, with the airport's consent, or move the site.

2

150 m and above

Any flight 150 m or more above ground level, anywhere. Measured from the ground under the aircraft, not from take-off.

How to check: Your aircraft's altitude readout is relative to take-off. On slopes and rooftops, add the terrain.

If you are inside: Permit from the regional bureau. Most work does not need it: facade inspection stays under 100 m.

3

Densely Inhabited Districts (DID)

Areas the census defines as densely populated. Most of Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and every city centre. Redrawn after each census.

How to check: The Geospatial Information Authority (GSI) map has a DID layer. Turn it on and zoom to your site.

If you are inside: Permit from the regional bureau. This is the most common permit in Japan and is routinely granted with the standard manual.

4

Emergency airspace

Temporary airspace declared around disasters, fires and rescue operations. Appears without notice and overrides everything else.

How to check: MLIT notices and the DIPS map. Check on the day, not the day before.

If you are inside: No flight. There is no permit for this one.

5

Key facilities

The Diet, the Prime Minister's Office, the Imperial Palace, embassies, nuclear plants, US and Japanese defence sites and their 300 m perimeter, under a separate law.

How to check: The list is published by the National Police Agency. The perimeter is not on general drone maps.

If you are inside: Consent of the facility and prior notice to the police. In practice: do not fly there.

The five-minute check

  1. Open the GSI map, turn on the Densely Inhabited District layer, zoom to the site. Inside the shading means a DID permit.
  2. Open the DIPS 2.0 map and look for airport airspace over the same point.
  3. Decide your maximum height above ground. Under 150 m unless you have a permit.
  4. On the day, check for emergency airspace notices.
  5. Ask the landowner. Airspace permission never replaces permission to stand there and take off.

The links for every map and office are on Japan drone links, with a note on which sites have an English version. The full sequence from registration to flight is in How to fly a drone in Japan.

Finding a place you can fly

Start from the negative space: outside DID shading, away from airports, not a park that bans drones. Riverbanks managed by the national government publish their own drone rules by section. Private land with the owner’s consent is the simplest case. Once you have a site, the remaining questions are wind and light, which are covered in Drone wind limits.

Questions people ask

Is there one map that shows everything?

No. DIPS 2.0 (MLIT) shows airport airspace and lets you file plans; the GSI map shows Densely Inhabited Districts; the National Police Agency publishes key facilities; emergency airspace is announced case by case. Five minutes across two maps covers a normal site.

Can I fly a drone in Tokyo?

Almost all of the 23 wards is a Densely Inhabited District, and much of the east is airport airspace for Haneda. Flying there needs a permit for DID at minimum, plus the landowner's consent, and many parks ban drones by their own rules. It is done every day by permitted operators; it is not a place for a first flight.

What counts as "150 m"?

Height above the ground directly under the aircraft. Fly off a 60 m rooftop to 100 m above it and you are at 160 m above ground. Terrain counts the same way.

Does a permit for DID cover everything?

It covers the DID airspace. Night flight, beyond visual line of sight, within 30 m of people or property, events, hazardous cargo and dropping objects are separate operating rules that need their own approval. Landowner consent is separate again.

What about aircraft under 100 g?

The airspace rules in the Civil Aeronautics Act apply to aircraft of 100 g and above. Lighter toys are outside the Act but still bound by the key-facilities law, local ordinances and park rules.

Sources

  • Civil Aeronautics Act, Article 132-85 (airspace where flight is prohibited without permission): airport surroundings, 150 m and above, Densely Inhabited Districts, emergency airspace.
  • Act on Prohibition of Flights of Small Unmanned Aircraft over Key Facilities (key facilities and their 300 m perimeter).
  • Maps: Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (DID layer); MLIT DIPS 2.0.

Updated 2026-09-24. A guide, not legal advice. Rules change; the timeline of changes is kept on Japanese drone law timeline.

Once the site is clear, put the aircraft on the map

Register your aircraft on Airffic World and its position and altitude appear on the live map while it flies. Free, and the history is kept.

Register an aircraft →