Filming your finca by drone: which permits the owner needs (and which they don’t)

It is the question owners and property managers ask most: “I want a video of my finca — do I need any permits?” The short answer: almost never you, almost always us. This guide separates what belongs to each side.

What the operator (we) handle

Everything aeronautical is the responsibility of whoever flies, not the owner:

• Operator registration with AESA and pilots holding the corresponding certificate.
• Public liability insurance for unmanned aircraft, mandatory on every flight.
• Airspace authorisation when the property falls in controlled airspace: near Palma airport, next to an aerodrome or inside a protected natural area.
• Risk assessment and flight plan, documented.

If you hire someone who asks you to sort out “the flight paperwork” yourself, that is a red flag: either they do not have it or they do not know how to process it.

What belongs to the owner

• Authorising access and filming on the property. If you are the owner, this is a signature on the quote; if you manage the estate for a third party, get the owner’s written approval.
• Informing tenants or guests if the property is rented or occupied during the shoot. Nobody should appear on camera without knowing.
• Deciding what is not filmed. Private areas, valuables, number plates: they are flagged before the flight and stay out of frame or get blurred.

What about the neighbours?

A drone can incidentally capture adjoining properties. Correct practice — and ours — is to plan the shots to centre on the target property, never hover over other plots, and blur any identifying element that slips in during post-production. For flights very close to neighbouring homes, a heads-up beforehand avoids misunderstandings and usually makes the shoot easier.

Data protection: the part almost nobody mentions

Aerial footage can contain personal data (identifiable people, number plates, visible interiors). On a standard commercial job this is solved with three habits: shooting when nobody is around, framing the property rather than people, and blurring whatever cannot be avoided. If the shoot will deliberately capture people — an event at the estate, for instance — attendee consent comes into play, managed as in any other production.

Practical summary

1. You provide the property and access authorisation.
2. We provide the registration, the insurance, the airspace permits and the judgement.
3. The neighbours neither appear nor get disturbed.
4. All of the above goes in writing in the quote.

Own a finca in Mallorca and unsure about your specific case? Tell us about it and we will tell you the same day exactly what flying there would require.