Beijing bans drone possession citywide, and owners are rushing to sell before the deadline

New Beijing rules taking effect 15 November bar individuals and businesses from possessing or storing drones or key components anywhere in the city, going beyond the registration-only regime the city adopted in March 2026; officials say the goal is to "safeguard the security of the capital."² Owners can sell through designated buy-back points, scrap for recycling, or move drones out of the city, with a government subsidy of 30% of resale value (capped at 3,000 yuan, about US$448) before 31 October, dropping to 15% after that.² AFP reported a queue of about a dozen people at DJI's flagship Beijing store on the first morning of the buy-back programme, with police present at all buy-back sites; one owner, Wu, called the ban "reasonable" given Beijing's status as the capital, while another, Zhu, said he sold five drones at a steep loss and called the scheme "robbery."² DRONELIFE reports the move follows a June incident in which a light aircraft struck one of Beijing's tallest buildings, killing the pilot and injuring 13, and sits alongside a separate, permanent "Special Restricted Area" (roughly Italy-sized at over 280,000 square kilometres around Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei) that Reuters reported took effect 20 September after a rare aviation crash.¹

Why it matters: Beijing is converting a registration regime into an outright possession ban in under six months, the sharpest tightening of drone rules in any major city this year, and a preview of how fast a security incident can end recreational drone ownership somewhere entirely.