Register your drone. It’s the law.

The FAA has ruled that everyone who flies a drone must register. Since an estimated 700,000 drones are expected to be sold in the U.S. for the holiday gift-giving season, the registration process is streamlined and will be online as of December 21.

You can register beginning December 21st at http://www.faa.gov/uas/registration/. Registration involves providing your name, home address and email address.

Here are the details:

• Drones weighing .55 pounds and less than 55 pounds must register. It’s the law.
• Drones must be registered before flying them outdoors.
• You must be over 13 years old to register.
• Drones owned before December 21, 2015 must be registered before you fly them (or by February 19, 2016).
• Once registered you’ll get a number that you must put on your drone. If you have multiple drones, the same registration number must appear on all your drones.
• Drones cannot fly above 400 feet, at night, or within 5 miles of an airport.
• Starting January 21, 2016, there will be a $5 registration fee; prior to then the fee is waived.
• There are civil penalties for flying without registering: Up to $27,500 in fines, and up to 3 years imprisonment if failure to comply results in criminal penalties.
• [Drones for commercial use and drones greater than 55 pounds must register differently. It’s also the law. Those details are forthcoming from the FAA.]

A full list of the rules are here. You might also be interested in:

• Drone registration Task Force makes 11 key recommendations
•  What we know about the FAA’s new drone registration requirement, and what we don’t

Frank Tobe is the owner and publisher of The Robot Report, and is also a panel member for Robohub's Robotics by Invitation series.

Frank Tobe is the owner and publisher of The Robot Report, and is also a panel member for Robohub's Robotics by Invitation series.