I'm taking off to Ecuador and Peru this week and was wondering if anyone knows if I'm going to be getting trouble with the customs officers in either of these countries for having my Phantom 3 Pro on me.

Any stories or links to good articles to read would be fantastic.

Thanks in advance!!

~S~

As far I know, Peru doesn't allow any kinda of drone without getting permission before hand. I was there earlier this year.

kanchi868 Posted at 2016-1-18 09:43
As far I know, Peru doesn't allow any kinda of drone without getting permission before hand. I was t ...

Did you happen to bring it with you and find this out or you looked into it beforehand?  How did you get the pre-permission?

Is there a good website to look this information up?

THANK YOU.

skoinfinite@gma Posted at 2016-1-19 16:11
Did you happen to bring it with you and find this out or you looked into it beforehand?  How did you get the pre-permission?

Is there a good website to look this information up?

Hello, I live in Ecuador and I may be able to help.

In Ecuador, there is an import tax on drones that is about 30% of retail price which applies to any drone over $500.  However, as long as you don't have a phantom and are travelling with a mavic air/mavic pro etc., it is extremely unlikely that they would actually find it. They do put bags through X_ray machines at the airports, but don't check everyone and a foldable drone doesn't really look like a drone under X-ray anyway.

In Peru, it is a similar situation but they actually have a procedure for you to receive a refund when you leave, which is logical, since you are not actually "importing" your drone, i.e. the tax only applies to those who intend to sell a drone for a profit.

In conclusion, it is a  bit of a pain. Worst case you would end up paying a tax. The scenery here is gorgeous and there is no anti-drone culture so it's a great place to fly.

Hope it helps!