Part 108 Status: Where the FAA’s BVLOS Rule Actually Stands

Quick answer: Part 108 is still a proposed rule, not law. The final rule text has been under White House review at the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) since July 10, 2026. Until a final rule is published in the Federal Register and reaches its effective date, nothing changes for operators. Flying beyond visual line of sight still requires a Part 107 waiver, full stop.

The 60-second version

• What it is: the FAA’s framework for routine beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) drone operations, replacing today’s case-by-case waiver grind with a standing set of rules.
• Where it is: final rule text under OIRA review since July 10, 2026. OIRA is the last substantive gate before publication.
• What is legal today: exactly what was legal yesterday. Part 107, visual line of sight, waivers for anything beyond it.
• What to do: keep flying, keep clean logs, and do not buy anything labeled “Part 108 ready.”

The full timeline, from the public record

Most coverage of this rule is sloppy about dates, so here is the sequence straight from the Federal Register and the regulatory docket:

• May 2024: Congress orders the rule. The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 directs the FAA to create a performance-based BVLOS framework.
• August 7, 2025: the proposed rule (the NPRM) is published in the Federal Register as “Normalizing Unmanned Aircraft Systems Beyond Visual Line of Sight Operations” (90 FR 38212, Docket FAA-2025-1908). It runs 180 pages.
• October 6, 2025: the first comment period closes. The FAA declined requests to extend it.
• January 28, 2026: the FAA reopens comments, narrowly, on two fight zones: electronic conspicuity (how drones and manned aircraft electronically see each other) and right of way (who yields to whom at 300 feet).
• February 11, 2026: the reopened window closes. That was the last public input round.
• July 10, 2026: the rule arrives at OIRA, and the public review record lists its stage as “Final Rule.” What is under review is the final text, not another draft of the proposal.

What OIRA review actually means

OIRA (the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, part of the White House’s budget office) reviews every economically significant federal rule before it can publish. This is the last substantive review gate. It is also a black box: there is no public clock, no page count, and no reliable way to know whether a rule sits there for three weeks or six months.

Two things are worth knowing. First, rules do change at OIRA. Industry, manned aviation, and security agencies all get a last word in this window, and the right-of-way fight is the one most likely to leave marks on the final text. Second, rules can also stall here. The FAA has already blown past the timeline Congress set for this rulemaking, and nobody outside the review room can give you an honest publication date. Anyone who does is guessing.

What the proposed rule would do

The final text may differ, but the proposal’s shape is clear:

• Two doors in. Operating permits for smaller, lower-risk work (aerial surveying, agriculture, package delivery, civic interest, training, demonstration, flight test, and recreational BVLOS) and operating certificates for larger, more complex operations with more FAA oversight.
• No pilot certificate requirement. The FAA proposed shifting responsibility from individual airmen to the operator as an organization, with an operations supervisor accountable for each operation and a flight coordinator role where the aircraft design needs one. This is the biggest structural change in the rule: the legal weight moves from pilots to operators.
• Real weight classes. 55 pounds, 110 pounds, and up to 1,320 pounds depending on the operation type, instead of Part 107’s flat 55-pound ceiling.
• 400 feet, with a path into controlled airspace. Operations stay at or below 400 feet AGL, with controlled-airspace access tied to approved strategic deconfliction through automated data services.
• Operations over people, by the numbers. Five population-density categories built on LandScan data decide where you can fly, with open-air assemblies still off limits and shielded operations (within 50 feet of a structure) allowed without extra authorization.
• A new services industry. A companion rule (Part 146) creates certified automated data service providers, the airspace coordination layer that makes dense BVLOS traffic possible.

What happens the day it publishes

Publication in the Federal Register is the moment the rule becomes real, but it is not the moment you can fly. Federal rules carry an effective date, often 30 to 90 days after publication, and a rule this size will likely phase in pieces: applications for permits and certificates, airworthiness acceptance for aircraft, and the data-service layer all have to spin up. The realistic read is that publication starts a clock measured in months, not days.

When that happens, this page gets rewritten the same week, and our breakdowns of the final text go up right after.

What to ignore

“Part 108 ready” products. Nobody knows what the final text says. Preparing for a rule nobody has read is not preparation.

Confident publication dates. The rule has already outlived every predicted date. It publishes when it publishes.

Anyone telling you to wait. The certificate that pays the bills today is Part 107, and every operator who wins BVLOS work in 2027 will be the one with clean logs, real hours, and client relationships built under the rules that exist now. Waiting is a strategy for starting from zero.

Common questions

Is Part 108 the law yet?

No. As of September 2026, the final rule text is under White House review at OIRA and has not been published in the Federal Register. Until publication and the effective date that follows, Part 107 and its waiver process remain the only legal path to BVLOS.

When will the final rule be published?

Nobody outside the review process knows. OIRA review has no fixed timeline. The rule has already passed every predicted date, so treat any specific claim with suspicion.

Does Part 108 replace Part 107?

No. Part 107 stays the base certificate for commercial small drone work within visual line of sight. Part 108 adds a new framework for beyond visual line of sight operations on top of it.

Will I need a new license to fly under Part 108?

Under the proposal, no airman certificate is required for Part 108 operations. Responsibility shifts to the operator as an organization, with named roles like the operations supervisor. The final rule could adjust this, but the direction is clear: organizational accountability instead of individual pilot certification.

Can I fly BVLOS today?

Only with a Part 107 waiver, which means a detailed application, a safety case, and months of FAA review. There is no other legal path until Part 108 takes effect.

Sources: Federal Register, 90 FR 38212 (August 7, 2025); Federal Register comment-period reopening notice (January 28, 2026); OIRA review record for RIN 2120-AL82. All dates verified against the public docket.