JARUS: the group of authorities behind SORA
What JARUS is, what it publishes, and why its recommendations only bind a drone operator once their authority adopts them.
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JARUS - Joint Authorities for Rulemaking on Unmanned Systems - is a group of experts from civil aviation authorities around the world that drafts shared recommendations for regulating drones. It is where SORA, the risk assessment methodology of the Specific category, comes from.
What it is not: an authority
This is the point that prevents the most mistakes. JARUS issues nothing. It does not authorise operations, register operators or receive applications. A remote pilot never has to deal with it directly.
Its publications are recommendations. They only become binding once an authority takes them into its own framework. EASA, for instance, adopted SORA as an acceptable means of compliance with Regulation (EU) 2019/947. The United Kingdom applies its own version, UK SORA. Other authorities have followed.
⚠️ Practical consequence: the version that counts for your application is the one your authority has adopted, not necessarily the latest one published by JARUS. The two can coexist for a while.
Who is in it
JARUS brings together experts from national civil aviation authorities and regional aviation safety organisations, including EASA. Its website lists more than sixty participating countries.
The work is done in thematic working groups. The one behind SORA deals with safety risk management; another covers the airworthiness of unmanned aircraft. Drafts go through an external consultation: manufacturers and operators can comment on a text before it is published, and JARUS then publishes its responses to the comments.
What it publishes
Its catalogue goes well beyond SORA. It includes in particular:
- SORA itself, published as version 2.5 in 2024. It consists of a main body, an explanatory note, thematic annexes (including collecting information about the operation, ground risk mitigations, air risk, operational safety objectives and a glossary) and a cyber safety extension;
- certification specifications for drone airworthiness, including for multiple simultaneous operations;
- recommendations for aircraft far removed from everyday drone work, such as high altitude platforms.
For an operator, SORA and its annexes remain by far the most useful texts. Annex E, for example, details what is expected for each operational safety objective, including the emergency response plan (ERP).
Why read it if you have nothing to send it
Because JARUS texts explain what regulations merely require.
The European regulation says that an operation in the Specific category needs a risk assessment. JARUS SORA says how to reason: which risks to separate, which mitigations count, what level of evidence to expect. An application built on that logic holds up better than one filled in box by box.
It is also where changes show up first. Something JARUS publishes has a good chance of reaching the means of compliance of the authorities that adopted it, months or years later.
Where to find its publications
The official website is jarus-rpas.org, under Publications. Each document is listed with its version, its date and the working group that produced it.
It is better to start from that page than from a direct link to a PDF found elsewhere: documents get revised, and a file saved two years ago may no longer be the current version.
Key takeaways
- JARUS recommends, it does not authorise. Your contact remains your national authority.
- SORA comes from JARUS, but adoption by your authority is what makes it apply.
- The version that counts is the one your authority has adopted.
- Its texts explain the logic that regulations summarise. Reading them saves time on an application.
Going further
- SORA for drones - the risk assessment methodology published by JARUS.
- ERP - the emergency response plan required by SORA.
- Drone regulations in France - where the Specific category applies.