On September 11, 2026, the US Federal Communications Commission published its Third Report and Order (FCC 26-50, ET Docket No. 21-232) in the Federal Register (91 FR 57798). The final rule, amending 47 CFR Parts 1 and 2, takes effect October 13, 2026: new equipment-authorization applications for devices that incorporate a Covered List entity's logic-bearing hardware component will be refused, and online marketplaces must display a device's FCC ID at the point of sale from March 1 or June 1, 2027.
Adopted July 22, 2026 and released July 23, 2026, the Order now starts a 30-day clock for OEMs selling radio, IoT or telecom gear into the United States, Telecommunication Certification Bodies, Covered List producers (including Huawei, ZTE, Hytera, Hikvision and Dahua), and platforms such as Amazon, eBay and Walmart Marketplace. The full text is at FCC-26-50A1.pdf.
Who is barred from new FCC authorization on October 13, and who is not?
From October 13, 2026, the FCC will not authorize a device that incorporates a logic-bearing hardware component produced by an entity on the Covered List, where the device would itself be prohibited under 47 CFR 2.903(a) had that entity produced the finished product. A US OEM using a listed entity's logic-bearing chip, module or sub-assembly is in the same position as the listed entity.
The term covers any physical component (device, module, sub-assembly or integrated circuit) that generates and uses timing signals or pulses above 9,000 pulses (cycles) per second and uses digital techniques, or that uses radio-frequency energy for computation, storage or data transfer, tracking 47 CFR 15.3(k). Housings, fasteners, resistors, wiring, plain battery cells, software and firmware are out. The bar attaches only to producer/provider-based Covered List determinations, not to production-location entries (uncrewed aircraft systems, UAS critical components, or routers "produced in a foreign country") unless the producing entity is independently listed.
Which pending and already-authorized devices are grandfathered?
Previously authorized equipment is untouched. Applications pending on October 13, 2026 are exempt unless later amended to add, substitute or change a logic-bearing hardware component. Freeze pending dockets against component swaps, and redesign the bill of materials for any new certification that would otherwise ship a listed entity's logic-bearing part after that date.
The ban on permissive changes in 47 CFR 2.932 and 2.1043 now covers both equipment already prohibited under 47 CFR 2.903 and equipment that would become prohibited as a result of the proposed change, including a production shift to a Covered List entity or a loss of "domestic end product" status.
What must online marketplaces display, and by which 2027 dates?
Amended 47 CFR 2.803(a) treats an online listing plus fulfillment-type activity (consignment, warehousing, order processing, labeling, packaging or billing) as "distribution for the purpose of selling". Carriers that only transport devices remain outside section 302(c) of the Communications Act. Marketplaces that market unauthorized devices face the marketing rules with no willfulness or knowledge element.
New 47 CFR 2.803(c) requires an FCC ID at the online point of sale. Platforms that sell their own devices, or that have physical access to or take title to a third-party device, must display a valid and accurate FCC ID. Platforms that list third-party inventory without physical access or title need only verify that the supplied FCC ID was validly issued and require the seller to certify its accuracy. Pre-October 13, 2026 listings left unamended, non-high-volume third-party sellers under the INFORM Consumers Act, and used devices are excluded.
Can a Covered List entity still file a permissive change?
Not through the limited permissive-change path. Any Covered List entity seeking a change to equipment, whether or not the equipment is itself covered, must recertify and may not use Supplier's Declaration of Conformity. The duty attaches only where the applicant is itself a Covered List entity; a non-listed manufacturer's change to originally listed gear is outside it unless the change would make the device "produced by" that entity. OET Class I and Class II waivers for Covered List UAS and covered routers remain in force through January 1, 2029.
On a D.C. Circuit partial remand, the Commission also rewrote "critical infrastructure" in 47 CFR 1.50001(f), keeping the USA PATRIOT Act section 1016(e) test (16 DHS sectors and 55 National Critical Functions) and deleting the "connected to" language the court called unjustifiably broad.
| Date | What locks in | Who must act |
|---|---|---|
| October 13, 2026 | Component prohibition, marketing clarifications, recertification duty, revised critical-infrastructure definition | OEMs, TCBs, Covered List entities, importers |
| March 1, 2027 | FCC ID at the online point of sale | Marketplaces with physical access or title |
| June 1, 2027 | FCC ID via seller certification after validity check | Marketplaces without physical access or title |
| January 1, 2029 | Class I and Class II permissive-change waivers expire | Covered List UAS and covered-router waiver holders |
Continuous, per-jurisdiction real-time monitoring surfaces this kind of Federal Register lock-in the moment it publishes, rather than when a TCB first rejects a filing.
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Next steps: map logic-bearing hardware in any device you will file after October 13, 2026 against the current Covered List and freeze pending applications against component swaps; brief certification teams that listed-entity applicants now recertify; tell marketplace teams the March 1 and June 1, 2027 FCC ID dates; and drop any "critical infrastructure" screen that still uses the deleted "connected to" test. Obsidian tracks the Covered List and 47 CFR Parts 1 and 2.
