U.S. FCC weighs shifting device testing away from non-reciprocal economies by 2028

Key Facts

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission added an item on device testing and certification rules to the agenda for its open meeting on October 29, but the materials available here do not confirm the vote’s outcome or that the proposal became an effective rule. The measure targets recognition of laboratories and accreditation bodies in economies that do not offer reciprocal treatment to U.S. laboratories, including China. According to the official agenda summary, the proposal would require substantial activities related to equipment testing and certification to take place in the United States or in reciprocal economies. That makes the location of testing and recognition of its regulatory results the focus of the measure, rather than a blanket ban on Chinese devices or their manufacture. Reuters cited phones, computers and cameras as examples of electronic devices intended for use in the United States, but that does not establish that the same scope was finally adopted.

The proposal’s scope extends to laboratory accreditation bodies and telecommunications certification bodies, according to the agenda summary. This means the proposed restrictions concern more than the location of the laboratory; they also cover the entities that certify the tests and certifications on which equipment authorization relies. The list of targeted economies includes countries that do not provide reciprocal treatment to U.S. laboratories, with China among them, according to Reuters’ description of the proposal. It is therefore inaccurate to reduce the measure to targeting Chinese laboratories alone. Recognition of tests for regulatory purposes also does not amount to a ban on every Chinese device entering the U.S. market.

The proposed step follows an earlier measure the commission took in 2025, when it banned testing of U.S. electronic devices by laboratories owned or controlled by the Chinese government, according to Reuters. The agency said dozens of laboratories were barred under that measure. But the vast majority of laboratories in China continued testing U.S. electronic devices after the earlier ban, the report said. This indicates that the previous measure applied to a specific category of laboratories, while the new proposal targets economies that do not provide reciprocal treatment. This background shows the proposed policy broadening from an ownership or control standard to one based on testing location and regulatory reciprocity.

The stated rationale for the measure, as described by the sources, was to strengthen national security and the integrity of the equipment authorization program. Commission Chairman Brendan Carr said 82% of electronic devices were tested in China during 2025, while the share of devices tested inside U.S. laboratories was no more than 4%, according to another statement by him cited by Reuters. The two figures show the extent of reliance on testing conducted outside the United States, particularly in China, within the process U.S. authorities use to authorize equipment. A legal analysis estimated that about 5 out of every 6 radiofrequency devices are currently tested in non-reciprocal economies. That scale gives the availability of alternative testing sites practical importance for manufacturers and importers if the rule is adopted.

The commission’s agenda set a uniform transition period ending on December 1, 2028, to give laboratories time to expand capacity and manufacturers time to find alternatives, according to the official document. A legal analysis says applications submitted on or after that date would need to meet the rule’s testing requirements if it is adopted. An earlier Reuters report said the restrictions were scheduled to take effect in December 2028. These dates give laboratories and companies time to reorganize testing locations and certification pathways before the requirements begin to apply to new applications. Any final interpretation of the scope and exemptions also depends on the text adopted by the commission; the available materials do not confirm the outcome of the October 29 vote.

In an earlier measure in the same regulatory matter, the commission said it had established a fast-track priority review process for devices tested at trusted laboratories in the United States or at reciprocal international sites. The process ties review priority to where testing takes place and to the laboratory’s reliability, two elements that intersect with the direction of the new proposal. Separately, the latest figure available in the evidence showed China’s manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index at 50.1% in September, up 0.3 percentage points from the previous month, according to China’s National Bureau of Statistics. The bureau scheduled the release of the next monthly index report for October 31, 2026, at 9:30. The release is a separate event on China’s economic calendar, with no established direct connection to the FCC measure.