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The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has enacted a ban on the import and approval of new foreign-made drones and their critical components, citing significant national security risks. This decision, effective immediately, adds unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and related parts produced in foreign countries to the FCC's Covered List, which already includes companies like Kaspersky, ZTE, and Huawei. The ban specifically targets products from major Chinese manufacturers such as DJI and Autel Robotics, preventing the sale of their latest models in the U.S. while allowing continued use and sale of previously approved devices. The FCC's move follows recommendations from an Executive Branch interagency body with national security expertise and is supported by recent legislative actions, including the Countering CCP Drones Act within the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act.
The FCC and U.S. lawmakers argue that foreign-made drones and their components pose unacceptable risks, including the potential for persistent surveillance, data exfiltration, and destructive operations over U.S. territory, especially during high-profile events like the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Summer Olympics. The ban covers a wide range of UAS components, such as data transmission devices, communications systems, flight controllers, and smart batteries. The FCC emphasized that this action is intended to safeguard American airspace sovereignty and reduce the risk of direct drone attacks, unauthorized surveillance, and other homeland security threats posed by foreign-manufactured drone technology.
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On December 23, 2025, the FCC, acting on recommendations from an Executive Branch interagency body, added foreign-made drones and key components to its Covered List over national security concerns. The move bars approval of new products from companies such as DJI and Autel, while leaving existing and previously approved models unaffected for now.
On December 23, 2025, the deadline for a U.S. government national security audit of DJI and other foreign drone manufacturers expired, but the review had not been conducted because no agency was assigned to carry it out. This lapse set the stage for automatic regulatory action.
The 2025 National Defense Authorization Act included measures such as the Countering CCP Drones Act, requiring a national security review of foreign-made unmanned aircraft systems and critical components. Affected companies were given a year to demonstrate that their products did not pose a security risk.
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The U.S. Federal Communications Commission expanded its restrictions on Chinese telecommunications and surveillance equipment, banning the import and sale of certain products from companies on the FCC Covered List, including **Huawei**, **ZTE**, **Hytera**, **Hikvision**, and **Dahua**. The move closes a loophole that had allowed some previously authorized or older models to continue being sold, with regulators citing national security and cybersecurity concerns tied to unpatched vulnerabilities, outdated firmware, insecure protocols, and potential unauthorized data access or surveillance capabilities. The ban applies to equipment such as routers, base stations, video monitoring systems, and other network infrastructure components used across communications networks, government facilities, critical infrastructure, and public safety environments. Already deployed devices are not subject to immediate removal, and some existing inventory may continue to be used, while the FCC is also considering further limits on U.S. telecom interconnection with Chinese carriers that could restrict those firms' ability to manage U.S. data centers.
Jul 2, 2026
**DJI filed a petition with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit seeking to overturn the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) decision to place DJI on the agency’s national-security **Covered List**, a move that effectively blocks regulatory approval for importing and selling new DJI drones and certain parts in the US.** DJI argues the FCC’s action suffered from procedural and substantive defects, exceeded statutory authority, and—per the petition—also violated the **Fifth Amendment**, asserting the FCC did not identify a specific threat tied to DJI or its products and did not provide a meaningful opportunity to address the government’s concerns. The FCC has framed the restrictions as a national-security measure, warning that **criminals, hostile foreign actors, and terrorists** could use drones to threaten US safety, and stating its decision followed an Executive Branch interagency review convened by the White House. Reporting also notes the FCC has issued limited exemptions for some non-Chinese drones and components (including certain parts from **Sony, Panasonic, and Samsung**) while not exempting drones or parts made in China; separate context includes prior US government actions scrutinizing DJI, including a Pentagon designation as a “Chinese Military Company” that DJI previously challenged in court.
Jun 29, 2026
The FCC has added all new foreign-made consumer routers to its **Covered List**, blocking their import and sale in the United States after a White House-led interagency review found they pose an unacceptable national security and public safety risk. U.S. officials said overseas-manufactured routers could be exploited to disrupt the economy, critical infrastructure, and national defense, and linked the concern to activity associated with **Volt Typhoon**, **Flax Typhoon**, and **Salt Typhoon**, which have targeted U.S. networks and infrastructure. The restrictions apply to new devices rather than routers already authorized for sale, meaning existing products can continue to be imported, sold, and used for now. Foreign manufacturers may still seek approval, but must provide detailed disclosures on ownership, supply chains, software and firmware provenance, and any plans to shift critical component production to the United States. The move is expected to tighten availability of new router models and raise costs, while critics argue it does not solve broader router security problems such as insecure firmware, weak patching, compromised update systems, and supply-chain exposure that can persist regardless of where hardware is assembled.
Jun 29, 2026