FCC Bans New Foreign-Produced Advanced Robotic Devices and Power Inverters
What You Need To Know
- The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) updated its Covered List to include foreign-produced advanced robotic devices and power inverters, which prohibits new models of these devices from receiving FCC equipment authorizations and being imported, marketed, or sold in the United States, regardless of the producer’s nationality.
- The FCC’s action is limited to new models of foreign-made advanced robotic devices and power inverters. Consumers may continue to use devices they have already acquired, and retailers may continue to import, market, or sell previously authorized devices. Additionally, software and firmware updates that mitigate harm to U.S. consumers are permitted on previously authorized advanced robotic devices and power inverters at least until January 1, 2029.
- For the purposes of this action, an advanced robotic device or power inverter that is designed by a non-U.S. company but produced in the United States may fall outside the prohibition because the FCC defines “foreign-produced” equipment for both categories by reference to the Buy American Act’s “domestic end product” standard.
- Manufacturers may apply for “Conditional Approval” from the Department of War (for advanced robotic devices and power inverters) or the Department of Homeland Security (for power inverters), which, if granted, would allow for FCC equipment authorization. The Conditional Approval application involves substantial corporate, investor, supply chain, and manufacturing disclosures, and applicants should expect follow-up engagement and information requests from U.S. government officials.
FCC Adds Foreign-Made Advanced Robotic Devices and Power Inverters to Covered List
The FCC maintains a “Covered List” of communications equipment and services that have been determined to pose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States or the security and safety of U.S. persons. The FCC recently expanded the Covered List, announcing on July 28, 2026, that new foreign-made advanced robotic devices and power inverters are prohibited from receiving FCC equipment authorizations necessary for the import, marketing, or sale of these products in the United States.
The FCC defines “advanced robotic devices” as mechanical mobile devices, including autonomous mobile robots, humanoid robots, and quadrupeds, that meet the following criteria:
- The device is capable of locomotion, obstacle avoidance, navigation, or movement on the ground.
- The device operates at a distance from a human operator or supervisor based on commands or in response to sensor data or any combination thereof.
- The combined weight of each device, and, if applicable, ground station or docking station is over 4.4 pounds.
- The device contains a sensor capable of perceiving its environment; a component that is capable of providing network connectivity (wired or wireless, including Bluetooth/Wi-Fi, cellular, or satellite) with connection speeds of at least 200 kbps in either direction; and software running either locally or remotely, including firmware and AI or machine-learning model weights, that controls the device’s autonomous navigation or movement perception, data collection, or remote command-and-control.
This definition specifically excludes connected vehicles, as defined in the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Connected Vehicles rule at 15 C.F.R. § 791.301; vehicles operated only on a rail line; uncrewed aircraft and aircraft systems as defined in 47 C.F.R. § 88.5; unmanned underwater vehicles that can operate without a human occupant; certain medical and mobility-assistive devices; and certain fixed, stationary industrial, or medical robots.
The FCC’s announcement defines “power inverters” as bidirectional devices or systems that convert direct current electricity to alternating current electricity, or vice versa, including microinverters, string inverters, central inverters, and hybrid (battery-based) inverters, that also contain components enabling remote communication, control, sensing, data-collection, or monitoring through Wi-Fi, cellular, Bluetooth, or similar connections.
Moreover, the prohibition applies to all new advanced robotic device and power inverter models produced outside of the United States, regardless of the producer’s nationality, meaning that the prohibition applies even to U.S.-headquartered or -incorporated companies that design and develop their products in the United States but manufacture them abroad. As a result, a U.S.-headquartered company that designs a device domestically but produces it in any foreign country, including allied countries such as Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan, and South Korea, is subject to the prohibition.
However, a product that is designed by a non-U.S. company but produced in the United States may fall outside the prohibition because the FCC defines “foreign-produced” equipment for both categories by reference to the Buy American Act’s “domestic end product” standard under 48 C.F.R. § 25.101(a). The Buy American Act standard provides that a “domestic end product” must satisfy a two-part test: (1) the article must be manufactured in the United States, and (2) the cost of its domestic components must exceed a specified percentage of the cost of all components (currently 65% for items delivered through 2028 and rising to 75% for items delivered beginning in 2029). Note that this standard also applies to products manufactured or designed in the United States by U.S. companies, which means their products would be considered within scope of the restriction if made from foreign content above the component cost threshold.
Conditional Approval Process
A federal government interagency body maintains a process for manufacturers of foreign-produced advanced robotic devices and power inverters to apply for Conditional Approval, which involves an individualized risk assessment that could exempt the applicant from Covered List restrictions. The FCC requires those seeking Conditional Approval for advanced robotic devices and power inverters to submit extensive corporate, investor, supply chain, and manufacturing documentation, including plans for onshoring U.S. production.
Software and Firmware Waiver
FCC regulations prohibit modifying equipment placed on the Covered List, even prohibiting software or firmware updates to such equipment. However, the FCC issued a temporary waiver of these prohibitions, applicable to advanced robotic devices and power inverters authorized prior to July 28, 2026. The waiver permits software and firmware updates to these devices at least until January 1, 2029, to “mitigate harm to U.S. consumers,” allowing updates to ensure the continued functionality of the devices, such as those that patch vulnerabilities and facilitate compatibility with different operating systems. The FCC’s waiver demonstrates a recognition that, in the absence of such a waiver, previously deployed devices that consumers are permitted to keep using would be more vulnerable to security attacks.
Practical Considerations for Manufacturers, Retailers, and Users
- The ban applies to new advanced robotic devices and power inverters that do not qualify as domestic end products. Manufacturers should consider auditing their component sourcing and cost structures to understand the impact on their products and consider what components may be sourced in the United States to satisfy the domestic-content threshold.
- Manufacturers should consider reviewing the substantial Conditional Approval disclosure requirements. Manufacturers involved in the advanced robotic device and power inverter supply chains should closely monitor the FCC’s Covered List page and related guidance, ensure that new product launches account for the prohibition, and consult with counsel to evaluate whether existing or planned products require a Conditional Approval application. The Conditional Approval process is not a simple exercise to alleviate the impact of the Covered List prohibitions. Rather, it requires submitting a “detailed, time-bound plan to establish or expand” production in the United States, among other requirements. Manufacturers considering a Conditional Approval application should quickly begin to collect documentation, noting that the application process may involve several rounds of follow-up questions from U.S. government officials.
- Retailers, distributors, and companies that purchase or deploy these products should consider incorporating the Covered List into their procurement and risk management processes. These companies should assess their current supply chains, closely monitor the FCC’s Covered List page and related guidance, and review contracts with suppliers to understand how supply disruptions, authorization changes, or Conditional Approval denials would affect existing and expected procurement.
- Companies should consider monitoring the regulatory landscape for further restrictions on foreign-made technology, equipment, and services. The addition of advanced robotic devices and power inverters to the Covered List follows similar national security determinations in March 2026 and December 2025 that added foreign-made consumer-grade routers, foreign-produced uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS), and UAS critical components to the Covered List. These determinations reflect the FCC’s growing focus on using its Covered List authority to review key sectors with significant foreign manufacturing as potential national security risks, a pattern that may continue. Companies with products subject to FCC authorization requirements that manufacture outside the United States but market and sell in the United States should be mindful that the FCC may implement Covered List restrictions in their sector and should consider in advance how to mitigate resulting supply chain disruptions.