Does a Wi-Fi router need FCC certification?
Yes, for its Wi-Fi radio. But first, it depends on where the router is made. Since March 23, 2026, routers made outside the United States are on the FCC Covered List, so a new model cannot be authorized unless it has a Conditional Approval. A router authorized before then, or made in the United States, needs Certification for its Wi-Fi radio and SDoC or Certification for its electronics.
The check's Covered List question decides this: a new router model made abroad cannot be authorized; otherwise the Wi-Fi radio is Certified with an FCC ID.
Both paths (a composite device)
The product transmits and contains digital or switching electronics, so it spans two roles. Each part follows its own path, resolved below.
A device that deliberately transmits radio energy is an intentional radiator, and the default path is Certification: a Telecommunication Certification Body reviews the test data and issues a grant of equipment authorization with an FCC ID before the product is marketed.
- A narrow set of low-power intentional radiators (carrier current systems and devices under 47 CFR 15.211, 15.213, 15.221, and certain sub-490 kHz devices) use SDoC instead of Certification under 47 CFR 15.201(a). Confirm the specific device.
- When the radio is a module that holds its own FCC grant and is installed within that grant's conditions, the module's grant covers the transmitter and the product's label refers to it, for example "Contains FCC ID" (47 CFR 15.212). The rest of the product's electronics still need their own authorization.
Digital electronics or a switching power circuit that is not meant to radiate is an unintentional radiator, and for almost every such device the party chooses between a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity (self-declared against the standards) and Certification.
- For the SDoC path the responsible party is in the United States. For an imported product the FCC names the importer, unless a retailer or original equipment manufacturer has agreed to take the role; a factory abroad cannot be it (47 CFR 2.909(b)).
- Any SDoC device may instead be Certified at the party's option (47 CFR 2.906(c)); SDoC is not the only path.
- New models of routers made outside the United States cannot be authorized, because they are on the FCC Covered List. The check asks whether this product is one.
- The testing cannot be done at a lab tied to a prohibited entity, such as a company on the FCC Covered List, the Commerce Entity List or the UFLPA Entity List (47 CFR 2.906, 2.951).
- From October 13, 2026, a new device cannot be authorized if it contains a chip or module from a company on the FCC Covered List that could not get the whole device authorized. From 2027, online marketplaces must show a certified device's FCC ID on the listing (91 FR 57798).
- This identifies the authorization path and cites the rule. It does not perform or certify testing and does not issue the authorization. A specialized FCC test lab or a Telecommunication Certification Body does that.
The supplier holds the evidence this path relies on. The supplier request asks the supplier for it in the supplier's own language: the FCC ID for a Certified transmitter, or the test report and measurement data for SDoC electronics.
Get the supplier checklist — free →Equipment authorization requirement: '…all intentional radiators operating under the provisions of this part shall be certified by the Telecommunication Certification Bodies…prior to marketing' (b), except the carve-out in (a): carrier current systems, devices operated under §§15.211, 15.213 and 15.221, and devices operating below 490 kHz whose emissions are at least 40 dB below the §15.209 limits are 'subject to Suppliers Declaration of Conformity…prior to marketing.'
eCFR current text, title 47, as of the 2026-09-22 issue date (read via the eCFR versioner API). Retrieved 2026-09-24.
Certification is an equipment authorization approved by the Commission or issued by a Telecommunication Certification Body (TCB) based on representations and test data submitted by the applicant; it attaches to all subsequently marketed units identical to the sample tested.
eCFR current text, title 47, up to date as of 2026-10-09 (read via the eCFR versioner API), with the amendment at 91 FR 57801 effective 2026-10-13. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
§ 15.212(a)(1)(vi)(A): 'If using a permanently affixed label, the modular transmitter must be labeled with its own FCC identification number, and, if the FCC identification number is not visible when the module is installed inside another device, then the outside of the device into which the module is installed must also display a label referring to the enclosed module. This exterior label can use wording such as the following: "Contains Transmitter Module FCC ID: XYZMODEL1" or "Contains FCC ID: XYZMODEL1."' (read 2026-09-25, eCFR current text, title 47, issue 2026-09-22).
eCFR current text, title 47, as of the 2026-09-22 issue date (read via the eCFR versioner API). Retrieved 2026-09-24.
Equipment authorization of unintentional radiators: except as exempted in §§15.23, 15.103, 15.113, unintentional radiators shall be authorized pursuant to certification or Supplier's Declaration of Conformity per subpart J of part 2. Table 1 lists 'SDoC or Certification' for almost every device type, including 'Class B external switching power supplies', 'Class A digital devices, peripherals & external switching power supplies' and 'All other devices'; Scanning Receivers, Radar Detectors, and Access Broadband over Power Line (Access BPL) are 'Certification'.
eCFR current text, title 47, as of the 2026-09-22 issue date (read via the eCFR versioner API). Retrieved 2026-09-24.
Supplier's Declaration of Conformity (SDoC) is a procedure where the responsible party (§2.909) makes measurements or completes procedures to ensure compliance. (a)(1): the testing 'must not be performed at a measurement facility that is owned by, controlled by, or under the direction of a prohibited entity, as defined in § 2.902' (which lists Covered List entities, the BIS Entity List and Military End-User List, and the UFLPA Entity List, among others). (a)(2): submittal of a sample or data is not required unless requested (§2.945). Under (c) the responsible party may, if it desires, apply for Certification of a device subject to SDoC. Under (d) equipment produced by any entity on the Covered List is prohibited from the SDoC process and must use certification.
eCFR current text, title 47, up to date as of 2026-10-09 (read via the eCFR versioner API), with the amendment at 91 FR 57801 effective 2026-10-13. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
Responsible party: for equipment subject to Supplier's Declaration of Conformity the party responsible for compliance 'must be located in the United States (see §2.1077)' — the manufacturer or assembler, or the importer if imported. For a grant of certification, the grantee is responsible.
eCFR current text, title 47, up to date as of 2026-10-09 (read via the eCFR versioner API), with the amendment at 91 FR 57801 effective 2026-10-13. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
(b) 'The Commission will not recognize a laboratory: (1) In which a prohibited entity, as established pursuant to § 2.902, has, possesses, or otherwise controls an equity or voting interest of 10% or more'; (d) it will withdraw recognition of a laboratory that 'Is owned by, controlled by, or subject to the direction of a prohibited entity'. § 2.960(b)(1) applies the same 10% bar to TCBs. § 2.902 defines prohibited entities as those on the Covered List; the Commerce Entity List and Military End-User List; the UFLPA Entity List; the NDAA FY2023 § 5949 and FY2021 § 1260H lists; Treasury's Chinese Military-Industrial Complex list; and 'foreign adversaries' under 15 CFR 791.4.
eCFR current text, title 47, up to date as of 2026-10-09 (read via the eCFR versioner API), with the amendment at 91 FR 57801 effective 2026-10-13. Retrieved 2026-10-14.
The Commission 'prohibits authorization of devices that incorporate a logic-bearing hardware component produced by an entity identified on the Covered List, where the device would itself be prohibited from authorization under 47 CFR 2.903(a) had the Covered List entity produced the device as a whole'. The prohibition 'applies only to logic-bearing hardware components produced by entities subject to producer/provider-based Covered List determinations; it does not apply to production location-based Covered List entries (e.g., UAS, UAS critical components, or routers produced in a foreign country) unless the producing entity is independently identified on the Covered List', applies prospectively to new applications and 'does not affect previously authorized equipment'. Amended § 2.803(c): an online marketplace that markets a device subject to certification, or has physical access to or takes title to a third-party seller's device, 'must display a valid and accurate FCC ID ... at the online point of sale' (compliance not required until March 1, 2027); a marketplace without physical access or title must display a valid FCC ID (June 1, 2027). Used and pre-existing unamended listings and non-high-volume sellers are excluded.
91 FR 57798 (2026-09-11), FCC 26-50, Third Report and Order in ET Docket 21-232; effective 2026-10-13. Retrieved 2026-09-24.
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