Drone parts and the FCC Covered List
Since December 22, 2025, new foreign-made drones and their key parts can't get FCC approval. Here's what's covered, the exemption that ends January 1, 2027, and which parts makers can list.
Ian Daily · October 27, 2026
What happened
On December 22, 2025 the FCC's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau added drones and "UAS critical components" produced in a foreign country to the Covered List (Public Notice DA 25-1086). It followed a national security determination made the day before by an executive-branch interagency body. It's the first Covered List entry defined by where something is made rather than who makes it.
The parts it names
The FCC's list "includes but is not limited to" these, plus their software:
- Motors
- Flight controllers
- Batteries and battery management systems
- Sensors and cameras
- Navigation systems
- Data transmission devices and communications systems
- Ground control stations and controllers
"Not limited to" means the list can grow.
What it does
- New foreign-made drone models and critical components can't get FCC equipment authorization.
- Changes that need an amended authorization are blocked too, even on models already approved.
- Models authorized before the listing can still be imported, sold and used. Drones people already own aren't affected.
One question is still open: the FCC hasn't said where a part counts as "produced", or whether U.S. final assembly of foreign parts is enough. Expect the parts themselves to be what gets checked.
The exemption, until January 1, 2027
On January 7, 2026 the FCC exempted two groups until January 1, 2027 (DA 26-22):
| Exempt | What qualifies |
|---|---|
| Blue UAS | Drones on the Defense Contract Management Agency's Blue UAS Cleared List, and components on its Framework list |
| Domestic end products | Made in the U.S., with more than 65% of component cost U.S.-made (75% from 2029), under 48 CFR 25.101(a) |
The FCC said it would reassess before the deadline. As of October 27, 2026 we haven't seen an extension. A third route, product-by-product conditional approval from DHS or the War Department, exists too; the approvals published so far run to the end of 2026 and are tied to the exact configuration approved.
Parts makers can list on OpenTree
If you make any of these outside China, the catalog takes them: motors and ESCs, flight controllers, radios and data links, navigation and GNSS, cameras and gimbals, batteries and BMS, ground controllers, frames and props. Each listing shows four checks, and the U.S.-made check is the one that counts toward a builder's 65%. List by December 31, 2026 and all of 2027 is free.
What builders should do now
- Run your bill of materials through the 65% calculator. The domestic end product test is the same math as the robot rule.
- Get each critical component's country of manufacture in writing. Unknown origin counts as imported.
- If you depend on an already-authorized foreign part, buy spares of that exact model now.
Questions
Can I still buy and fly a DJI drone?
Yes, if the model was authorized before the listing, and any drone you already own is unaffected. The listing blocks new models, and changes to old ones that need a new authorization.
Does the exemption really end on January 1, 2027?
That's the date in the FCC's January 2026 notice, and the FCC said it would reassess before then. We haven't seen an extension as of October 27, 2026. Check the FCC's Covered List page before you rely on either answer.
How do I know if my drone is a domestic end product?
It has to be made in the U.S., with more than 65% of its component cost in U.S.-made components (75% from 2029), counted the way 48 CFR 25.101(a) counts it. Our calculator runs the same math.
Are drone parts sold on their own covered?
Yes. Critical components are listed by name, so a foreign-made motor, battery or flight controller is covered on its own, not only inside a finished drone.
Sources: FCC Public Notice DA 25-1086 (Dec 22, 2025) and fact sheet; FCC Public Notice DA 26-22 (Jan 7, 2026); 48 CFR 25.101(a); FCC conditional-approval notices (March–May 2026); summaries by Wiley Rein, Morgan Lewis and Rupprecht Law. This explains the rules; it isn't legal advice.