FCC Extends Update Deadline for Foreign-Made Routers, Drones Until 2029

The FCC’s bans on foreign-made Wi-Fi routers and drones initially included an expiration date on software updates, but the commission has now extended the cutoff from 2027 to 2029. 

On Friday, the FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) issued an extension that permits previously authorized foreign-made drones and Wi-Fi routers to “continue to receive software and firmware updates that mitigate harm to US consumers” at least until Jan. 1, 2029. 

Previously, affected routers could only receive software updates until March 1, 2027. For foreign-made drones, the cutoff date was set for Jan. 1, 2027. 

The White House pushed the bans, arguing that foreign-made drones and Wi-Fi routers are a national security risk to US networks and infrastructure. The obvious problem is that both product types, widely owned by millions of consumers, risk becoming vulnerable to breaches without vendor-provided software updates, which often fix vulnerabilities hackers could exploit. 

It looks like the Office of Engineering and Technology is moving to address the concern, citing “public interest,” after a major tech industry group urged the FCC to extend the deadline. 

The extension notes: “These include all software and firmware updates to ensure the continued functionality of the devices, such as those that patch vulnerabilities and facilitate compatibility with different operating systems. OET finds that special circumstances warrant a deviation from the general rules and the public interest would be better served by extending the waiver of the prohibitions on these Class I permissive changes in these circumstances.”

(Credit: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The office also plans on recommending that the commission consider “codifying this waiver through a rulemaking,” the announcement says. “The continued limited duration of this waiver, which will also give the Commission an opportunity to consider a rulemaking on this subject, also reduces potential harm to the public interest.”

So, it’s possible the FCC could extend the cutoff time further, or even axe it altogether, depending on the future rulemaking. The office’s waiver adds that software and firmware updates involving more substantial “Class II permissive changes that mitigate harm to US consumers” are also permitted through Jan. 1, 2029. Before, the office was only permitting software updates classified as minor Class I permissive changes. 

“We clarify that this waiver only applies to the prohibitions on Class I or Class II permissive changes for already-authorized devices,” OET adds. (Class III changes are more significant and entail altering the radio transmitter, such as the frequency range or output power.) 

All upcoming and newly developed foreign-made Wi-Fi routers and drones remain banned, unless the vendors secure a short-term exemption called a “conditional approval” from the Pentagon or Department of Homeland Security. So far, only a few router and drone makers have received the exemption, including Netgear and Amazon’s eero. Chinese drone maker DJI and major Wi-Fi router brand TP-Link have not.

(Credit: FCC)

TP-Link plans to apply for an exemption and has told the commission that it’s investing “hundreds of millions of dollars” in US manufacturing. Meanwhile, DJI has been fighting the ban in court and through the FCC’s own petition process to remove itself from the blacklist.

About Our Expert

Michael Kan

Principal Reporter

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Experience

I’ve been a journalist for over 15 years. I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017, where I cover satellite internet services, cybersecurity, PC hardware, and more. I’m currently based in San Francisco, but previously spent over five years in China, covering the country’s technology sector.

Since 2020, I’ve covered the launch and explosive growth of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service, writing 600+ stories on availability and feature launches, but also the regulatory battles over the expansion of satellite constellations, fights with rival providers like AST SpaceMobile and Amazon, and the effort to expand into satellite-based mobile service. I’ve combed through FCC filings for the latest news and driven to remote corners of California to test Starlink’s cellular service.

I also cover cyber threats, from ransomware gangs to the emergence of AI-based malware. In 2024 and 2025, the FTC forced Avast to pay consumers $16.5 million for secretly harvesting and selling their personal information to third-party clients, as revealed in my joint investigation with Motherboard.

I also cover the PC graphics card market. Pandemic-era shortages led me to camp out in front of a Best Buy to get an RTX 3000. I’m now following how the AI-driven memory shortage is impacting the entire consumer electronics market. I’m always eager to learn more, so please jump in the comments with feedback and send me tips.

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