FCC to Vote on Broad Testing Lab Ban at April Open Meeting
The rule would prevent companies from using product testing labs in countries without a mutual recognition agreement or similar trade agreement with the U.S.
WASHINGTON, April 9, 2026 – The Federal Communications Commission’s approach to so-called “bad labs” is about to get a whole lot bigger.
The FCC plans to vote on a new rule that would essentially ban electronic device testing in countries without reciprocal testing agreements in the United States. The vote is expected to occur at the agency’s open meeting on April 30.
This step would be a dramatic increase of pressure on countries with so-called “bad labs,” or product testing facilities which the FCC has targeted as a national security threat due to their ownership or proximity with countries designed as “foreign adversaries."
“President Trump has revolutionized America’s approach to the world by putting reciprocity at the heart of our international commercial relations,” FCC Chairman Brenden Carr said in a statement. “Today, more than 75% of testing occurs in countries that have refused to commit to reciprocal treatment of U.S.-based labs and certification bodies. This month, the FCC will begin the process to end this unfair system.”
The new rule takes this approach to “bad labs” a step further by prohibiting recognition of all test labs and certification bodies that lack reciprocal testing agreements with the U.S. or comparable trade agreements, according to the announcement. Labs currently certified in these countries would be phased out over two years.
In addition, the rule would create a fast-track priority review process for trusted test labs, with priority given to those located in the U.S. or with countries who have reciprocal agreements.
The rule will also adopt measures to promote the integrity of its equipment authorization system including disclosures of location, employee numbers at facilities, post-market surveillance procedures, confidential reporting channels on suspected violations, among other things.
The FCC adopted its first “bad labs” rules at its open meeting last May on a 4-0 vote. Since then, it has banned 23 laboratories according to its press release.
Most recently, four testing labs based in China were banned in a February 19 decision citing majority ownership of the Chinese Communist Party. China is currently deemed by the U.S. State Department as a “foreign adversary”.
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