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# Starlink Routers Receive Conditional Exemption From FCC’s Covered List
- URL: https://broadbandbreakfast.com/starlink-routers-receive-conditional-exemption-from-fccs-covered-list/
- Published: 2026-07-29T19:52:40.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-19T21:47:54.000Z
- Description: The duration of Starlink’s exemption is comparable to its peers, though the approval comes months later.
- Author: Jericho Casper
- Tags: FCC, #with-siderail, National Security, Starlink, routers, Defense Department, covered list, DHS, Amazon, Nokia, ADTRAN

WASHINGTON, July 28, 2026 – The Federal Communications Commission has granted SpaceX a carve-out from its toughest supply chain security rules.

In [a public notice](https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-26-775A1.pdf?ref=broadbandbreakfast.com) released Monday, the FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau confirmed that the Department of War has issued a conditional approval for Starlink routers, exempting the devices from [the FCC’s Covered List](https://www.fcc.gov/supplychain/coveredlist?ref=broadbandbreakfast.com), the roster of equipment the government has deemed poses an unacceptable risk to national security. The approval runs through Feb. 1, 2028.

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The move [traces back to March](https://broadbandbreakfast.com/fcc-bans-import-of-new-foreign-made-wi-fi-routers/), when the FCC added a sweeping new category to the Covered List: routers produced in a foreign country. 

That determination came from an executive branch interagency body and applies broadly, unless a manufacturer secures a conditional approval from the Department of Defense or the Department of Homeland Security.

Since the router ban took effect, at least a dozen manufacturers have received similar exemptions, including Netgear’s Nighthawk and Orbi lines, Amazon's eero, Nokia, Adtran, Calix, Sagemcom, Arcadyan which supplies router hardware to T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon, Vantiva, Gemtek, Sercomm, Humax, Askey, Hitron, Alpha Networks, and Miri Technologies.

Starlink’s approval window is comparable in length to the roughly 18-month terms granted to other manufacturers, most of which stretch into late 2027 or January 2028\. 

However, many competitors, including Netgear, Amazon, Nokia, Adtran, received their [approvals back in March](https://broadbandbreakfast.com/fcc-announces-first-conditional-approvals-after-router-ban-rollout/) and April 2026\. Starlink’s clearance came more than four months later.

Router companies noted that onshoring manufacturing of these products would be [unlikely in the short term](https://broadbandbreakfast.com/domestic-manufacturing-of-routers-unlikely-in-near-term-experts/) and that the majority of vendors would [likely face disruptions](https://broadbandbreakfast.com/majority-of-vendors-face-disruption-under-fccs-foreign-made-router-ban/). 

All exemptions run through the same DoD/DHS vetting process established under the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019.

The router ban is a sequel to the FCC’s earlier crackdowns on Huawei, ZTE, Hikvision, Dahua, Hytera, and Kaspersky equipment and services, all of which remain on the Covered List with no exemption path. 

A parallel conditional approval track exists for foreign-made drones, with companies like SiFly, Mobilicom, and Verge already cleared. The temporary exceptions which will run through Jan. 1, 2028, were previously set to expire in early 2027.