FCC puts new foreign-made consumer routers on its Covered List; routers already approved stay legal

What changed

On 2026-03-23 the FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau added “routers produced in a foreign country” to the Covered List (Public Notice DA 26-278), following a national security determination made on 2026-03-20. Law firm Baker McKenzie, writing on 2026-04-13, says the rule covers consumer routers where any major stage of production, “including design, development, manufacturing, or assembly,” happens outside the US. Being on the list means the FCC won’t authorize new models.

Makers can ask the Department of War or the Department of Homeland Security for a Conditional Approval, which exempts the approved routers. According to Baker McKenzie, consumers can keep using routers approved before the change, retailers can keep selling them, and a separate waiver (DA 26-286) allows software and firmware updates until 2027-03-01. We could not reach fcc.gov to read the notices ourselves.

Who it affects

Anyone shopping for a new consumer Wi-Fi router, mesh system or access point for the house or a barn, since most are made abroad. The determination is aimed at consumer-grade gear meant for homes and installed by the customer. Enterprise gear isn’t the target. Nothing you already own is affected.

What it means for your setup

Your current router, mesh nodes and barn access point stay legal and keep getting updates for now. What may change is choice: new foreign-made models can’t reach US shelves without a Conditional Approval, so some models may be delayed or missing. Starlink’s own routers were later granted a Conditional Approval; see our follow-up post.

For a farm, the methods don’t change. Getting internet to the barn is still a cable, a bridge or fiber, then an access point inside. Before you buy new gear, check that the model is still sold in the US with FCC approval. Our metal buildings guide covers where that access point goes.

What to do now

• Keep using what you have. Routers approved before 2026-03-23 stay legal, as reported.
• Turn on automatic firmware updates while the update waiver runs.
• If you’re buying a new router or access point, ask the seller whether that model has FCC approval for the US.

What stays the same

• Routers, mesh systems and access points approved before 2026-03-23, which can still be sold and used, per Baker McKenzie.
• How you get internet to an outbuilding: cable, bridge or fiber, then an access point.

What we don’t know yet

• Whether the 2027-03-01 update waiver will be extended.
• Exactly which device types count as a “router” for this rule, beyond what the law-firm summaries say. We couldn’t read the FCC notices directly.