FCC Proposes Banning Import & Sale of “Military-Grade” Foreign-Made Drones

2. How to File a Comment — Step by Step

Anyone can file. You do not need a lawyer, a company, or any credential, and it takes about ten minutes. Comments are due on or before September 2, 2026 through the FCC's Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS).

My name is [YOUR NAME] and I am a [Part 107 remote pilot / recreational flyer / business owner] in [CITY, STATE]. I am writing about PS Docket No. 26-189.

What I do: [Describe your operation in a sentence or two — e.g. roof inspections for insurance adjusters, thermal searches for a volunteer SAR team, ag survey work on X acres, real estate photography.]

Equipment I rely on: [List the aircraft and payloads, e.g. two DJI Matrice 30T thermal aircraft and a Mavic 3 Enterprise.] These fall under the proposed [thermal imaging / LiDAR / docking station / spray / 55-lb / swarming] category.

What this proposal would mean for me: [Be concrete. What jobs could you no longer take? What happens when an aircraft is damaged and cannot be replaced? What would replacement cost — give dollar figures if you have them. Is there a domestic aircraft that does this job today, and have you priced it?]

On the 180-day wind-down: [Would that be enough time for your operation to transition? Why or why not?]

[Add anything else you want the FCC to understand about how this decision affects your work.]

Thank you for considering my comment.

[YOUR NAME]
[CITY, STATE]

3. What the FCC Proposed

On July 21, 2026, the FCC's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau and Office of Engineering and Technology released Public Notice DA 26-758, opening PS Docket No. 26-189. It was published in the Federal Register on August 3, 2026 at 91 FR 48870, which started a 30-day comment clock ending September 2, 2026. It is a Bureau-level Public Notice seeking comment rather than a full Commission rulemaking, though it is widely being described as an NPRM.

Some background matters here. In December 2025 the FCC added all foreign-produced UAS and UAS critical components to its Covered List under the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act. Being on the Covered List blocks new equipment authorizations, but it did not revoke authorizations already granted — which is why previously approved models stayed on shelves. This proposal uses 47 CFR § 2.939(e) to limit those existing authorizations so the equipment can no longer be imported or marketed, without revoking the authorization itself.

Rather than reach every foreign-produced drone at once, the Bureau proposes to draw the line at aircraft it defines as “military-grade” based on seven capability categories, which it borrowed from other agencies' regulations governing high-risk UAS. Those categories are the heart of the proposal, and they are what most commercial operators will want to read closely.

4. Which Drone Categories Are Affected

All seven categories from the Public Notice, in the order the FCC listed them. A drone needs to fall into only one of these — and be foreign-produced and on the Covered List — to be reached by the proposal.

1. 1

   UAS weighing 55 pounds or more at takeoff

   Aircraft that are not “small unmanned aircraft” under FAA rules (14 CFR § 107.3). The FCC describes these as “larger platforms” offering greater payload capacity, endurance, and range.

   In practice: Heavy-lift cinema and cargo platforms, large agricultural airframes, and most Part 137 / Section 44807 exemption aircraft.

2. 2

   UAS capable of dispensing “economic poison”

   Aircraft able to dispense substances covered by FAA rules at 14 CFR § 137.3 — pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides, defoliants, and drying agents.

   In practice: Agricultural spray drones of essentially every size, including sub-55-lb spray platforms.

3. 3

   UAS containing or integrating thermal imaging sensors

   Any aircraft whose sensors can “capture and translate the difference in temperature between objects, as well as an object’s heat signature and residual heat signature.”

   In practice: Public safety and inspection drones with radiometric or non-radiometric thermal cameras, and any airframe sold bundled with a thermal payload.

4. 4

   UAS containing or integrating LiDAR sensors

   Any aircraft integrating Light Detection and Ranging — a “remote sensing technology that measures distance by illuminating a target with a laser and analyzing the reflected light.”

   In practice: Survey and mapping drones with LiDAR payloads — and, as written, consumer aircraft that use a small LiDAR/ToF module for low-light obstacle sensing.

5. 5

   UAS docking stations

   “Multipurpose systems that enable UAS to land safely, take off, recharge and/or replace batteries, and transfer data and payload.” The FCC treats a dock as a UAS and/or a ground control station.

   In practice: Drone-in-a-box systems used for automated site security, utility monitoring, and drone-as-first-responder programs.

6. 6

   UAS “specially designed to incorporate a defense article”

   Aircraft falling under 22 CFR § 121.1, Category VIII(a)(5), referencing the ITAR definition of “defense article” at 22 CFR § 120.31.

   In practice: Platforms built to carry ITAR-controlled payloads or effects.

7. 7

   Swarming UAS

   Ground control stations purpose-built for — or aircraft integrated with flight control systems specially designed for — managing drone swarms that operate autonomously to coordinate, avoid collisions, hold formation, and respond to changing conditions; and, separately, UAS “purpose-built to perform flights in coordinated and synchronized formations, including applications such as multi-UAS light shows.”

   In practice: Drone light show fleets and the software/ground stations that fly them, which the definition reaches explicitly.

The Bureau explicitly asked whether this list captures the right equipment — whether anything listed is not military-grade, and whether anything military-grade is missing. Comments addressing the scope of these definitions are directly responsive to what was asked.

5. Models That Appear to Fall Inside the Proposed Categories

Because the thermal and LiDAR categories are written around the presence of a sensor rather than its grade, the practical reach extends well past enterprise hardware — it picks up consumer aircraft that use a small LiDAR module for low-light obstacle sensing, and any airframe sold bundled with a thermal payload. Several commenters and trade press have flagged exactly this point.

6. What Would NOT Be Affected

7. Timeline

1. December 22, 2025

   FCC adds all foreign-produced UAS and UAS critical components to the Covered List, blocking new equipment authorizations.

2. January 7, 2026

   Blue UAS Cleared List aircraft and Buy American “domestic end products” are exempted from the Covered List until January 1, 2027.

3. June 15, 2026

   “Toy Drones” and toy drones containing foreign-produced components are removed from the Covered List.

4. July 21, 2026

   Public Notice DA 26-758 released, opening PS Docket No. 26-189 and proposing the import and marketing prohibition for “military-grade” foreign-produced UAS.

5. August 3, 2026

   Published in the Federal Register at 91 FR 48870, starting the 30-day comment clock.

6. September 2, 2026

   Comments due in ECFS. This is the deadline that matters for operators who want to be heard.

7. If adopted

   All importation and marketing of the covered equipment must cease 180 days after the final decision is published in the Federal Register.

8. Primary Sources

• →FCC Public Notice DA 26-758 (PDF) — the proposal itself
• →Federal Register publication — 91 FR 48870 (August 3, 2026)
• →ECFS docket — PS Docket No. 26-189 filings and comments
• →FCC Covered List — current listings and exemptions