On August 20, 2026, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued Public Notice DA 26-870, formally revising the power inverter entries of its Covered List.

This is the first major revision of the rules since foreign-produced inverters were first placed under national-security controls on July 28, clarifying the control boundary, exemption conditions, and the criteria for determining “connected” status.

Policy background

From “broad inclusion” to “precise control”

On July 28, the FCC issued DA 26-786, adding foreign-produced connected power inverters and advanced robotics equipment to the Covered List with immediate effect and no transition period. Since then, new inverter models have been unable to obtain FCC equipment authorization and cannot be sold into the U.S. market.

On August 19, the U.S. Department of War (DoW) delivered a second national-security determination to the FCC.

On August 20, the FCC issued DA 26-870 accordingly, revising the list entries and the inverter definition.

Core points of this revision

01 — Scope narrowed: grid-tied inverters only

The revision redefines the “power inverter” within the controlled scope, which must satisfy two core attributes at once:

• Functional attribute: a utility-interactive inverter as defined in Sections 2.1.23 and 2.1.52 of UL 1741 — a grid-tied inverter that can operate in parallel with the utility grid, both supplying loads and feeding power back into the grid;
• Connectivity attribute: it contains, or is designed, configured, or reserved, for the addition of, remote communication components supporting wired or wireless remote communication, control, sensing, data collection, or monitoring via Ethernet, Wi-Fi, cellular, Bluetooth, and the like.

Foreign-produced inverters meeting both points remain on the list;

off-grid inverters, rectifiers, and other equipment without grid-parallel functionality are expressly outside the controlled scope.

02 — Tighter “connected” criteria: wired and reserved interfaces count too

The revision further broadens what counts as a “connected function”:

• Connection types include not only wireless links such as Wi-Fi, cellular, and Bluetooth, but also wired connections such as Ethernet;
• In form, control is not limited to products with communication modules pre-installed at the factory — inverters with reserved hardware interfaces or slots that allow communication components to be added later are equally within scope.

As long as the product has the design capability to be connected, it is within the controlled scope whether or not a module is currently pre-installed.

03 — Two exemptions: qualifying products treated as domestically produced

The notice makes clear that products meeting either of the following conditions will not be deemed “foreign-produced” and will be removed from the Covered List:

1. Eligibility for the 26 U.S.C. §45X advanced manufacturing tax credit

Under Section 45X of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, inverters eligible for the advanced manufacturing production tax credit are recognized by the U.S. Congress and administration as “treated as domestically produced” and do not constitute a national security risk.

2. Compliance with the Buy American “domestic end product” standard (48 CFR §25.101(a))

• Products delivered in 2024-2028: U.S.-made component cost must exceed 65% of total component cost;
• Products delivered in 2029 and beyond: the domestic component share rises to above 75%.

Foreign inverter manufacturers may still apply to DoW or DHS for a Conditional Approval and be exempted from list controls after passing a security assessment.

Impact on companies exporting to the U.S.

01. Non-grid-tied products such as off-grid storage inverters and standalone small inverters are formally removed from the Covered List, lifting the U.S. market access barrier for the companies concerned.

02. Mainstream residential, commercial/industrial, and utility-scale grid-tied PV/storage inverters remain within scope as long as they have connected functionality; new models still cannot apply for FCC certification directly.

03. The rules target only newly certified models; products already holding FCC authorization can continue to be imported and sold normally, with only software and firmware updates subject to the exemption clauses issued in July.

04. Both official exemption paths point toward supply chain localization, and competition in the U.S. inverter market will tilt further toward domestic capacity.