Regulatory News dated Q1/2021

KL-Certification GmbH may now officially act as a Telecommunication Certification Body (TCB) by the Federal Communications Commission.
As a subsidiary of IB-Lenhardt AG, KL-Certification GmbH is authorized as a private third party to issue grants for certification of equipment subject to the Commission’s certification procedures.
The TCB can evaluate devices in accordance with the FCC rules and regulations and issue the appropriate grant of authorization.

The Vietnam Ministry of Information and Communication (MIC) has officially issued several new standards.

These new standards take effect from July 01, 2021. From that date, the local importer has to use the local test report, type approval certificate under the new standards for the importation process.

Below are the new standards for your reference.

- QCVN 54:2020/BTTTT (local RF standard for Wifi 2.4GHz) - equivalent to ETSI EN 300 328 v2.2.2
- QCVN 63:2020/BTTTT (local standard for DVB-T2 function)
- QCVN 74:2020/BTTTT (local RF standard for SRD 1-40GHz) - equivalent to ETSI EN 300 440 V2.2.1

- QCVN 101:2020/BTTTT (local safety standard for lithium battery) - equivalent to IEC 62133:2017

- QCVN 117:2020/BTTTT (local RF standard for 2G, 3G, 4G functions)
- QCVN 122:2020/BTTTT (local RF standard for LPWAN 920-923MHz) - equivalent to ETSI EN 300 220-1 V3.1.1

Source: Link to MIC Homepage

On 1st January 2022 a new regulation is planned to come into force

The new regulation includes the addition of technical requirements for nuisance avoidance and several changes related to testing limits for Bluetooth and WLAN 2.4 and 5 GHz devices.

Already certified devices or devices that will be certified before 1st Jan 2022 need to be conform to the new regulations at the time of the certificate renewal.

The draft regulation can be found here (Chinese version)

The Communications Regulatory Authority, CRA, in Qatar started a public consultation on the opening of additional frequency spectrum for short range devices in the 5925 - 7125 MHz band.

The consultation is open until April 8th, 2021 and any interested party is invited to reply by sending a
message to: type.approval@cra.gov.qa

Official link

The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis is the first ECTEL member state to implement the Electronic Communications Act (EC Act). The Eastern Caribbean Telecommunications Authority (ECTEL) was established by the Governments of the five Eastern Caribbean States- Grenada, Commonwealth of Dominica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines on 04 May, 2000 .

The EC act was passed by the National assembly of St. Kitts and Nevis on February, 18th and will come into force after it was published in the Official Gazette.

The main objective of this Act is to regulate an electronic communications service and an electronic communications network among ECTEL member states.

Source: Website ECTEL

IB-Lenhardt is happy to announce that its affiliate company IBL-Lab GmbH can now offer better support to import radio products to Israel. Based on its DAkkS (member of ILAC, signatory of ILAC MRA) accreditation according to ISO/IEC 17025 requirements IBL-Lab has signed an Unilateral Recognition Agreement with SII, The Standards Institution of Israel, making the import process of radio products accessible, high quality and easier.

The Ministry of Communication (MoC) released a new list of products which are exempted from type approval in order to encourage competition in the market of wireless products.

This concerns in particular the following equipment:

1. BT devices operating in 2,400 - 2,483.5 MHz upon IEEE 802.15.1 with an integral antenna up to 100 mW e.i.r.p
   ANT/ANT+ equipment with 2,400 - 2,483.5 MHz and an integral antenna up to 100 mW e.i.r.p
2. Devices intended for the reception of satellite transmissions for position determination using a determination system Global location only (such as GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO or BEIDOU)
3. A parabolic antenna with a diameter not exceeding 244 cm including side equipment, intended for the reception of satellite broadcasts
4. Devices operating in the field of infrared frequencies between 1,000 GHz and 3,000 GHz with a transmission not exceeding 200 mW
5. Computer peripherals like a mouse or a keyboard
6. Computer monitors
7. Video Streamers (compliant with the provisions of the European Radio Equipment Directive 2014/53/EU and labelled with CE marking)
8. E-book readers (without cellular functions)
9. Tablets (without cellular functions)
10. Laptops (without cellular functions)
11. Desktop computers (without cellular functions)
12. Converters for the reception of television broadcasts to the public and TV receiver set-top boxes (devices need to be in accordance with the European Radio Equipment Directive 2014/53/EU and bear the CE marking)
13. TV sets
14. A radio receiver for the reception of public broadcasts using FM / DAB / AM technologies
15. Spare parts for mobile phones
16. A wristwatch, other than cellular wristwatches
17. Vacuum cleaners
18. Portable battery-operated metal detectors

According to our current knowledge MoC plans to introduce the regulation in April 2021, we will keep you informed.

Source: local partner and Official Link

Due to the update in Moldavian regulations, the Moldavian recognised certification body will review and update all valid certificates, in case any need for further documents during this process the CB might contact the certificate holder directly.

The certificate holder is free to issue a DoC according to module A of the TR 34/2019, in this case the validity of the CoC will be cancelled.

Source: Internal source by IBLAG, communication with CB

The Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) has launched a public consultation on the modernization of technical specifications for communication and information technology devices and equipment to accommodate the latest technological developments and enable the provisioning of state of the art communication and information technology services in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. These specifications define how all communication and information technology devices and equipment manufactured or imported to the Kingdom are used, with conformance to them being mandatory for all parties manufacturing, importing or selling these devices and equipment in the Kingdom.

The primary objectives of this update are to improve the quality of services using these devices and equipment and enable the provisioning of state of the art communication and information technology services in the Kingdom to satisfy the Kingdom's digital needs as per CITC's strategy to transform into a digital regulator.

Views are welcome from local and international telecom and technology providers, industrial stakeholders, public entities and members of the public as well as consumers of telecom and digital services. The submissions from interested parties are open till the 3rd of April, 2021. Interested parties are requested to answer the questions listed in the “Consultation Questions" section.

https://www.citc.gov.sa/en/new/publicConsultation/Pages/144202.aspx

The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) calls for public comments on "Interim Provisions on Radio Management of Wireless Charging (Power Transmission) Equipment (Draft for Solicitation of Comments)".

The draft concerns the following equipment types:

1. Mobile and portable wireless charging equipment using 100-148.5 kHz, 6765-6795 kHz, 13553-13567 kHz
2. Wireless charging equipment for vehicles (including motorcycles) with operating frequencies 19-21 kHz, 79-90 kHz

The consultation is open for comments till 20 March 2021.

Comments can be provided in Chinese to:

Contact: Radio Administration of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology

Contact number: 010-68206220 (fax)

Email: xhhz@miit.gov.cn

Link to the draft regulation

Source (Chinese)

With reference to the official Journal of the European Union from 6 February 2020, we would like to remind you that the transition period of the harmonised standard EN 300 328 V2.2.2 expires on 6 August 2021. EN 300 328 regulates the specifications for data transmission equipment operating in the 2.4 GHz band.

V.2.1.1, the latest version of EN 300 328, is going to expire on 6 August, 2021.

After the end of the transition period, devices introduced onto the market, as well as those which have been tested according to V2.2.1 must be compliant with the new requirements of V2.2.2.

The most important change from the newly published EN 300 328 V2.2.2 to V2.1.1 is the revision of rules and measurement for receiver blocking, so re-tests will become mandatory for all devices.

Source: Official Journal of the European Union

On 25 February 2021, the new regulation 291013-DOF-Diario Oficial de la Federación published by the Mexican Authority Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones (IFT) comes into force.

291013-DOF-Diario Oficial de la Federación is only addressed to approvals which were pursued by local testing.

To show compliance, the devices have to be re-tested and re-approved with the real importer acting as certificate holder. Certificates will have an unlimited validity but may be called for market surveillance.

The regulation applies to devices subject to the following standards:

• NOM-196-SCFI-2016 (IFT-004-2014)
• NOM-208-SCFI-2016 (IFT-008-2015)
• NOM-218-SCFI-2017 (IFT-005-2016)
• NOM-221/2-SCFI-2018 (IFT-011-2017)

Source: official link

To cope with recent technology developments, Communications Regulatory Authority wish to update the Version 3 of Class License for Short Range Devices

The current developments in technology require a revision of the current Version No. 3 of Class License for Short Range Devices. This document specifies the harmonized standards to be used for SRDs. The new Version No. 4 is intended to cover additional applications of radio-communication devices.

The document can be seen here.

All interest groups are kindly invited to address their comments and opinion to CRA by email until latest 11 March 2021.

On 2020-01-20, the Algerian Republic published the JOURNAL OFFICIEL DE LA REPUBLIQUE ALGERIENNE N°05

New list of Characteristics of short-range devices used in the establishment of private internal radio networks have been published.

The maximum allowed Output Power / maximum magnetic field level has been defined for several frequency bands from 9 KHz – 246 GHz considering different applications like inductive, RFID, medical, general ISM applications and Radars.

Now the 77 GHz Band with limitation of 1W maximum output power is possible.

Dowloadlink "Journal Officiel"

According to Resolution No 175 of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated August 21, 1998, all types of telecommunications equipment and devices (both as a complete set and as a communication module) imported to the territory of the Republic, sold for sale and operation, must be certified in accordance with the requirements of the interconnected telecommunications network. It is the manufacturer’s duty to ensure that the technical level and quality indicators of products, as well as electromagnetic compatibility, meet the standards throughout the country.

In accordance with the amendment No. 608-VQD dated April 14, 2017 made to the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan , certificates of conformity are issued by accredited bodies. Since there was no EMC compliance assessment body before December 2020, EMC standards were also reflected in AZS certificates by AZS certification bodies. However, on 02 December 2020, a certification body was empowered by the Azerbaijan Accreditation center (AZAK) to conduct certification for compliance with EMC standards and reflect the relevant EMC standards in these certificates.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your designated IB-Lenhardt AG contact.

Official link to Resolution No 175: http://e-qanun.gov.az/framework/3410

Official link to Amendment No. 608-VQD: http://e-qanun.gov.az/framework/35761

This part concludes our series about our test laboratory’s FCC (U.S. Federal Communications Commission) acccreditation (see FCC Accredited Labs - FCC Testing Laboratories (fcclabs.org)).

We are happy to announce that in January 2021, the accreditation was finalized by the FCC-recognized accreditation body in Germany, BNetzA (Bundesnetzagentur) under FCC Registration Number 560171.

Tests in our FCC-accredited lab include conformity measurements according to regulatory requirements in the U.S. as summarized in IBL-Lab’s DAkkS certificate annex D-PL-21375-01-03e (dakks.de, PDF): Electromagnetic Compatibility and Telecommunication.

Together with the recent recognition by the FCC, the laboratories of IBL-Lab GmbH have a comprehensive portfolio of testing services with accredited test and laboratory facilities. These services, together with the certification services of KL-Certification GmbH, support the worldwide approvals of radio products initiated by IB-Lenhardt AG on behalf of their customers.

Use the transparent overview of your projects online with our unique Type Approval Management System TAMSys®, developed 100% in-house. Benefit from the noticeable acceleration of the international market access of your products through the time and content-coordinated service package of the IB-Lenhardt Group—now including accredited testing, type approval and certification services.

The Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada opens a public consultation on the newly drafted RSS-102 SPR-004 “Time-Averaged Specific Absorption Rate (TAS) Assessment Procedures for Wireless Devices Operating in the 4 MHz – 6 GHz Frequency Band”. The SPR, supplementary procedure to radio standards, defines the general test methods for the RF Exposure compliance assessment for wireless devices operating in the frequency range 4 MHz to 6 GHz based on time averaging methods.

The consultation is open until February 23rd, 2021 using the link as below.

Downloadlink

Today, we would like to provide you an insight into the establishment and work of our accredited EMC laboratory.

Thanks to the high level of technical competence and organizational skills of its employees and all those involved, IBL-Lab GmbH was able to build up the EMC area at a remarkable pace, and completed this with the successful DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025:2018 DAkkS accreditation in December 2020.

"Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC)" refers to the capability of a technical device not to disturb other devices (with unintentional electric or electromagnetic effects) as well as not being disturbed by other devices.

The demands on the electromagnetic compatibility of devices and systems with integrated radio technology is regulated by law in the EU and many other countries and – depending on country and purpose – confined by different limits for interference immunity or for the emitted interference of the device or system.

Tests in the accredited EMC Laboratory of IBL-Lab GmbH include (among others) conformity measurements according to the following regulatory requirements:

• EMC Directive (EMCD 2014/30/EU)
• FCC Tests for the USA according to Part 15 and Part 18
• Tests for Canada according to ISED Requirements

Since January 2021, the FCC lists IBL-Lab GmbH as accredited test firm. We will get into more detail on this in our last part of this series soon.

In the second part of our laboratory series, we would like to introduce you to the accredited radio laboratory of IBL-Lab GmbH, which was set up at our St. Ingbert site in the period from April to May 2020 and now supports the type approval projects of IB-Lenhardt AG and the NB (Europe), TCB (USA), RCB (Japan), FCB (Canada) projects of KL-Certification GmbH after successful DAkkS accreditation in accordance with DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025:2018 in December 2020.

The increasing use of the radio spectrum by devices and systems with integrated radio technologies requires strict compliance with legal and normative requirements for radio products depending on the intended use.

The proof of conformity of your product in our accredited laboratory provides you with the security to confirm the compliance of your product transparently and effectively to your customers.

Of course, this also has a pioneering positive effect on international approvals.

Thus, the tests of the accredited radio laboratory of IBL-Lab GmbH include conformity measurements according to the following regulatory requirements:

• Radio Equipment Directive RED 2014/53/EU for countries of the European Union
• FCC compliance testing for the USA
• ISED compliance testing for Canada
• Compliance testing for Japan according to Radio Law and Telecommuincation Business Law

Next week we will give you an insight into the portfolio of our accredited EMC laboratory.

The Bhutan InfoComm and Media Authority (BICMA) has recently published the revised Rules and Regulations (NRRR-2021) which came into effect on 1st January 2021.

The National Radio Rules 2011 shall therefore be repealed by the above Rules and Regulations.

BICMA has also released its National Radio Frequency Allocation Plan 2021 (NRFAP-2021)

Downloadlink for NRRR-2021

Downloadlink for NRFAP-2021

We are pleased to announce that IBL-Lab GmbH, a subsidiary of IB-Lenhardt AG, after successful DAkkS accreditation according to DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025:2018, can demonstrate compliance with the requirements of the EU and beyond for approvals in the USA, Canada and Japan, in all relevant areas:

• Electrical Safety
• Radio Equipment Directive RED 2014/53/EU for EU countries.
• EMC Directive (EMCD 2014/30/EU) for EU countries
• FCC tests for the USA
• ISED tests for Canada (recognition as CAB Canada by DAkkS coming soon)
• Examinations for Japan according to Radio Law and Telecommunication Business Law

After the foundation of IBL-Lab GmbH in 2018, the first step was the DAkkS accreditation according to DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025 in the field of safety in 2019, the starting signal for our own safety tests for our customers.

Thanks to the new safety standards IEC 62368-1 and EN 62368-1, which move away from technology-focused catalogues to a hazard-based approach, it is now easier to equally assess varying products.

For instance, hazards are categorized by type and “size“ of the according energy source:

• electrical
• mechanical
• power
• radiation
• thermal

In the next part of this series, we will take a closer look at our accredited radio laboratory. Stay tuned!

https://www.dakks.de/as/ast/d/D-PL-21375-01-01.pdf

The Brazilian authority ANATEL published the new Act 77 on 5th January, 2021, which will come into force on 4th July, 2021. This act is applicable to all terminal devices with connection to internet and telecommunications network infrastructure equipment. From then on, the applicant will have to provide a declaration letter to the authority, which contains the following information:

1. Indicating that the product was developed in compliance with the principle of security by design;
2. relating to which requirements of this document the equipment and its supplier meet at that moment; and
3. recognizing that they are aware that cybersecurity requirements are subject to updates, including regulatory and administrative ones, in line with technological development, with the emergence of new threats or vulnerabilities.

Downloadlink Act n° 77 (English version)

According to the new regulation TR34/2019, which will come into force on February 22nd, 2021, the application of both CE and SM mark on the same product is not permitted anymore.

The manufacturers can decide to apply either the SM mark or the CE mark only on their products. Please note that there is no transitional period specified in the regulation. The authority recommends that all manufacturers, who already have received Moldavian certificates, start to remove the SM mark if the radio equipment is already labelled with the CE mark.

All products that are labelled with CE or SM mark should be accepted to be placed on the market of the Republic of Moldova
(see page 3 of the Government Degree TR34/2019).

The authority NATCOM published new Type Approval regulations in November 2020 after starting the reviewing process in 2019.

Type approval is required for all electronic communication equipment. Type approval can be obtained with the typical technical documentation and test reports from accredited test labs.

Also, the obligations and duties of importers and distributors are layed out.

The full regulations can be found here: Downloadlink

In November 2020, Decree No 719 was published by the Russian government with the intention to enhance governance in the field of digital development, communications and mass communications.

All the activities which were carried out by the Federal Agency of Communications (FAC) now lie within the responsibility of the Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media of the Russian Federation.

According to the announcement, there will be a 6-month transition period and the ongoing projects in progress by FAC will be switched to the Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media of the Russian Federation.

Currently, no delays have been announced.

Source in Russian

In January 2021, Hong Kong's Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA) published a new Table of Frequency Allocations which replaces the version from April 2020.

The plan complies with the Region 3 allocations under the Radio Regulations which are applicable to Hong Kong, the allocations which have been adopted by Hong Kong, as well as the band plans in use in Hong Kong.

The detailed changes which emerge from this regulation can be found on the OFCA website:

The Telecommunications and Regulatory Authority TRA in United Arab Emirates have released a new version for Ultra Wide Band and Short Range Devices regulation

The TRA revised the regulation to current version 4.0. The regulation was released 21 December 2020 and is in force.

The document defines the requirements for compliance, that UWB and SRD products need to fulfill.

Within the regulation release, it shows the allowed frequencies together with information about usage of product, transmission power, duty cycle, channel spacing and the standard reference.

Our clients are kindly invited to check whether their equipment (still) fulfills these requirements.

Link to the regulation