R Robot Review Desk

Regulatory tracker · Last verified August 3, 2026

The FCC robot import ban, explained

On July 28, 2026 the FCC restricted new foreign-produced robots from entering the US market. Here is what it covers, what you can still buy, and where every major brand stands.

Robots you own

Unaffected. They keep working, and keep getting updates at least until January 1, 2029.

Robots on sale now

Still legal to buy. Anything already holding FCC authorization can be imported and sold.

Robots not out yet

This is where it bites. New foreign-produced models cannot get authorization to launch here.

Check your brand

What actually happened

On July 28, 2026 the FCC added two categories to its Covered List under Section 2 of the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act: foreign-produced advanced robotic devices, and foreign-manufactured connected power inverters. The listing is Public Notice DA 26-786. It took effect immediately on issuance.

A second notice issued the same day, DA 26-789, waives the related prohibition on permissive changes so that devices already authorized can keep receiving software and firmware updates. The two are routinely conflated in coverage. They do opposite things, and this page keeps them separate.

It is not a ban on Chinese robots

Almost every headline framed this as a China story. That framing is wrong in a way that matters if you are trying to work out whether the robot in your cart is affected.

The rule applies to foreign-produced devices, and it does so regardless of the producer's nationality. Under the FCC's language, a device is foreign-produced when it fails to qualify as a domestic end product under the Buy American standard at 48 C.F.R. § 25.101(a). That is a test of where the thing was made and what fraction of its component cost is domestic. The baseline is 60%, currently raised to 65% for items delivered through 2028 and 75% from 2029.

Corporate nationality does not enter into it. An American-headquartered brand that manufactures in Malaysia is in exactly the same position as a Chinese one, and so is a German, Japanese, or Korean one. That is why the rule reaches so much further than the coverage suggests.

One wrinkle cuts the other way, and nobody has written about it. The Buy American framework carries a waiver for commercially available off-the-shelf items under 41 U.S.C. 1907, which exempts them from the domestic-content percentage and asks only that they be manufactured in the United States. Most consumer robots are off-the-shelf goods. How that interacts with this listing has not been addressed by the FCC or by any law firm alert we can find, and it could matter a great deal to which manufacturers can qualify.

The four-part test

A device is an advanced robotic device, and therefore covered, only if it meets all four of these. If it misses any one of them, it falls outside the listing.

  1. 1

    Ground-mobile

    A mechanical mobile device capable of locomotion, obstacle avoidance, navigation, or movement on the ground, operating remotely from a human operator.

  2. 2

    Over 4.4 lbs

    The combined weight of the device and, where applicable, its ground station or docking station is over 4.4 lbs (2 kg). The dock counts toward the total.

  3. 3

    Sensing and connected

    It carries an environmental sensor that perceives its surroundings, plus a network connection running at 200 kbps or faster in either direction, wired or wireless, including Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, cellular, or satellite.

  4. 4

    Autonomous software

    It runs software, locally or remotely, including firmware and AI or machine-learning model weights, that controls autonomous navigation or movement, perception, data collection, or remote command and control.

What the FCC carved out

Six categories are excluded by name.

  • Connected vehicles, at any gross weight
  • Rail-operated vehicles
  • Unmanned aircraft systems
  • Unmanned underwater vehicles
  • FDA-classified medical devices and assistive mobility equipment, such as powered wheelchairs
  • Fixed stationary industrial and medical robots, including SCARA, delta, and gantry arms

Those are the named exclusions, but the four-part test does its own filtering. A device under 4.4 lbs including its dock is outside the rule, as is one without a 200 kbps link. Small desktop companion robots may sit outside it entirely on weight alone.

The underwater exclusion is the one worth pausing on, because it is not obvious how it applies to a submerged robot pool cleaner. We have flagged that as unresolved on the relevant cards below rather than picking an answer we cannot support.

The weight threshold, tested against real desktop robots

The 4.4 lb line counts the device plus its dock together, which is the cleanest way a small robot falls outside the rule. We went looking for published weights to see which desktop companions clear it. Most manufacturers do not publish one at all, so this is as far as the evidence goes.

Product Device Dock Against the 4.4 lb line
Casio Moflin 260 g 280 g (Moflin Bed) Clearly under, about 540 g combined
Eilik (Energize Lab) 230 g No dock, USB-C cable only Clearly under
Loona (KEYi Tech) 1,100 g (2.42 lb) Not published Genuinely unclear. The device alone is under, with roughly 900 g of headroom, and the dock weight is the number nobody has published.
EMO (Living.AI) Not published Not published Unknown. Living.AI renders its spec sheet as an image with no weight field.
Ropet Not published Not published Unknown. Neither the official site nor either crowdfunding campaign lists a weight.
Vector 2 (Digital Dream Labs) Not published Not published Unknown, though the device is palm-sized.

Weights are the manufacturer's published figures where one exists. Where it says not published, we could not find one from the manufacturer or a retailer spec field, and we are not going to substitute a number from an aggregator site or infer one from dimensions. Loona is the interesting case: the device alone is under the line with roughly 900 g of headroom, and the dock weight that would settle it is the one figure nobody has published.

What is grandfathered

  • Devices already in consumers' hands are unaffected and continue to work normally.
  • Models that already hold FCC equipment authorization may continue to be imported, marketed, and sold. Retailers can keep selling stock.
  • A separate waiver notice, DA 26-789, permits software and firmware updates to devices authorized before July 28, 2026, explicitly including patches that fix vulnerabilities, at least until January 1, 2029.
  • Federal government purchase and use is unaffected.

Two catches sit in the detail. First, the waiver covers software and firmware only. Hardware modifications to an authorized model remain prohibited, so a currently authorized product is effectively frozen in hardware. Second, existing authorizations remain valid unless the FCC revokes them separately, and the Commission did not foreclose acting again later.

The exemption route

Manufacturers can apply for Conditional Approval. For robotics, only the Department of War evaluates submissions. Applicants must disclose corporate ownership, justify their supply chain, and show efforts to establish or expand manufacturing in the United States. This is not a paperwork formality. The filing deadline is January 1, 2028, after which the pathway closes rather than converting to a transition period.

A note on the agency name: the FCC's own documents say Department of War throughout. The statutory name remains Department of Defense, which is why some coverage says DOD. An executive order authorized the alternate title in September 2025; codification passed the House in July 2026 and was still pending in the Senate as of August 2026. We use the FCC's term because it is the FCC's process.

This is why no brand below is described as permanently banned. The door is open, several manufacturers have the resources to walk through it, and the status table will change.

Where each brand stands

Last verified August 3, 2026. Statements are quoted as the company gave them, hedges included. Where we could not find a statement, we say so rather than filling the gap.

Applies to every brand below: models that already hold FCC equipment authorization may continue to be imported, marketed, and sold, and devices you already own keep working. Nothing here is illegal to buy today. The cards note only where a brand departs from that.

Covered: Meets all four parts of the definition on its face, so new foreign-produced models cannot obtain equipment authorization. Robot vacuums are additionally confirmed in scope by an FCC spokesperson; other categories here are not named by the FCC.

Likely covered: The product plainly meets all four parts of the test, but the FCC has not addressed the category by name and no manufacturer statement confirms it.

Possibly excluded: A named exclusion may apply. The FCC has not addressed the category, and we are not going to guess. See the note on that card.

Roborock

Robot vacuums

Covered
On sale today
Unaffected.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Has not commented publicly as of 3 August 2026. Consumer Reports, Fox Business, and Tom’s Guide each reported no response to requests for comment.

Ecovacs

Robot vacuums, robot window cleaners

Covered
On sale today
Unaffected.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Has not commented publicly as of 3 August 2026.

Dreame

Robot vacuums, robot mowers

Covered
On sale today
Unaffected.
Company statement
“We are currently reviewing and assessing the details of the recent announcement.” via Tom’s Guide, 30 July 2026
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Dreame separately did not respond to Consumer Reports.

Eufy (Anker)

Robot vacuums

Covered
On sale today
Unaffected, per the company.
Company statement
“Based on our current understanding, the new rule does not affect the continued availability, use, or support of products we currently sell in the United States.” via Consumer Reports
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

The hedge at the front of that sentence is the company’s own. We have left it in.

iRobot

Robot vacuums

Covered
On sale today
Unaffected.
Company statement
“We are aware of the FCC’s recent action and are working with them to better understand its implementation and potential impact.” via Tom’s Guide
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

An American-headquartered brand is not automatically outside the rule. The test is where the device is produced, not where the company is registered.

Segway Navimow

Robot mowers

Covered
On sale today
Unaffected, per the company.
Company statement
“There is no immediate impact to existing Navimow customers, as all Navimow models currently sold in the US have already received FCC equipment authorization.” via Tom’s Guide
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Mammotion

Robot mowers

Covered
On sale today
Unaffected.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Mowers meet the definition on its face; the FCC has not named the category. We have found no Mammotion statement.

Worx

Robot mowers

Covered
On sale today
Unaffected.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Coverage of any individual model still turns on whether it satisfies the full four-part definition.

Husqvarna

Robot mowers

Covered
On sale today
Unaffected.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Coverage of any individual model still turns on whether it satisfies the full four-part definition.

Aiper

Robot pool cleaners

Possibly excluded
On sale today
Unaffected either way.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

The rule excludes unmanned underwater vehicles by name, and a fully submerged cordless pool robot arguably is one. One outlet, Techlicious, has flatly asserted pool cleaners are exempt, but it cites nothing and no other source corroborates it. The FCC has not addressed pool cleaners, no law firm alert covers them, and no manufacturer has commented. Treat it as open.

Beatbot

Robot pool cleaners

Possibly excluded
On sale today
Unaffected either way.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Same open question as Aiper. Surface-skimming and hybrid models may sit differently from fully submerged ones.

Maytronics (Dolphin)

Robot pool cleaners

Possibly excluded
On sale today
Unaffected either way.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Same open question. Corded models raise a further wrinkle, since the connectivity test turns on the data link rather than the power cable.

Hobot

Robot window cleaners

Likely covered
On sale today
Unaffected.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Window robots climb a vertical surface rather than moving on the ground. Whether that satisfies the locomotion criterion is untested, and the FCC has not addressed the category.

Unitree

Humanoid and quadruped robots

Covered
On sale today
Units already imported are unaffected.
Company statement
None located as of August 2026.
Conditional Approval
None confirmed

Security research finding a backdoor in Unitree robots is cited in coverage of the FCC decision as part of the rationale for the listing.

What we are not claiming

We are not going to tell you a specific model is illegal to buy, because none of them are. We are not going to publish any manufacturer's domestic-content percentage, because that figure is not public and the Buy American test turns on it. We are not going to declare the pool-cleaner question settled, and we are not going to predict which companies will win Conditional Approval. When any of that changes, this page changes with it.

One more thing worth saying plainly. The FCC's public FAQ page on this listing returns an error to automated requests, so several widely repeated details circulate only secondhand through law firm alerts and press coverage. Where that is true of a fact on this page, the source note says so.

Frequently asked questions

Is the FCC robot ban a ban on Chinese robots?
No. The rule turns on where a device is produced, not on who owns the company, and it applies regardless of the producer’s nationality. A robot is covered if it fails the Buy American "domestic end product" test. Chinese-made robots are caught, but so are devices from American, European, Japanese, and Korean brands that manufacture offshore.
Can I still buy a robot vacuum in the United States?
Yes. Any model that already holds FCC equipment authorization can still be imported, marketed, and sold. The restriction applies to new models seeking authorization, not to what is on shelves today.
Will my robot vacuum stop working?
No. Devices you already own are unaffected. A separate FCC waiver also allows models authorized before 28 July 2026 to keep receiving software and firmware updates, including security patches, at least until 1 January 2029.
Which robots does the rule actually cover?
A device is covered if it meets all four conditions: it moves on the ground under remote or autonomous control, it and its dock together weigh more than 4.4 lbs, it has an environmental sensor and a network connection of at least 200 kbps in either direction, and it runs autonomous navigation or perception software. An FCC spokesperson has confirmed robot vacuums are covered. Robot lawn mowers meet the same definition on its face, though the FCC has not named that category.
What is excluded from the FCC robot rule?
Six categories are carved out by name: connected vehicles, rail-operated vehicles, unmanned aircraft systems, unmanned underwater vehicles, FDA-classified medical devices and assistive mobility equipment, and fixed stationary industrial and medical robots. A device also falls outside the rule if it misses any part of the four-part test, for example by weighing under 4.4 lbs with its dock.
Can a manufacturer get an exemption?
Yes. Manufacturers may apply for Conditional Approval, which for robotics is evaluated by the Department of War. Applications require corporate ownership disclosure, supply-chain justification, and evidence of efforts to establish or expand manufacturing in the United States. The filing deadline is 1 January 2028, after which the pathway closes.
Should I rush out and buy a robot vacuum before prices go up?
There is no evidence supporting panic buying as of August 2026. Authorized inventory is still flowing and prices have not moved on account of the rule. If scarcity pressure arrives, the earliest realistic point is 2027, as already-authorized stock thins without new models replacing it.

Sources

Every claim in this guide that isn't first-person experience is traceable to one of the sources below. URLs verified at publication; some may rot. Let us know if so.

  1. Public Notice DA 26-786: additions to the Covered List · Federal Communications Commission, July 28, 2026The listing itself. Not to be confused with DA 26-789, which is the separate waiver notice.
  2. Public Notice DA 26-789: waiver of prohibitions on certain permissive changes · Federal Communications Commission, July 28, 2026Source for the software and firmware update waiver running to at least 1 January 2029.
  3. Fact Sheet: FCC updates Covered List to include foreign-produced robotics and inverters · Federal Communications Commission, July 2026Summary document. It contains no technical definitions, so the thresholds on this page are not drawn from it.
  4. FCC adds foreign-produced power inverters and advanced robotic devices to Covered List · Mayer BrownClient alert. Source for the verbatim definitional criteria, including the weight, connectivity, and software tests.
  5. FCC adds foreign-produced power inverters and advanced robotic devices to the Covered List · Wiley LLPClient alert. Source for the Buy American domestic end product test and the Conditional Approval requirements.
  6. FCC adds foreign-produced power inverters and advanced robotic devices to the Covered List · Latham & WatkinsClient alert. Source for the 1 January 2028 Conditional Approval deadline and the nationality-neutral framing.
  7. It happened: FCC adds foreign-produced power inverters to the Covered List · Stoel RivesClient alert. Source for the waiver applying only to models authorized before the listing, and for hardware changes remaining prohibited.
  8. FAR 25.101, Buy American statute: domestic content thresholds · Acquisition.govPrimary source for the 60 percent baseline, 65 percent for 2024 through 2028, and 75 percent from 2029, plus the commercially available off-the-shelf waiver.
  9. Robotic vacuums swept up in new US crackdown over national security risks · Fox Business, July 2026An FCC spokesperson confirmed to Fox Business that robot vacuums are covered.
  10. What the FCC ban on foreign-made robot vacuums means for U.S. consumers · Consumer Reports, July 2026Source for the Anker statement quoted in full on the Eufy card.
  11. The US government just banned almost all robot vacuums, and companies respond · Tom's Guide, July 31, 2026Source for the Dreame, iRobot, and Segway Navimow statements.
  12. Why the FCC could make your next robot vacuum harder to buy · The Gadgeteer, July 30, 2026Source for lawn mower coverage, and for the observation that the underwater exclusion does not by itself settle the pool cleaner question.
  13. Experts react to FCC limits on U.S. imports of new humanoid and mobile robots · The Robot Report, July 2026