FCC ID Ham Radio Rules: What eBay's New Policy Means

October 29, 2026

TL;DR: New FCC rules that took effect October 13, 2026 pull online marketplaces into the FCC’s equipment authorization enforcement and, starting in 2027, require them to show a valid FCC ID on many radio listings. eBay has already tightened its listings, but told ARRL that gear capable of transmitting only on amateur frequencies doesn’t need an FCC ID. Dual-band handhelds that can also transmit outside the ham bands are a different story: they need FCC certification, and that’s where the supply-chain security angle comes in.

I’m a licensed ham (KR4PSN), and my day job is network engineering in critical infrastructure. Those worlds rarely overlap. This month they did. A rule written to keep untrustworthy equipment out of the U.S. communications supply chain just changed how radios get listed on eBay, and a lot of ham radio sellers noticed when their listings started asking for an FCC ID.

Here’s what changed, what didn’t, and what I’d check before buying a radio online. Everything is sourced and dated, and where something is unsettled, I’ll say so.

What changed on October 13, 2026

The rule behind all this is the FCC’s Third Report and Order in ET Docket No. 21-232, titled “Protecting Against National Security Threats to the Communications Supply Chain Through the Equipment Authorization Program” (FCC 26-50). It was adopted July 22, 2026, published in the Federal Register September 11, and took effect October 13. It does several things:

Closes the component loophole. The FCC will no longer authorize devices that contain “logic-bearing hardware components” produced by an entity on its Covered List, where the device would have been prohibited if that entity had built the whole thing. It applies going forward, not to existing authorizations.
Pulls online marketplaces into “marketing.” Under the amended 47 CFR 2.803, listing regulated equipment on an online marketplace counts as marketing when the marketplace also handles things like warehousing, order processing, billing or fulfillment.
Requires FCC IDs at the online point of sale. Marketplaces must display a valid FCC ID for devices that are subject to certification.
Tightens the rest. Any modification by a Covered List entity now needs full recertification, and the “critical infrastructure” definition now maps to the 16 DHS sectors and 55 National Critical Functions.

The FCC ID display dates are in 2027, not today

The rule is in effect, but the FCC ID display requirement has delayed compliance dates under 47 CFR 2.803(c):

March 1, 2027 for marketplaces that sell their own devices, or that have physical access to or take title to a third-party seller’s device.
June 1, 2027 for marketplaces that list third-party devices without physical access or title. Those marketplaces have to take reasonable steps to confirm the FCC ID is a validly issued one in the FCC’s database and make the seller certify it’s accurate.

The display requirement also doesn’t apply to three kinds of listings: listings published before the rule took effect (until they’re substantively edited), listings from sellers who aren’t “high-volume third-party sellers” under the INFORM Consumers Act, and listings for used devices. So eBay’s new restrictions are, at least in part, eBay getting ahead of its compliance date.

What eBay told ARRL about ham gear

According to ARRL’s October 16, 2026 report, eBay’s first messages to sellers suggested an FCC ID would be required for any listing of equipment that transmits RF energy. ARRL asked for a clarification on amateur gear, and an eBay spokesperson said:

“eBay allows the sale of devices capable of operating only on frequencies that the FCC has allocated for use by Amateur Radio Service licensees. As these devices do not require FCC equipment authorization, FCC IDs will not be required for these listings as an amateur licensee may use his or her license to operate such radios.”

It drew a clear line on everything else: two-way VHF/UHF radio equipment capable of operating outside the amateur bands “cannot be imported, advertised, sold, or operated within the United States, including on eBay, without an FCC equipment certification.”

ARRL’s bottom line: the FCC didn’t change the underlying equipment authorization rules, and amateur equipment still doesn’t need authorization, except commercial HF amplifiers.

Why dual-band HTs that transmit outside the ham bands still need certification

None of this is new, which is the point. Back on September 24, 2018, the FCC Enforcement Bureau published Enforcement Advisory No. 2018-03 (DA 18-980) on exactly this category of radio. The key rules from that advisory:

There’s one amateur exception to the certification requirement: a device capable of operating only on amateur frequencies doesn’t need FCC equipment authorization, and a licensed ham can operate it under their license.
If a two-way VHF/UHF radio can operate outside the amateur bands, it can’t be imported, advertised, sold, or operated in the U.S. without FCC certification. The Bureau specifically called out radios that apparently transmit on 136 to 143 MHz, 400 to 419 MHz and 451 to 520 MHz.
Some of these radios could be modified to transmit on public safety channels, and some could operate in prohibited wideband mode.
The FCC’s advice to buyers was simple: make sure a device is either labeled as FCC compliant or operates solely within amateur frequencies.

That’s why inexpensive dual-band handhelds confuse so many people. A radio sold as “ham” that will transmit on business band, GMRS or public safety frequencies isn’t ham-only under these rules. To be marketed in the U.S., it needs certification for what it can transmit, and the FCC ID points to that grant. The advisory also says certified devices generally can’t be modified afterward, so “unlocked” or “expanded TX” in a listing is a red flag, not a feature.

This is a supply-chain security story

It’s easy to read this as marketplace paperwork. That’s not how the FCC frames it. The FCC’s stated purpose, per ARRL, is to use the equipment authorization program to protect against “national security threats to the communications supply chain.”

From where I sit professionally, the logic is familiar. Equipment authorization is a trust chain: a recognized lab tests the device, a certification body reviews it, the FCC records the grant, and the FCC ID ties a physical radio back to that record. Each step only means something if the earlier ones can be trusted. Critical infrastructure works the same way with firmware signing, vendor vetting and asset inventories. I wrote about the network side of that in IT/OT Network Segmentation with the Purdue Model and IEC 62443.

The FCC has been working this chain from several directions:

The Covered List. The FCC’s Covered List has included Hytera Communications equipment since March 12, 2021, to the extent it’s used for public safety, government facility security, critical infrastructure surveillance and other national security purposes. Hytera makes two-way radios, so this isn’t abstract for the radio world.
Components inside devices. The new logic-bearing component rule targets the case where a Covered List entity’s chips or modules end up inside someone else’s product.
Online marketplaces. The FCC ID display rule makes it harder for unauthorized gear to move through big platforms as anonymous listings.
Test labs and certification bodies. The agenda for the FCC’s October 29, 2026 open meeting includes a proposed Third Report and Order in ET Docket No. 24-136 that would stop recognizing test labs, certification bodies and lab accreditation bodies in “non-reciprocal” countries, with a transition period ending December 1, 2028. As I write this it’s an agenda item, so treat it as proposed until the FCC releases adopted text.

The direction is clear: the FCC wants the FCC ID to be a trustworthy, checkable claim about who made a device, what’s in it and who tested it. For hams, that’s mostly good news.

Practical buyer guidance for hams

Here’s the checklist I’d use before buying a radio online, new or used.

1. Decide which kind of radio it is

Ham-only: transmits only inside amateur allocations. No FCC ID is required under the amateur exception, and eBay says these listings don’t need one.
Certified for other services: transmits outside the ham bands, for example on Part 90 land mobile or Part 95 GMRS frequencies. It needs a valid FCC ID for that equipment, and the grant should match what the radio can actually do.
Neither: transmits outside the ham bands and has no valid certification. Under the 2018 advisory, that radio can’t legally be marketed or operated in the U.S.

2. Look up the FCC ID yourself

If a listing shows an FCC ID, check it in the FCC’s FCC ID search. The first part of the ID is the grantee code, which identifies the company that holds the grant. Confirm the grantee matches the brand, the grant covers the frequencies and rule parts the radio actually transmits on, and the external photos in the filing (where available) match the listing. A real FCC ID copied onto a different product is the exact problem the new verification requirement is meant to catch.

3. Don’t confuse “exempt from display” with “legal”

The used-device, low-volume-seller and old-listing exemptions apply only to the FCC ID display requirement. They don’t change the general rule in 47 CFR 2.803(b) that a device has to be properly authorized before it’s marketed. A used radio that transmits outside the ham bands still needs to have been certified.

4. If you sell, keep your listings clean

If you’re selling ham-only gear and eBay flags it, eBay says to contact it for a review. If it transmits outside the ham bands, have the correct FCC ID ready. Editing an older listing’s description, photos or specs can bring it under the new display rule.

What’s still unclear

Two things. First, how well marketplace checks will tell a ham-only rig from a wideband HT. eBay’s policy is clear in principle, but expect some false positives. Second, the final text of the October 29 test lab item. The FCC also declined, for now, to require FCC IDs on external packaging, but kept that question open.

The takeaway

For ham-only gear, nothing fundamental changed: the amateur exception stands, and eBay says it’ll honor it. What changed is that the FCC ID is becoming the thing marketplaces check, and the FCC is working to make that ID trustworthy, from the chips inside to the labs that test it. If you’re shopping for a radio that transmits outside the ham bands, check the FCC ID yourself before you buy. It’s a small habit that plugs you into a much bigger supply-chain security effort.

73, KR4PSN

Sources

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FCC IDs, eBay and Your Next Radio: What Hams Need to Know About the New Equipment Rules