How to get WPC approval in India: Equipment Type Approval routes, documents, fees and the mistakes that cause trouble

Register on Saral Sanchar, file a self-declaration Equipment Type Approval with an RF test report, pay Rs 10,000 per model through Bharat Kosh, and download the ETA certificate. That covers most consumer wireless products.

WPC approval means an Equipment Type Approval (ETA) from the Wireless Planning and Coordination Wing of the Department of Telecommunications. It is required for the import, sale and use of wireless devices that operate in de-licensed bands or involve RF transmission^[1]. Since a DoT OM of 9 September 2024, every ETA application for devices made licence-exempt by Gazette notification is granted on self-declaration, and the certificate is downloaded on submission^[2].

Which route you take depends on two questions:

1. Does the device work only in licence-exempt bands?
2. Is it 'Free' or 'Restricted' under DGFT import policy?

The answers put you in one of four routes, explained below. Our main WPC ETA page has the reference detail, and the approval checker tells you whether your product needs ETA at all.

Most consumer gadgets take route 1, self-declaration. Restricted items, licensed-band radios and a short list of excluded device types take harder routes.

The main ones are 2.4-2.4835 GHz and parts of 5 GHz for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, plus notified bands for short-range devices, RFID and other low-power uses. Each band has its own Gazette notification with power and use limits.

DoT's list of licence-exemption notifications includes the bands below^[9]. The parameters in the notification (power, antenna, use) are part of the exemption; a device that exceeds them is no longer licence-exempt. See the glossary entry on delicensed frequency bands.

Finished products using licence-exempt bands: DoT names mobile handsets, smartphones, electronic notepads, laptops, smart watches, short-range devices, microphones, speakers, headphones, earphones, printers, scanners and cameras^[1]. If it has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or another radio, assume ETA applies.

Some common cases from our product guides:

The importer, the Indian manufacturer or the foreign manufacturer's authorised Indian representative. The 2019 self-declaration is made by the importer or authorised Indian representative^[15], and if you apply as a representative you upload the manufacturer's authorisation^[1].

Unlike BIS CRS, where only the factory can hold the registration^[16], an Indian importer can hold the ETA for a model it imports. That matters if you switch suppliers: the ETA is for the model, so a new supplier's model needs its own ETA. The Saral Sanchar account is registered as a company with an authorised contact person^[17].

Three: an RF test report, the manufacturer's authorisation if you are its Indian representative, and technical literature for the device^[1]. You also sign an undertaking generated by the portal.

Prepare these before you start the form:

• RF test report. The self-declaration states the report was issued by an accredited laboratory, with the lab's name and country, and is genuine^[15]. Make sure every radio in the device (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, sub-GHz) is covered.
• Authorisation letter from the manufacturer naming you as its Indian representative, if you are not the maker.
• Technical literature: datasheet or user manual showing frequency range, output power and model number.
• Undertaking, downloaded from the portal and uploaded signed^[18]. In it you confirm the device works only in licence-exempt bands within the gazetted parameters, that the fee is paid and that the goods are exempt from import licensing under DGFT policy, and you accept prosecution liability for a wrong declaration^[15].

Our WPC ETA documents page has templates and naming tips.

Every radio in the device, at the frequencies and power you declare. The self-declaration rests on that report: you state it comes from an accredited laboratory, named with its country, and is genuine^[15], and you confirm the device works only in licence-exempt bands within the gazetted parameters^[15].

Practical checks before you upload:

• One report per radio module, or one report covering all. One consultancy notes each RF module is tested separately, which is why its estimate runs from Rs 15,000 to Rs 40,000 per model^[19]. A phone with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and NFC has three radios to cover.
• Model number match. The model on the report must match the model you enter on Saral Sanchar and print on the product.
• Band and power inside the notification. Compare measured output power with the limit in the relevant Gazette notification, for example 500 mW for PMR 446 radios^[12].
• Lab accreditation. Keep the lab's accreditation certificate on file. Marketplaces must offer the test report as a download for radio listings^[20], so buyers and regulators will see it.

If the device also needs BIS CRS, its safety report comes from a BIS-recognised lab in India^[21]; that is a separate report from the RF one.

Register, start a new self-declaration ETA from the WPC tab, enter equipment and RF report details, upload documents, pay through Bharat Kosh, upload the signed undertaking with an OTP, and download the certificate^[18]. The portal walkthrough is on our Saral Sanchar guide.

The government fee is Rs 10,000 per model for a self-declaration ETA^[1]. RF testing and any consultant are extra; one consultancy estimates RF testing at Rs 15,000 to Rs 40,000 per model^[19].

Fees scale with models, not shipments. A brand launching three TWS earbud models and two smartwatch models pays five ETA fees: 5 x Rs 10,000 = Rs 50,000^[1]. Because an ETA lasts for the lifetime of the model^[1], re-orders of the same five models need no new ETA.

If each model needs its own RF report, the consultancy estimate of Rs 15,000 to Rs 40,000 per model^[19] adds Rs 75,000 to Rs 2,00,000. Using a consultant at the quoted Rs 7,500 per model^[23] adds Rs 37,500. So the realistic range is about Rs 1,62,500 to Rs 2,87,500 before GST, of which only Rs 50,000 is the government fee. The WPC ETA cost page and compliance cost estimator let you vary the inputs.

A router importer pays one ETA fee and an MTCTE fee, plus testing. The router needs a self-declaration ETA at Rs 10,000^[1]; as Wi-Fi equipment in 2.4/5 GHz it also needs MTCTE^[5], where equipment operating in 2.4/5 GHz is fee Group B at Rs 20,000 and routers are Group C at Rs 30,000^[24].

SGS India publishes an MTCTE testing charge of Rs 85,000 for a router^[25], and an RF report adds the consultancy-estimated Rs 15,000 to Rs 40,000^[19]. Its external power adaptor needs BIS CRS as a power adaptor for IT equipment^[26], normally held by the adaptor maker. As an importer you also need e-waste EPR, since routers are Schedule I code ITEW22^[27]. See the full Wi-Fi router guide, MTCTE fees and MTCTE cost.

For self-declaration, the certificate is downloaded on submission^[2], so the official step is same-day. The real time goes into getting the RF test report and setting up the Saral Sanchar account.

One consultancy quotes 5-7 working days once RF test reports are ready^[23]. Account set-up can be slow if your profile needs changing later: a profile can be updated without scrutiny only while no application is in process; otherwise a DoT officer must scrutinise the change^[17]. Get company details right at registration. Scrutiny-based ETA and the import licence for restricted items take longer and go through the WPC Regional Licensing Office^[4].

For the lifetime of the model, unless the WPC Wing revokes it^[1]. There is no renewal fee.

The catch is the word 'model'. DoT's notice for PMR 446 radios says an ETA is not valid if the approved parameters change^[28]. A hardware revision that changes the radio module, frequency range or output power should be treated as a new model needing its own ETA.

Only if your product is on TEC's MTCTE list. Wi-Fi access points and CPE, WLAN controllers and point-to-point or multipoint equipment in 2.4 and 5 GHz need MTCTE certification as well as WPC ETA^[5]. Phones and smartwatches do not.

MTCTE is a separate certification under the Telecommunications Act framework; no notified telecom equipment may be sold without a valid Certificate of Conformity Assessment^[29]. Mobile handsets, smart watches, smart cameras and point-of-sale devices are exempt from prior MTCTE under S.O. 2372(E)^[30].

Only for RF purposes. DoT says ETAs ensure compliance with RF regulations only, and holders must obtain any DGFT NOC or clearance before importing^[2]. For 'Free' items the Saral Sanchar import undertaking is enough on the WPC side^[4].

At the port, Customs may treat the importer's self-declaration as sufficient evidence to clear licence-exempt wireless products^[1]. CBIC reportedly issued Instruction 24/2024-Customs to field formations about the self-declaration OM^[32]. Other approvals still apply at the border; see our customs clearance checklist and the guide to importing electronics from China.

No, if imported for testing, prototype or pre-launch purposes. Such RF devices are exempt from ETA, but the importer submits an undertaking in the prescribed format to Customs^[4].

The exemption covers bringing in units to test, not selling them. MTCTE has a similar exemption for R&D, demonstration and sample testing^[29], and BIS CRS does too^[33]. See importing samples for BIS testing.

DoT has stopped taking new applications under the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885. Authorisations under the Telecommunications Act, 2023 are applied for on the eservices.dot.gov.in Authorisation Portal from 25 June 2026, and Radio Equipment Possession Authorisation from 6 August 2026^[34].

Under the Radio Equipment Possession Authorisation Rules, 2026, the application fee is Rs 1,000 and the authorisation fee is Rs 10,000 a year for manufacture, sale or import for sale, valid 1-5 years^[7]. This replaces the old dealer possession licence model, as reported^[35]. Licence-exempt devices still use self-declaration ETA; this change matters for licensed-band radios, repeaters and similar equipment.

Because self-declaration ETAs are not scrutinised before issue, most problems surface later: in WPC monitoring, at Customs, or on a marketplace. These are the ones we see most.

Through sample checks, audits and spectrum monitoring. In the self-declaration you undertake to cooperate with WPC sample checks and audits^[15], and the ETA can be revoked^[1].

The clearest example is walkie-talkies. A DoT Wireless Monitoring Organisation drive found type-approved PMR 446 radios being used at around 5 W, well above the 500 mW limit, and DoT warned that using them may lead to proceedings under the Indian Telegraph Act and the Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act^[36]. Its notice to ETA holders says non-compliance found in monitoring may lead to revocation of the ETA and legal proceedings^[28].

For products also under MTCTE, the stakes are higher still: equipment found without a valid certificate gets a seven-day stop-sale notice, and certification within 180 days costs ten times the normal fee^[29].

For radio equipment, CCPA's 2025 guidelines require listings to state operating frequencies, give ETA details with a downloadable ETA copy and test report, and carry the seller's certification that both are unaltered^[20]. Devices without an ETA are 'unauthorised'^[20].

Enforcement has followed. News reports in January 2026 said CCPA fined Meesho, Flipkart, Amazon and Meta Rs 10 lakh each over walkie-talkie listings, after flagging more than 16,970 non-compliant listings^[37]. Keep your ETA PDF and RF report ready for every listing; see the Amazon and Flipkart checklists.

For a single self-declaration ETA with a ready RF report, most importers can file themselves; the portal steps are short. A consultant helps most with RF testing logistics, scrutiny-based ETAs and products that also need MTCTE or BIS.

Consultants quote Rs 7,000 to Rs 12,000 per ETA, according to one consultancy^[23]. See our WPC consultants guide, the WPC ETA vs MTCTE comparison and the MTCTE portal guide. For a quick view of every approval your product needs, request a free compliance check.