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China Telecom and Wireless telecom and wireless deadlines and compliance calendar

China telecom and wireless commencement dates, permit lead times, renewals, transitions, and change-triggered filings.

Use the fixed dates to identify the rules now in force, then calculate each model's application, permit-expiry, station-licence, and product-change dates.

Back to main artifactReview sources
Author
Sorena AI
Published
Jul 5, 2026
Updated
Oct 15, 2026
3 sections9 primary sources
Overview

There is no single annual China telecom or wireless filing date. Use the fixed dates below to identify the rules in force, then build model-specific dates around testing, application acceptance, permit expiry, expiry, station-licence expiry, production release, and later product or software changes.

Section 1

Rules now in force: fixed dates

These are commencement or transition dates, not deadlines that repeat each year. Products already placed in use under a stated transition may receive different treatment from new production, import, or approval applications.

  • 1 July 2017: MIIT's interim provisions for preinstalled and distributed mobile smart terminal apps took effect. They remain the base rules referenced by the later 2022 notice.
  • 28 November 2019: MIIT Announcement No. 52 on micro-power short-range radio equipment took effect on publication.
  • 1 January 2020: production or import had to stop for specified legacy electronic-scale links, 230 MHz data and industrial remote-control equipment, and 410 MHz vehicle alarms that met earlier rules but not Announcement No. 52.
  • 1 January 2022: a second production/import cutoff applied to specified legacy civil metering equipment, analogue cordless telephones, and 698-787 MHz micro-power equipment. Equipment already lawfully in use under the earlier rules could remain in use until scrapped.
  • 1 January 2022: MIIT's 2400 MHz, 5100 MHz, and 5800 MHz notice took effect, including band-use, equipment-design, technical, station-licensing, and interference rules.
  • 1 January 2023: MIIT and the Cyberspace Administration's additional preinstalled-app rules took effect. They narrowed which basic-function apps may be non-removable and kept the 2017 disclosure, security, monitoring, retention, removal, complaint, and personal-information duties in place.
  • 1 March 2023: MIIT's network-access reforms took effect. They introduced a 15-working-day review commitment after acceptance except for legally permitted delays, extended trial approvals to two years, removed 11 equipment types from new network-access approval, and created a filing route for specified family changes.
  • 15 October 2023: applications for radio-transmitting-equipment model approval in the 2400/5100/5800 MHz bands had to use the notice's technical requirements. The MIIT interpretation allowed equipment approved under the earlier rules before that date to be produced or imported during the approval's validity, and equipment already put into use to remain until scrapped.
Section 2

Network-access lead times and expiry dates

Plan from the acceptance date, not the day the team first uploads documents. The current service page states a 60-day formal decision limit after acceptance. MIIT's reform notice separately commits to completing review within 15 working days after acceptance unless a legally permitted reason extends the process. If expert review is required, the service page allows up to 45 days for that review and excludes it from the approval period.

  • Before application: wireless communication equipment, interconnection equipment, and new telecom equipment covered by the service guide require at least three months of network testing in China or on an MIIT-designated simulation network. This is applicant lead time, not part of MIIT's review period.
  • Incomplete materials: MIIT must identify all required corrections immediately or within five working days. The review clock should not be treated as safely started until the application is accepted.
  • Decision delivery: the permit or trial approval is issued and delivered within 10 days after MIIT makes the decision.
  • Network-access permit renewal: a permit is valid for three years. If production and sale will continue, apply again three months before expiry and return the original certificate. The service FAQ says an expired certificate is handled as a new-model application, not a renewal.
  • Trial approval: since 1 March 2023, a network-access trial approval is valid for two years. Do not use the service page's older statement that trial approvals are generally valid for no more than one year.
  • : the provincial communications administration must complete its yearly inspection of permitted equipment and manufacturers by 31 December and report the results to MIIT by 31 January. The permit holder should assign an owner for inspection notices and retain the submitted records, findings and corrections.
  • Quarterly product reporting: for the 11 equipment types removed from new network-access approval on 1 March 2023, the manufacturer must report products newly placed on the market during the previous quarter through MIIT's platform in the first month of each quarter.
  • Radio-station licence renewal: where the 2400/5100/5800 MHz deployment requires a station licence, apply to replace it at least 30 working days before expiry. This concerns the station operator and does not replace product model approval or telecom network access.
Section 3

Production and change-trigger dates

Add these gates to the model's release plan. They are triggered by production or a change, so they do not recur on a fixed calendar date.

  • Before test booking and application: identify the exact model, radio bands, radio-frequency (RF) unit, antenna design, core components, software build, preinstalled apps, intended deployment, and applicant. Use those facts to determine which approvals and tests apply.
  • Before production or import: confirm that the manufactured configuration matches the approved and tested configuration, and that any model approval, network-access permit, or station-licence dependency has been resolved.
  • Before changing hardware or appearance: determine whether the change affects a main function, core component, or licence entry. Since 1 March 2023, the permit holder must promptly file a new or changed contract manufacturer, or a technical or appearance change that does not alter main functions or core components, online. These changes do not require new testing or a new permit. A change to information recorded on the permit requires a permit-information change.
  • Before changing the RF unit, antenna, power, frequency range, or operating scenario: reassess model approval and the exact conditions of any micro-power exemption. The 2400/5100/5800 MHz notice prohibits unapproved antenna substitution and added RF power amplifiers.
  • When adding a preinstalled app or making a major app-function change: report it promptly to MIIT under the 2017 provisions, keep the preinstalled-software configuration consistent with the network-access approval, and recheck the 2023 removability and basic-function rules.
  • When harmful interference occurs: stop using unlicensed covered stations or micro-power equipment immediately and resume only after the interference has been eliminated. This is an event-triggered operating duty, not a grace period.
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Primary sources

References and citations

MIIT notice on 2023 telecom-equipment network-access reforms
miit.gov.cn4 citations
Referenced sections
  • Current source for the 15-working-day review commitment, two-year trial approvals, revised equipment scope, product-family filings, and 1 March 2023 commencement.
  • Sets the 1 March 2023 start date, 15-working-day review commitment, two-year trial-approval validity, removed equipment types, and product-family filing route.
  • Supplies the later 15-working-day review commitment and the two-year trial-approval validity, both effective 1 March 2023.
Show 1 more
  • Distinguishes product-family changes that use online filing from changes to permit entries and changes that may still require testing or a new permit.
MIIT and CAC notice on further regulation of preinstalled mobile smart terminal apps
miit.gov.cn3 citations
Referenced sections
  • Official source for the additional preinstalled-app requirements effective 1 January 2023.
  • Clause 8 sets the 1 January 2023 effective date; Clauses 3-6 specify removable-app treatment, the limited basic-function categories, and the relationship to the 2017 provisions.
  • Clauses 3-6 set current removability, basic-function, operating-system security, and continuing 2017-rule responsibilities.
MIIT Announcement No. 52 on micro-power short-range radio equipment
wap.miit.gov.cn3 citations
Referenced sections
  • Official announcement for the conditional micro-power exemption, operating duties, and 2020 and 2022 legacy-equipment cutoffs.
  • Clauses 7 and 10 establish the publication-date commencement, the equipment-specific 1 January 2020 and 1 January 2022 cutoffs, and continued use until scrapping for specified lawfully used legacy equipment.
  • Clauses 1-6 support the conditional exemption, operating-condition and antenna limits, user-information duties, and immediate response to harmful interference.
MIIT interim provisions on preinstallation and distribution of mobile smart terminal apps
miit.gov.cn3 citations
Referenced sections
  • Official source for the 1 July 2017 effective date and continuing app disclosure, consistency, reporting, distribution, retention, complaint, and enforcement duties.
  • Article 14 sets the 1 July 2017 effective date; Articles 5-11 establish the continuing manufacturer, distributor, record-retention, reporting, complaint, and supervision duties.
  • Article 7 requires preinstalled-software consistency and prompt reporting of a new preinstalled app or major functional change.
MIIT notice on 2400 MHz, 5100 MHz, and 5800 MHz radio management
wap.miit.gov.cn3 citations
Referenced sections
  • Binding MIIT notice for the applicable dates, equipment requirements, station-licence test, and interference rules.
  • Clauses 13 and 14 set the 15 October 2023 model-approval requirement and the 1 January 2022 commencement date; the other clauses establish the operative band, equipment, station-licensing, and interference rules.
  • Clauses 3, 5, and 9 support the RF-unit and antenna controls, the deployment-specific station-licence test, and the immediate stop-and-correct duty for harmful interference from unlicensed stations.
MIIT interpretation of the 2400 MHz, 5100 MHz, and 5800 MHz notice
miit.gov.cn2 citations
Referenced sections
  • Official MIIT interpretation explaining the transition treatment for earlier approvals and equipment already put into use.
  • Explains the two-year product transition and distinguishes the approval validity governing production and import from the period during which an end user may keep using already-deployed equipment.
MIIT Telecom Equipment Network Access Management Measures
miit.gov.cn2 citations
Referenced sections
  • Current consolidated rule for permit scope, three-year validity, renewal evidence, annual inspection, approved-product consistency and enforcement.
  • Articles 21, 22 and 32 require permit holders to accept supervision, set the 31 December annual inspection and 31 January authority reporting dates, and state the consequences of non-participation or an unsatisfactory result.
MIIT telecom-equipment network-access online service page
ythzxfw.miit.gov.cn2 citations
Referenced sections
  • Current service page for scope, application conditions, acceptance, formal review and expert-review timing, delivery, permit renewal, and expiry treatment.
  • States the three-month network-test condition, acceptance and correction process, 60-day decision limit, expert-review treatment, 10-day delivery, three-month renewal lead, and expired-certificate treatment.
Radio Regulations of the People's Republic of China
gov.cn2 citations
Referenced sections
  • Binding source for radio-station licence duration and the 30-working-day replacement deadline.
  • Articles 31 and 33 set the station-licence decision period and the 30-working-day renewal deadline; the particular 2400/5100/5800 MHz station-licence trigger comes from the MIIT band notice.

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Not every connected device needs a China network access permit. Check public-network connection, the current MIIT equipment directory, and the 2023 licensing reforms.

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Yes. China network access and radio management use different scope tests and approvals. A product can need both, one, or neither.

What changed for 2400MHz, 5100MHz and 5800MHz equipment?

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What evidence is needed for a network access permit?

China network-access permit evidence: Chinese application forms, applicant and manufacturer records, quality evidence, product description, test or certification records, and any required network-trial file.