The US has eased up on new foreign-made drone restrictions by temporarily removing pre-approved models on the Defense Contract Management Agency’s Blue UAS list from the drone ban.
On January 07, the Federal Communication Commission updated its Covered List to exclude drones on the Blue UAS list, alongside drones partially made in the US, from the foreign-made drone ban through the end of 2026.
The update eases drone restrictions that prevent all newly announced foreign-made drones from being sold in the US, by allowing drones that have gone through “rigorous cyber and hardware assessments” to remain available in the US until January 01 2027 – alongside drones that are partially made in the United States.
While the changes may ease restrictions on certain categories of drones, including those made for first responders, the drones on the Blue UAS list are not consumer drones – which means that the change has little effect on drones used for photography.
The news does, however, come alongside the Department of Commerce opting not to move forward with a proposal that would have prevented previously announced drones from being imported.
The Blue UAS Cleared List is an existing list of drones that were approved by the Department of Defense and, as such, it consists largely of UAS designed for government agencies and tasks, like surveillance and search and rescue. The list does not currently include consumer-oriented drones.
Some partially US-made drones will be temporarily exempt from ban
The change also allows drones that meet the definition of “domestic end products” to be exempt from the FCC ban through the end of 2026. That allows partially US-made drones to skirt the FCC restrictions, but it only applies to drones that have at least 65% of the cost of their components to come from the US.
Like the UAS Blue list, the partially US-made drone exemption expires on January 01 2027. That, writes Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Michael P Duffey, is because the US “must have the ability to manufacture drones at scale in both peacetime and wartime.” Duffey indicates that the determination will be re-assessed prior to its expiration.
According to a government fact sheet, companies applying for partially US-made waivers will be required to submit an onshoring plan for “all critical UAS components,” including batteries.
Batteries are worth noting because an estimated 99% of lithium-ion batteries come from China. In the fall of 2024, Skydio was forced to ration its batteries until it could find a new supplier when Chinese regulations changed.
Photography and consumer drones appear unaffected by the changes
While the update eases up on the new US drone restrictions, the Blue UAS list does not include any drones designed for photography, videography or general consumer hobbyist use. That means the new exemptions do not change what the drone ban means for photographers: that foreign-made drones announced after the December 2025 ban will not be available in the US.
The drone ban does not prevent sales or flights of all foreign-made drones, but rather prevents any future drone announcements from receiving the necessary FCC approval required to sell in the US. Previously announced drones remain available.
However, while there are a number of drones made in the US, none of those drones are meant for photography or general consumers. US brand Skydio stopped making consumer drones a few years back, as did Parrot – a French company with US manufacturing facilities.
While the update to the drone ban does not change the future outlook for drone availability for photographers and videographers in the US, the updated exemptions may ease some concerns over continuing to provide drones to emergency services and first responders. Some of the drones on the Blue UAS Cleared List, like the Skydio X10D and Teal 2, are used by first responders.
The drone ban doesn’t apply to previously announced drones that have already received FCC authorization. The last drone added to the Blue list was in November 2025, which means those drones were already not part of the ban.
However, adjusting the wording to exempt drones on the Blue List from the FCC ban allows future drones that qualify for the list to be available in the US. Drones can be evaluated by the Department of War and the Department of Homeland Security to potentially be added to the Blue UAS list. The Blue List exemption, though, will only last for one year.
“While the DoW has determined that UAS and UAS components included on the Blue UAS list do not currently pose immediate national security risks to the American homeland, reliance on any foreign country for critical UAS components still creates significant vulnerabilities for the domestic drone industrial base,” the National Security Determination signed by Duffey reads.
“President Trump's Executive Order on Unleashing American Drone Dominance and the National Security Strategy clearly outline that it is a national security imperative to have an independent, robust, and resilient domestic drone industrial base and supply chain.”
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Read the explainer on the DJI drone ban for more insight, or take a look at what the ban means for parts and firmware.
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