Are DJI Drones Still Banned? (2026)

From December On December 23, 2025, the United States Federal Communications Commission banned Chinese drone manufacturer DJI from importing new drones into the United States. This may make it seem like you can’t buy a DJI drone right now, but that’s not true. Head over to Amazon and almost the entire DJI drone lineup is still on sale. So what does that give? Are they banned or not?

The key word in the previous paragraph was any new drone. Nothing DJI has done in the past is off-limits. No one will take away your drone. It is still perfectly legal to fly a drone. And it’s not just a DJI ban. This is a ban on foreign-made drones, which includes those from companies such as DJI, Autel Robotics, HoverAir, etc. The fact that DJI is singled out in the headlines has more to do with its market dominance than the way the rules are written.

I would like to say that with the largest competitor withdrawing from the market, US-based companies are jumping in with new drones. We actually said this once about Skydio, and we even liked the Skydio drone we tested, but since then Skydio has moved away from the mainstream market.

No new drones

Courtesy of DJI

While it’s good news that old devices are still on sale, it’s unlikely that new drones will arrive.

To sell in the United States, anything that uses radio frequency components must be approved by the FCC. Drones use radio frequencies when they fly, so they fall under the jurisdiction of the FCC. Because none of the drone companies have received the safety review they need from an approved U.S. agency, they have all been placed on what is called the Covered Countries List. Companies on the covered list are not allowed to import products into the United States, effectively banning them.

There is evidence that the wheels are turning somewhere, in a way that could be good news for mainstream drone pilots. Last week, the FCC amended its coverage list to exempt drones and components already approved by the Defense Contract Management Agency’s UAS Blue List. The FCC states in its public statement: “The DoW has determined that UAS and critical UAS components included in the Defense Contract Management Agency’s (DCMA) UAS Blue List do not currently pose unacceptable risks to the national security of the United States or to the safety and security of American persons. »

For the most part, this doesn’t really impact consumer drones, unless you’re in the market for a $13.6K Parrot Anafi USA Gov Edition thermal drone, but it’s better than silence, which was the main thing we heard before the December ban.