Guide to FCC Certifications for IoT Products and Systems

FCC certification is a certification that electronic and electrical devices used in the U.S. must obtain from the Federal Communications Commission. This certification verifies that the radio frequencies emitted from any electrical device fall under the limit established by the FCC.

“If you’re emitting on those frequencies, you have to certify that you meet all the rules like how much power you put out, how you interact with other devices,” said Mariano Goluboff, Senior Solution Architect at Particle. “The FCC doesn’t want a radio to go out, and all of a sudden, no cell phone in the area works.”

While designing printed circuit boards, a lot of effort is poured into minimizing undesirable signals, which can also be called “noise.” They can break the signal integrity, reduce functionality, cause erratic performance, and most importantly, affect nearby systems and human health conditions.

That’s why FCC Certification is vital to protect both device users and manufacturers.

Usually, most IoT devices require two certifications: FCC Part 15 Subpart B and FCC Part 15 Subpart C.

Subpart B is for unintentional radiators. It’s the least expensive and most easily obtained certification. In contrast, Subpart C for intentional radiators can be a huge financial burden for manufacturers.

How Much Does FCC Certification Cost? How Long Does it Take to Get an IoT System Certified?

The cost and duration of the application processes here should be used as a general reference. The exact time and cost it takes to obtain a certification will always depend on your individual case.

• Subpart B costs about $3k - $5k
• Subpart C can cost $40,000 or more

The FCC certification application should take around 8 -12 weeks. With the Telecommunication Certifications Body accelerating the process, the period could be shrunk to 1 - 2 weeks.

With Particle, the whole process can be done as a Studios engagement, our experienced Professional Engineering services team, which can help you get it done cheaper and faster than you might be able to on your own.

There are two paths to choose from:

1. You can do the certification of both Subpart B and C yourself.
2. You can use a pre-certified module that has modular approval and only do the Subpart B yourself.

In general, you can expect to spend six to nine months and up to $200k acquiring FCC, PTCRB, OTA, and carrier certifications, along with RoHS compliance certifications.

The 80% failure rate of all first-time FCC certifications adds more risk and potential to push back your project milestones. But the first-time certifications are just the beginning. Once your devices are certified, you need to safely install them and avoid installing counterfeit certifications.

Additionally, as you introduce new connected devices, you may need to get re-certified. Certification and re-certification is an oft-missed part of estimating the true total cost of ownership for an IoT deployment.

Setbacks here can easily lead your project to be canceled or delayed if it doesn’t go smoothly.

De-risking FCC Certification with Particle

One way to de-risk the certification process is to work with a third-party IoT partner like Particle. All Particle IoT devices are pre-certified, so you’ll spend less time working with your legal team and regulatory bodies on certification and more time focused on solving customer problems and building your product.

For example, Particle takes care of everything you need for Subpart C certification

"All Particle devices have necessary certifications for the United States, Canada, and European Union. Some devices may have additional certification, such as for Japan," said Rick Kaseguma, Senior Technical Documentation Writer at Particle. "Even for countries that are not in that list, it may be possible to use Particle devices without additional certification because they will allow the use of the FCC or EU certification instead of their own country-specific certification, even if they're not in the United States or EU."

Particle's modular approval from the FCC means that you can reuse the certification for Subpart C. The certification timeline can also be shortened from months to several days since you need to do only the self-declaration of compliance for Subpart B, which is a lot less onerous and cheaper.

Another way Particle makes FCC certification easier is through our integrated enterprise IoT platform. The tight integration between hardware (including modem, microcontroller, and EtherSIM), firmware, connectivity, and cloud API allows your entire IoT stack to be certified together, rather than obtaining certifications for each part.

“In some IoT platforms, different devices need to be separated, and this can affect you in different ways,” Rick added. “For example, even if you buy a SIM card from AT&T, intending to bundle it with a different company’s cellular modern IoT platform, there are still steps to be done because your entire assembly isn’t certified.”

Besides that, Particle can also help you redo the Subpart C certification when you make adjustments, such as changing to a higher gain antenna or an antenna of a different type.

“If you’re using a device with the same antenna that was used for the original Particle FCC certification, or a replacement antenna of the same type and equal or lesser gain in all frequency bands, you can avoid both certifications,” Rick said.

Learn how Particle makes IoT device management easier, including the certification process.

As for other potential certifications, depending on your product design and use cases, you could have additional safety certifications, such as Underwriters Laboratory certification for devices over a certain voltage.

By contrast, Particle devices are designed for low-power IoT applications, so there’s no need to apply for UL certification. However, if your product contains a built-in high voltage power supply and not a wall transformer, you might still need UL certification.