FCC again blocks TP-Link's Wi-Fi 8 routers from US sale; rivals cleared

TP-Link still cannot sell its Wi-Fi 8 routers in the US. The FCC has again turned the company away, and Tom’s Hardware reports the agency cited inaccurate documentation and out-of-spec power levels for the routers. ¹

The blocker is the foreign-made router rule the FCC announced in March 2026. New consumer routers made even partly outside the US are no longer eligible for sale unless the Department of Defense or Department of Homeland Security finds they pose no national security risk. ²

What buyers can and cannot get

• Routers already approved for sale can keep being sold, and the FCC said people can keep using any router they already own. ²
• Previously approved TP-Link models remain on shelves. ³
• The Wi-Fi 8 line, including the Archer 8 Ultra router and Deco 8 Ultra mesh system, is the part that is stuck. ³
• Existing routers can still get security patches and firmware updates under an FCC waiver that runs until March 1, 2027. The FCC said it may extend that date. ²

So if you own a TP-Link router today, nothing changes. If you were waiting for TP-Link’s Wi-Fi 8 gear, there is no US date.

Who has been cleared

Netgear, Asus, Adtran, Amazon’s Eero, Calix, Nokia and SpaceX’s Starlink division are among the makers that have received exemptions. ³ PCMag reports that Chinese-affiliated brands have not had the same luck. ⁴ That leaves rivals free to sell new models that TP-Link cannot.

What TP-Link is offering

TP-Link announced plans to assemble routers in the US, with a Letter of Intent naming Keytronic as a primary domestic manufacturing partner in Corinth, Mississippi. ³ The company said assembly could begin “as early as” 2027, pending approval. ³

In a letter to the FCC, TP-Link proposed a nearly $1 billion US investment that it would make if approved. ³ The company says its devices sold in the US are made in Vietnam, and that it is a US company not controlled by any foreign government. ³ Most components are reportedly still imported from China. ³

A TP-Link official said there are no published guidelines on how much US manufacturing is enough to qualify for an exemption. ³ Each maker must also first get a security determination from the Defense or Homeland Security departments. ³

The FCC’s rule covers foreign production broadly, including manufacturing, assembly, design and development. ² The agency said it acted after a national security determination pointing to vulnerabilities in foreign-made home routers. ²

The Tom’s Hardware report is the only one of these sources covering the latest rebuff and the specific documentation and power-level allegations, so treat those details as that outlet’s account of the FCC’s position. ¹

Who this is for: Anyone shopping for a Wi-Fi 8 router in the US should look at the exempted brands for now, or keep an approved Wi-Fi 7 or older TP-Link model, since the new TP-Link line has no US sale date.

Our read: The rule is the same for everyone, but the exemptions are arriving unevenly, and TP-Link’s offer is a promise of future assembly, not a firm date. Until the FCC says yes, expect new Wi-Fi 8 choices at US retailers to come from its competitors, not from TP-Link.

Footnotes

1. Tom’s Hardware, “FCC rebuffs TP-Link again as it attempts to sell Wi-Fi 8 gear in the US”. Retrieved October 29, 2026. ↩ ↩²

2. Ars Technica, “FCC imposes sweeping ban on foreign-made routers, affecting all new models”. Retrieved October 29, 2026. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

3. Ars Technica, “TP-Link tries to appease Trump admin with pledge to assemble routers in US”. Retrieved October 29, 2026. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰

4. PCMag, “TP-Link Starts Selling Wi-Fi 8 Routers, But You Can’t Get One Thanks to the FCC”. Retrieved October 29, 2026. ↩