Canadian Representative for manufacturers in India

Written by Koby Smutylo, lawyer (Law Society of Ontario, called 2001), ISED Canadian Representative since 2010. Last reviewed 27 August 2026.

How certification usually runs from India

ISED separates two things that Indian regulatory teams often expect to sit with one body: who tests and who certifies.

Testing can be local. ISED recognizes wireless device testing laboratories in India, so RSS test data can be produced domestically, and several Indian labs run FCC and ISED campaigns alongside their WPC work. Some labs still subcontract to partners in Taiwan, Singapore or the United States where a particular RSS scope is involved.

Certification is not local. ISED's published list of recognized certification bodies covers bodies in Canada, the United States, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Austria and Singapore. There are no Indian certification bodies on it. In practice your Indian lab submits the file to a Canadian CB or to a recognized foreign CB, most often in the United States. That CB then asks for two things before it will issue: your ISED Company Number, and the Canadian Representative letter.

Indian teams familiar with WPC Equipment Type Approval and BIS registration usually find the ISED representative requirement lighter than either — there is no local testing mandate and no in-country certificate holder — but it is not optional, and a file will sit unissued without the letter.

What we see from Indian applicants

IoT, telecom equipment and modules. Indian applicants skew to IoT devices, telecom and networking equipment, and increasingly to domestically designed modules and wearables. Telecom equipment may also be terminal equipment under DC-01, which carries an equivalent Canadian contact requirement; tell us which applies and we will cover both in one appointment.

Entity naming. Use "Private Limited" exactly as registered with the MCA, matching the string your CB has on the application and that will appear on the REL listing. "Pvt. Ltd." in one place and "Private Limited" in another is a common cause of a CB return. See attestation letter required fields.

Group structures. Indian groups frequently certify through a US, Singapore or UAE sales entity. The applicant entity on the ISED application is the one that needs the representative — not the parent, and not the factory. If the applicant changes later, that is a certificate transfer rather than a rename; see changing your Canadian Representative.

Module makers and integrators. An Indian module maker needs a representative for each module certification it holds. Downstream integrators using that certified module do not need one for the module itself. See one representative letter per IC ID and RF modules.

Procurement documentation. Vendor registration forms, a pro-forma invoice and supplier declarations are provided on request.

The remittance bottleneck

This is the part that delays Indian orders more than anything technical does.

Outward remittance from India requires an invoice and, for most banks, Form 15CA and a chartered accountant's Form 15CB before the transfer is released. That process can add a week to a file that otherwise takes a day. We provide a USD invoice and whatever supplier declaration your bank asks for.

Card payment through Stripe in USD avoids the remittance process entirely for the per-certification fee, and it is the route most Indian clients take. Wires are accepted and typically arrive two to four banking days after the remittance is approved. For manufacturers with a steady certification flow, a single consolidated invoice covering several certifications means one remittance instead of one per certification, which is usually the deciding factor for Indian finance teams.

Timing

Ottawa is nine and a half hours behind India for most of the year. An order placed during the Indian working day is processed the same Ottawa business day, and the signed letter is normally waiting in your inbox the next morning in India. We correspond in English.

Audit samples

If ISED requests a sample, it ships from India to ISED's laboratory in Canada at the applicant's cost, documented as a regulatory sample rather than a commercial import. We coordinate and can advise on the Canadian entry. Section 4.1 puts the duty to provide samples on the representative, which is why the appointment has to be held by someone who will still answer the phone years after the certificate issues. See ISED audit samples and why a lawyer as your Canadian Representative.

Can an Indian certification body issue our ISED certificate?

Not currently. ISED's list of recognized certification bodies does not include any body based in India, so the certificate is issued by a CB in Canada, the United States, Europe or Singapore. Your testing can still be done at an ISED-recognized laboratory in India.

Can our Indian company be its own Canadian Representative?

No. Section 4.1 applies precisely because the applicant's company address is outside Canada, and the representative must have an address in Canada.

Can our Canadian distributor or importer sign instead?

It can, if it has a genuine Canadian place of business and accepts in writing the duty to respond to ISED and provide audit samples for as long as the product is sold in Canada. In practice distributors often decline, and an appointment tied to a distribution agreement tends to lapse when that agreement ends.

Do we need a separate letter for each IC ID?

Yes. One letter covers one certification, including every model listed under that IC number. Adding models by permissive change does not need a new letter; a new IC number does.

How do we pay without going through 15CA/15CB?

Pay by card in USD through Stripe. Card payment is treated as a card transaction rather than an outward remittance, which is why most Indian clients use it for the per-certification fee.

Will corrections mean another remittance?

No. Revisions carry no fee, so there is nothing further to remit: added models or HVINs under the same IC number, a corrected applicant name or address, or a reissued letter, with no time limit and no cap on how many. Only a new IC certification number is a separate certification, at US$499.