FCC U.S. agent vs ISED Canadian Representative
A manufacturer certifying a radio product for both the United States and Canada needs two different appointments. For the FCC, 47 CFR 2.911(d)(7) requires every applicant for equipment authorization to designate an agent located in the United States to accept service of process, maintained for at least one year after marketing and importation end. For ISED, RSP-100 section 4.1 requires an applicant with a company address outside Canada to name a Canadian Representative who answers ISED's enquiries and provides audit samples for as long as the product is on the Canadian market. The FCC agent must be in the United States; the Canadian Representative must be in Canada. No single entity can lawfully be both unless it has a real place of business in each country.
What the FCC requires
Since the FCC's order in FCC 22-84 (released November 2022) and the rule that followed, every application for equipment certification, from a domestic or a foreign applicant, must designate a U.S. agent for service of process. The applicant and the agent both sign a certification acknowledging, in the rule's words, "the applicant's consent and the designated agent's obligation to accept service of process in the United States for matters related to the applicable equipment, and at the physical U.S. address and email address of its designated agent." The applicant also accepts "its obligation to maintain an agent for service of process in the United States for no less than one year after either the grantee has permanently terminated all marketing and importation of the applicable equipment within the U.S., or the conclusion of any Commission-related administrative or judicial proceeding involving the equipment, whichever is later." An applicant located in the United States may designate itself.
The role is legal service: a U.S. address at which the FCC, or a party to a proceeding, can serve documents on the grantee. It is not a technical contact and it is not a sample-provider.
What ISED requires
RSP-100 section 4.1: "A Canadian representative is required when the applicant's company address is not within Canada." The representative "shall be responsible for responding to all enquiries from ISED regarding the certified product(s), including providing audit samples at no charge to ISED," and the arrangement must remain valid "for as long as the certified product is offered on the Canadian market." Terminal equipment registered under DC-01 has the same requirement in DC-01 section 6. A Canadian applicant needs no representative. The full text and its consequences are in the RSP-100 requirement explained.
The role is operational as much as legal: ISED writes to the representative with questions and audit-sample requests about the product, and the representative is expected to answer and to produce units.
Side by side
| FCC U.S. agent for service of process | ISED Canadian Representative | |
|---|---|---|
| Legal basis | 47 CFR 2.911(d)(7), adopted in FCC 22-84 | RSP-100 section 4.1; DC-01 section 6 for terminal equipment |
| Who must appoint | Every applicant for FCC equipment authorization; a U.S. applicant may name itself | Applicants whose company address is outside Canada |
| Where the appointee must be | A physical address in the United States | An address in Canada |
| What the appointee does | Accepts service of process for matters related to the equipment | Responds to ISED enquiries; provides audit samples at no charge to ISED |
| How it is recorded | Signed certification by applicant and agent, filed with the application | Details on the Application and Agreement for Certification Services, evidenced by the representative's letter |
| How long | At least one year after marketing and importation end in the U.S., or after any related proceeding concludes, whichever is later | For as long as the product is offered on the Canadian market |
| Same appointee for both? | Only an entity with a real place of business in both countries | Only an entity with a real place of business in both countries |
"One North American representative"
Some providers offer both appointments as a package. Read the small print: the package is either one company with offices on both sides of the border, or one contract under which two different entities hold the two appointments. Neither is wrong, but the second is what most packages are, and the manufacturer should know which two entities it has appointed, because each will be the one a regulator contacts.
The stronger question is which appointment carries more ongoing work. The FCC agent's job is largely passive until something goes wrong. The Canadian Representative's job is active whenever ISED audits the product, which means the criteria for choosing one are continuity, a real address, and willingness to handle samples, set out in how to hire a Canadian Representative. A FCC agent chosen for its U.S. address does not become a good Canadian Representative by adding a Canadian one.
What we do and do not do
We act as Canadian Representative under RSP-100 and DC-01. We do not act as FCC U.S. agent, because we have no U.S. place of business, and we would not want a client to rely on a nominal one. Manufacturers using a U.S. FCB for both certifications under the Canada–US mutual recognition arrangement can appoint their U.S. agent and their Canadian Representative separately and give both letters to the same FCB; the FCB records each against the appropriate application. See from FCC to ISED for the rest of the U.S.-to-Canada process.
Sources. 47 CFR 2.911(d)(7), eCFR, as read September 2026. FCC 22-84, Report and Order, Protecting Against National Security Threats to the Communications Supply Chain through the Equipment Authorization Program, released November 25, 2022 (Federal Register publication). RSP-100, Issue 12, section 4.1. DC-01, Issue 7, section 6. We are not U.S. counsel; confirm FCC obligations with your TCB or U.S. adviser.
Can my FCC U.S. agent also be my ISED Canadian Representative?
Only if it has a genuine place of business in Canada as well as the United States. The FCC role requires a U.S. address; the ISED role requires a Canadian one. Most "both" offers are two entities under one contract.
Does a Canadian company need an FCC U.S. agent?
Yes. The FCC rule applies to every applicant for equipment authorization. Only an applicant located in the United States may designate itself.
Does a U.S. company need an ISED Canadian Representative?
Yes, if it is the applicant on the ISED certification. RSP-100 section 4.1 looks at the applicant's address, and a U.S. address is outside Canada.
How long must each appointment last?
The FCC agent for at least one year after U.S. marketing and importation end, or after any related FCC proceeding concludes, whichever is later. The Canadian Representative for as long as the product is offered on the Canadian market.
Do you provide FCC U.S. agent services?
No. We act only as Canadian Representative, from Ottawa.