NBTC RF Exposure Rules: Thailand Opens Consultation

Thailand: NBTC Opens Public Consultation to Revise Human Health RF Exposure Rules for Radiocommunications Equipment

Thailand's National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has opened a public consultation on a proposed revision to its announcements governing the standards, criteria and regulatory measures for human health safety from the use of radiocommunications equipment. The consultation was published on the NBTC public hearing channel and the comment window runs until 14 September 2026.

For certification and market access teams, the substance sits in the RF exposure layer of equipment authorization: the specific absorption rate (SAR) and electromagnetic field (EMF) exposure requirements, the way that exposure is assessed, and how compliance is documented and declared for radio products used on or near the body. This is a different workstream from the emission and band focused technical standard hearings NBTC ran earlier in 2026, and it reaches a distinct set of evidence in a type approval file.

Two framing points matter before anyone re plans a compliance roadmap. First, this is a consultation on a draft revision, not an enacted rule it creates no new obligation today, and the operative requirements will depend on the final published text. Second, unlike spectrum plans or allocation frameworks (which do not, by themselves, create device type approval duties), human exposure requirements are part of the NBTC equipment authorization chain. So this measure is genuinely device relevant but only prospectively, once adopted.

What the NBTC RF Exposure Revision Is (and Is Not)

The instrument under consultation is a revision of existing NBTC announcements on human health safety from radiocommunications equipment the domestic human exposure regime that has historically been expressed through NBTC's national EMF exposure standard and built on the internationally recognised ICNIRP reference limits for radiofrequency fields. The stated purpose is to update those standards, criteria and oversight measures rather than to introduce a wholly new authorization route.

What it is not: it is not a new frequency plan, not a spectrum allocation instrument, and not a general emission or technical standard update for a device class. Those are separate NBTC processes. Reading this consultation as "new type approval requirements are now in force" would overstate both its stage and its scope. The accurate reading is narrower and more useful: NBTC is proposing to modernise the human exposure limb of its rules, and manufacturers of body-proximate radio products should expect the SAR/EMF evidence expectations in their NBTC files to be the part most likely to move.

What This Means for Manufacturers

• No action is legally required yet. The measure is at consultation stage. Existing NBTC type approval requirements including current human exposure obligations remain in force unchanged until a revised announcement is adopted and given an effective date.

• The exposure file is the pressure point. If your product operates on or near the body (handsets, wearables, hearables, body worn IoT, certain CPE), the SAR/EMF assessment, the frequency range over which exposure is evaluated, and the associated user manual safety statements and marking are the elements most exposed to change.

• Watch for international standard alignment. A human exposure revision of this kind typically tracks updated international references (for example, the 2020 ICNIRP RF guidelines and current IEC assessment methods). Alignment can shift measurement procedures, evaluated frequency ranges and documentation expectations even where headline limits look familiar.

• This is a participation window, not just a monitoring one. Manufacturers, importers, certification bodies and test labs can submit comments before 14 September 2026. If a proposed method or transition period is impractical for your portfolio, the consultation is the point of leverage.

• Test capacity planning. If assessment methods change, accredited SAR/EMF test capacity for the relevant methods and bands can tighten. Early scoping with your test partners is prudent even before the final text lands.

  
  

Certification Impact Summary

Dimension	Current position	What the consultation could change	Confidence
Regulatory instrument	Existing NBTC human health safety announcement(s) for radiocommunications equipment	Revised announcement text (standards, criteria, oversight measures)	High confirmed as a revision
Effect on type approval	Human exposure (SAR/EMF) compliance already sits within NBTC equipment authorization	Updated exposure evidence expectations in the authorization file	Moderate direction clear, specifics pending
Devices most affected	Body proximate radio products (handsets, wearables, body worn IoT, some CPE)	Same population; assessment/documentation detail may shift	Moderate
Limits / methods	Domestic EMF standard historically aligned to ICNIRP references	Possible alignment to updated ICNIRP/IEC methods and ranges	Low Moderate not yet confirmed from primary text
Labelling / user information	Existing safety statement and marking expectations	Potential updates to safety statements / declarations	Low Moderate
Legal status today	In force (existing regime)	Draft no new obligation until adopted with an effective date	High

Timeline and Required Actions

Date / phase	Event	Recommended manufacturer action
15 July 2026	NBTC publishes the consultation on the draft revision	Log the consultation; identify affected SKUs (body proximate radio products)
15 July – 14 Sep 2026	Public comment window open	Review the draft against your SAR/EMF test methods; prepare and submit comments where methods or transitions are impractical
By 14 September 2026	Comment deadline	Ensure any submission is filed via the NBTC specified channel before close
Post-consultation (TBD)	NBTC reviews comments; publishes outcome / revised announcement	Track for the final text and, critically, the effective date and any transition provisions
On adoption + effective date (TBD)	Revised human exposure requirements take effect	Re baseline SAR/EMF evidence, documentation and labelling for in scope products; align test bookings