Lawmakers Attempting to Restrict Use of Drones Manufactured in China...Once More
DJI drones, which make up nearly 90% of the U.S. commercial drone market, face potential bans after a decisive deadline in December 2025. The American Security Drone Act, aimed at prohibiting China-made drones from being used by U.S. federal agencies, is gaining momentum.
The bill, being spearheaded by a bipartisan group of representatives, seeks to ban Chinese-made drones due to national security concerns. If the U.S. National Security Agency fails to complete a formal security audit of DJI drones by December 23, 2025, as mandated by the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) Section 1709, DJI will face an automatic ban from selling products considered national security threats to the U.S. market.
Customs agents have already begun enforcing restrictions on DJI imports, creating a "shadow ban" that blocks some DJI drone models from entering the U.S. However, a comprehensive federal ban has yet to occur.
Other legislation, such as the Protecting Americaโs Airspace from Unauthorized Drone Activity Act, targets unauthorized and hostile drone activity over critical U.S. infrastructure but does not explicitly single out DJI or Chinese-made drones in federal use.
The House of Representatives Committee on China has called for the U.S. government to stop using drones made in China. The Financial Times reported this on Wednesday, following Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' backing of a Florida bill that banned drones from China, including Shenzen-based DJI.
DJI claims that their drones can be flown without connecting to the internet, but concerns persist about the potential for the drones to feed information back to the Shenzhen-based company, which might then be picked up by the Chinese government. These concerns are not limited to commercial purposes; they also extend to modern wars, as DJI drones have been used by Russia during the ongoing war in Ukraine and in the ongoing conflict with Israel and the West Bank.
The representatives are concerned about China's drones posing a serious national security threat to the U.S. and its allies. The bill would prevent any federal agency from buying technology that could impact national security. DJI is on several of the Biden administration's investment blacklists, and the company is popular among state and local police forces, as well as federal agencies.
However, some U.S. agencies, like the U.S. Department of the Interior, have already banned buying Chinese-made drones. Local police in Florida were rather miffed at being forced to buy faulty U.S.-made drones instead of the Chinese ones they were using.
The new bill is a copy of an earlier effort by Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL). The U.S. is still concerned about ByteDance, which owns TikTok, but Congress has yet to pass any exacting legislation on the Chinese company.
The status of the American Security Drone Act is "pending decisive action after December 2025," with customs restrictions already in place and strong legislative momentum reflecting national security concerns over Chinese-made drones in federal agency use.
- The American Security Drone Act, a bill aimed at prohibiting China-made drones, is gaining momentum due to national security concerns.
- If the U.S. National Security Agency fails to complete a formal security audit of DJI drones by December 23, 2025, they will face an automatic ban from selling products considered national security threats to the U.S. market.
- Customs agents have already begun enforcing restrictions on DJI imports, creating a "shadow ban" that blocks some DJI drone models from entering the U.S.
- Concerns persist about the potential for DJI drones to feed information back to Shenzhen-based company, which might then be picked up by the Chinese government.
- DJI drones have been used by Russia during the ongoing war in Ukraine and in the ongoing conflict with Israel and the West Bank, raising concerns about their use in modern wars.
- The bill would prevent any federal agency from buying technology that could impact national security, with DJI being on several of the Biden administration's investment blacklists.
- The status of the American Security Drone Act is "pending decisive action after December 2025," with customs restrictions already in place and strong legislative momentum reflecting national security concerns over Chinese-made drones in federal agency use.
