OFCOM has made a narrow but operationally relevant change to the UK’s wireless telegraphy exemption regime for short range devices. The Wireless Telegraphy (Exemption) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2026 were made on 27 October 2026 and come into force on 10 November 2026. The instrument, made by the Office of Communications under sections 8(3) and 122(7) of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006, amends the Wireless Telegraphy (Exemption) Regulations 2021 rather than creating a new exemption category. For policy teams, the significance lies in the drafting change and the document reference that sits behind it.
The operative amendment is brief. In regulation 4 of the 2021 Regulations, which deals with short range devices, the words ‘in April 2026, is exempt’ are replaced with ‘in October 2026, is exempt’. OFCOM’s explanatory note states that the purpose is to change the publication date of Interface Requirement IR 2030, the technical document used for short range devices. The exemption therefore continues to depend on compliance with OFCOM’s stated technical conditions, but the date reference attached to the relevant interface requirement is updated.
That matters because the 2021 Regulations remove the need for an individual wireless telegraphy licence only where the station or apparatus falls within the exemption terms, provisions and limitations. A change that appears administrative can still affect how businesses evidence compliance against the correct legal and technical reference points. For device manufacturers, importers, distributors and authorised representatives, the immediate issue is document control. Technical files, internal compliance matrices, product briefs and legal sign-off records that cite the exemption will need to match the October 2026 IR 2030 reference once the amendment takes effect.
For telecoms advisers and in-house regulatory teams, the amendment is a reminder that spectrum compliance often turns on exact cross-references rather than broad policy statements. Where a product is placed on the market on the basis that no individual licence is required, accuracy in the underlying exemption text matters. The same point applies to procurement and assurance teams. If internal approval processes refer to an outdated publication date for IR 2030, organisations may create avoidable friction in audit trails, supplier checks or post-market compliance reviews, even where the equipment itself is technically unchanged.
The statutory instrument also confirms that OFCOM followed the process set out in the 2006 Act before making the Regulations. According to the instrument, OFCOM gave and published notice of its proposal and considered representations made before the deadline specified in that notice. For policy readers, that is a useful distinction. This is not a quiet update to website guidance alone. The legal text governing exemption is being amended through a formal statutory route, with the supporting technical interface requirement published separately by OFCOM.
The commencement date leaves a short adjustment window. From 10 November 2026, organisations placing short range devices on the UK market, advising on market access, or reviewing spectrum compliance will need to work from the amended wording. On the face of the instrument, this is not a wider reset of short range device policy. It is better understood as maintenance of the exemption framework so that the legislation points to the correct IR 2030 publication date. Even so, that kind of maintenance is material for compliance professionals because it affects which version of the technical reference should be cited in controlled documentation.
The Regulations were signed on behalf of OFCOM by David Willis, Group Director, Spectrum Group, on 27 October 2026. The explanatory note also states that a full regulatory impact assessment is available from OFCOM and that copies have been placed in the libraries of both Houses of Parliament. This is also the latest update in a line of amendments to the 2021 Regulations, which have previously been amended by S.I. 2021/948, S.I. 2023/243 and S.I. 2026/396. The practical reading is straightforward: the exemption structure remains in place, but the legal reference for short range devices moves from April 2026 to October 2026, and that is the change organisations should reflect in compliance records from 10 November onward.