On 2 November 2026 SZ DJI Technology and DJI Service filed a petition for a writ of mandamus in the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (No. 26-7367). They ask the court to "direct the full Commission to resolve DJI's petition for reconsideration promptly". The petition concerns the December 2025 notice that added foreign-produced drones and drone components to the FCC's Covered List.
A ten-month wait
DJI asked the FCC to reconsider the listing on 21 January 2026 (ET Docket 26-22), and that request is still undecided. DJI argues that adding equipment to the list is "a non-discretionary, ministerial act", in the FCC's own 2020 words. It points out that the FCC decided the Huawei and ZTE reconsideration requests in under six months. It also asks the court to tell the FCC how to read the relevant statutes and, at a minimum, to make the FCC decide pending authorisation requests for DJI's non-drone products.
The FCC's position
In DJI's earlier case (No. 26-1029), the FCC renewed its motion to dismiss on 16 October. It argues that the staff-level notice is not a final Commission order and so cannot be reviewed while reconsideration is pending, citing the Supreme Court's September order in NRCC v. Brown. It told the court there "should be no concern about undue agency delay" and that if the FCC did not act within a reasonable time, mandamus would be DJI's route. DJI opposed the motion on 2 November. When Drone Authority checked the docket on 6 November, it showed no response and no ruling.
No quick change
DJI Rumors expects any court decision on whether the listing was lawful in 2027 at the earliest. DroneXL notes that the midterm results do not change the ban, because it rests on the FY25 defence authorisation act and on the FCC's own action.
Why it matters financially
The only money figures are DJI's own. The petition says DJI is "experiencing daily, seven-figure losses", with total losses since December 2025 "in the hundreds of millions". It also says the FCC set aside authorisations for 19 existing DJI products. For US public-safety agencies, inspection firms and retailers, the timing of any FCC ruling decides how long new DJI models stay off the market and whether existing fleets can be expanded.