Slashed fees, simpler compliance, and exemptions aim to reshape India’s telecom security certification, easing costs for manufacturers while aligning with international standards from August 2025.
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has announced a significant reduction in the security test evaluation fees for telecom and ICT products, cutting them by up to 95%. The revised fee structure, effective from August 1, 2025, is part of the ‘Communication Security Certification Scheme’ (ComSec) and aims to lower the financial burden on manufacturers, particularly domestic small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).
According to the department, this fee reduction aligns with the broader Mandatory Testing and Certification of Telecom Equipment (MTCTE) framework. It aims to make India a hub for telecom security testing.
Under the revised structure, fees have been substantially lowered across four equipment categories: Group A has been reduced from ₹200,000 to ₹10,000, Group B from ₹200,000 to ₹20,000, Group C from ₹250,000 to ₹30,000, and Group D from ₹350,000 to ₹50,000.
This change is expected to make the security certification process more accessible to telecom and ICT product manufacturers, including local businesses.
In addition, the DoT has exempted government research and development institutes, such as C-DOT (Centre for Development of Telematics) and C-DAC (Centre for Development of Advanced Computing), from security test evaluation fees for product certification applications submitted until March 31, 2028. This is part of an effort to foster innovation in the public sector.
The telecom department has also simplified the security testing and compliance process for highly specialised equipment (HSE) and end-of-sale/end-of-life telecom products.
While products like IP routers and 5G Core SMF are subject to mandatory security testing, others like Optical Line Terminals will be subject to voluntary certification, with fee exemptions available until August 31, 2025.
Applicants can now pay the security test evaluation fees online via the MTCTE portal. The National Centre for Communication Security (NCCS) has been tasked with overseeing the implementation of security testing and certification under the ComSec scheme.
