TYPE APPROVAL

Communication
Department
MEIDECC

Leadership in
Telecommunication is also
essential, since we are now in
the age of e-commerce.
(Michael Oxley)

CONTENTS
1. Introduction
2. Definition
3. Objectives
4. Type Approval Registration
5. Technical Requirement
6. Fees Payable
7. Application Process
8. Penalties

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1. INTRODUCTION
Department of Communication under the Ministry of Meteorology, Energy,
Information, Disaster Management, Environment, Climate Change and Information
(MEIDECC) is currently the Regulator for National ICT in Tonga.
Section 57 of the Communications Act 2000 (the Act) provides for the Minister to
direct the Ministry of Communications to determine technical standards in relation
to the listed matters provided under section 58 of the Act, which includes but are
not limited to:
a

the provision of network facilities;

the provision of network services;

the provision of customer equipment services;

the approval of customer equipment;

the qualifications of providers and installers of network facilities and customer

equipment services;

the adoption of technical standards promulgated by international standard

setting bodies;

the promotion of electromagnetic immunity and compatibility;

the promotion of safety; or

any other matter as may be required by the Minister.

The Authority fulfils this function by requiring that all radio communication and
telecommunications equipment, except those that have been designated for free
circulation, are type approved before being marketed and used in Tonga.

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2. DEFINITION
Act means the Communications Act 2015;
BSMI mark means the conformity certification and marking regime administered
by the Bureau of Standards, Metrology and Inspection of Taiwan;
CCC mark means the China Compulsory Certificate conformity certification and
marking regime administered by Certification and Accreditation Administration of
China;
CE marking means to the Conformit Europenne conformity certification and
marking regime applicable to certain products sold within the European Economic
Area;
C-tick means the conformity certification and marking regime administered by
the Australian Communications and Media Authority;
FCC Declaration of Conformity means the conformity certification and
marking regime administered by the Federal Communications Commission of the
United States of America;
KCC mark means the conformity certification and marking regime administered
by the Korea Communications Commission for South Korea;
radio equipment means equipment that emits radio frequency energy and
which is required for the transmission of radio signals;
Register of Type Approved Customer Equipment means the register
referred to in section 58B of the Act; and
VCCI mark means the conformity certification and marking regime administered
by Voluntary Council for Control of Interference by Information Technology
Equipment of Japan.

3. OBJECTIVES
The main goal of the type approval procedure is to ensure that all radio
communication and telecommunication equipment used in Tonga comply with such
international standards that are applicable in Tonga. Type approval further to make
sure that equipment bringing to Tonga:
i.
ii.

Does not cause damage to or interference with the operation of the

existing operators in the Kingdom,
Ensures, amongst other considerations that no sub standard
equipment which may represent health and safety hazards to
consumers in general are operated in.

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iii.
iv.

Operate on frequencies in accordance with Tonga Frequency Allocation

Plan and
Interoperability with other equipment or networks is possible.

4. TYPE APPROVAL REGISTRATION

All radio communication, satellite communication equipment must be type approval
by the Regulator prior to being marketed for use in the Kingdom of Tonga, or sold or
otherwise supplied for use in Tonga.

Types of Equipment to be Type Approval in Tonga

a) Radio/Wireless and Broadband
Includes radio transmitters and equipment used for cellular mobile communication,
including equipment used for WLAN, Wi-Fi, WiMax, CDMA, GPRS, EDGE, GSM, 3G/4G,
USB/PCMCIA Modems, ADSL/HDSL and UMTS equipment
b) Fixed
Includes equipment used for fixed satellite services, fixed microwave links, satellite
earth stations, telecommunications switching equipment, and radio transmitters.
c) Terminal Equipment
Includes CDMA desktop phones, GSM Gateways, Telex equipment, ISDN terminal
equipment, satellite phones, telephones, cell phones, and other such terminal
equipment.

Types of Equipment Exempt from Type Approval in Tonga

a) Laptops or personal computers, tablets, and car radios with short range
radio technology such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
b) Digital displays or LCD screens for Digital cameras, Printers, car Audios.
c) Receiver-only radio equipment intended to be used solely for the reception
of sound (radio) and terrestrial TV broadcasting services, including
satellite dishes and aerials.
d) Short range (50 meters) infrared remote control equipment, including TV
remote controls, toys, car door openers, garage door openers, etc
e) Terminal equipment used by licensed radio amateurs for personal use.

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5. TECHNICAL REQUIREMENT
An Application for Type Approval shall be in the Form prescribed by the Regulator
and shall:
a)
b)
c)
d)

Describe the equipment for which type approval is sought;

Identify the manufacturer of the equipment;
Identify the model serial number
Certify that the equipment meets the minimum standard necessary for
deployment in Tonga by:
i.
Identifying the applicable technical standards to which it conforms; and
ii.
Identifying and providing evidence of any of the following conformity
certifications that relate to the equipment:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.

CE marking
FCC Declaration of Conformity
CCC mark
KCC mark
VCCI mark
BSMI mark

Communications equipment imported for personal use does not require type
approval.

6. FEES PAYABLE
As the Cabinet decision number 1027 on the 7 th of October 2016, that all Type
Approval Application will be charge effective 1 st of July, 2017. This fee covers the
costs associated with processing Type Approval applications. The non-refundable
type approval application fee of USD$75.00 must be paid before applying for Type
Approval. The fee payment must be by Bank Transfer only through SWIFT Code and
email the deposit slip to communication@mic.gov.to All payments will be in US
Dollars.
The Account detail for the payment:
Government Operation Account
Acc # 0110911001
Bank of the South Pacific
SWIFT CODE: BSPTONU
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All application will only process once we received the full payment.

7. APPLICATION PROCESS
All application must be made using Type Approval Application Form available on
http://www.mic.gov.to/ . One application per product and should be accompanied by
a Suppliers Declaration of Conformity (SDoC), DoC, test reports/certificates as set
out in section 5 and application fee.
The Regulator may request the Supplier(s) and Dealer(s) to submit a sample unit
and technical specifications document for proof of compliance only if necessary.
Incomplete application will not be accept and if the Regulator is not satisfied in
respect to any aspect of the application, it reserves the right to reject the
application and notify the applicant. However, the applicant can reapply with
required documents without extra fee. If the applicant wishes to withdrawn the
application, the application fee will not be refunded.
The time taken to process an applicant is 2 3 working days depend on the
completion of the required document plus a proof of payment.
All application for Type Approval shall be submitted to the CEO Communication
Department either by post or email to:
Chief Executive Officer
Communication Department
MEIDECC
P.O Box 1380
Nukualofa
TONGA
Email: paulm@mic.gov.to
A Type Approval Certificate is issued upon successful Type Approval of a particular
make and model of equipment and will send to the applicant in their preferred
method at their own cost. Approval Certificate only valid for five (5) years and not
transferable but specific to the submitted specification.
Once equipment has been type approval by the Regulator, the same model of
equipment may be imported into, and sold or otherwise supplied in Tonga by any
person without the need for any additional type approvals.
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8. PENALTIES
Failure to comply with directions issued by Communication Department shall be
considered as breach of instruction and the ministry shall take an appropriate action
against the supplier(s)/dealer(s) concern.
Regulator shall direct a dealer to cease selling and to dispose of the equipment if it
found to
be non-

compliant with the standards and specifications recognized by the Regulator.

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