TELECOMMUNICATION ENGINEERING CENTRE (TEC)

INTRODUCTION

TEC: Since the early 2000s, the telecom industry has been swept up in fast liberalization and innovation. Companies in the telecommunications business send data around the globe in the form of words, voice, audio, or video. The three basic sub-sectors of telecommunications are telecom equipment, telecom services, and wireless communication.

In the 1830s, the first mechanical gadget Telegraph was invented with its invention telecommunication industry began. With the advancement of the technology, telecommunication sector has progressed. In order to maintain the progress of the telecom sector, the government of India in 1991 started a new department TELECOMMUNICATION ENGINEERING CENTRE under which standards are developed for the telecommunication sector and ensure the world-class network and the seamless connectivity of individual networks.

TEC stands for Telecommunication Engineering Centre. TEC assists the Government of India's Department of Telecommunications (DoT) in the development and implementation of different standards and policies for the safe and secure use of emerging technologies in telecommunications. TEC had published specifications for telecom equipment quality measures. Generic Requirements (GRs), Interface Requirements (IRs), and Service Requirements are the three types of specifications (SR).

TYPES OF VOLUNTARY TESTING CERTIFICATION

TEC is responsible to issue various approvals such as Interface Approvals, Certificate of Approvals, Service Approvals and Type Approvals. This certification scheme is totally based on the type of products and interface technical related standards. Certification is totally based on the testing parameters and as per the conditions mentioned in the Technical standards.

1. Type Approval - Type Approval is the process of testing and certifying a telecom product in accordance with TEC's Test Schedule & Test Procedure (TSTP) for compliance to the Standard for Products/Equipment (erroneously known as the product's Generic Requirement (GR)). Testing is on-site at the OEMs premises or in a lab environment. EMC, Safety, Environmental Testing etc. from ILAC signatory accredited labs test reports are also accepted.


2. Interface Approval - Interface Approval is the process of testing and certifying a telecom product in accordance with TEC's Test Schedule & Test Procedure (TSTP) for compliance with the Standard for Products/Equipment (erroneously known as the product's Interface Requirement (IR)). Testing is on-site at the OEMs premises or in a lab environment. EMC, Safety, Environmental Testing etc. from ILAC signatory accredited labs test reports are also accepted. License requirements, Government agencies, or service providers may require Interface Approval as mandatory certification.


3. Certificate of Approval - The process of testing and certifying a telecom product according to the manufacturer's criteria is known as Certificate of Approval (CoA). Only when TEC does not have a Generic or Interface Requirement for the product is this certificate issued. Testing is on-site at the OEMs premises or in lab environment. EMC, Safety, Environmental Testing etc. from ILAC signatory accredited labs test reports are also accepted.


4. Technology Approval - The process of testing and certification of a prototype of a telecom product developed by C-DoT or other R&D organizations is known as technology approval. Technology Approval is granted in accordance with the product's associated standard, formerly known as the Generic Requirement (GR) provided by TEC. Testing is on-site at the OEMs premises or in a lab environment. EMC, Safety, Environmental Testing etc. from ILAC signatory accredited labs test reports are also accepted.

Every telecom equipment must undergo mandatory testing and certification prior to sale, import, or usage in India, according to the Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Rules, 2017. The testing is to be carried out for conformance to Essential Requirements (ER) for the equipment, by Indian Accredited Labs designated by TEC and based upon their test reports; a TEC certificate shall be issued by Telecommunication Engineering Centre.

PRODUCTS COVERED UNDER PHASE-III OF MTCTE

LIST OF PRODUCTS (ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS) COVERED UNDER PHASE-III OF MTCTE

NOTE: Acceptance of application on MTCTE portal for products (Essential requirement) covered under Phase-III is effective from 11-10.2021, and Certification will become mandatory from 1-07-2022.

PRODUCTS COVERED UNDER PHASE-IV OF MTCTE

LIST OF PRODUCTS (ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS) COVERED UNDER PHASE-IV OF MTCTE

Note: Acceptance of application on MTCTE portal for EMI/EMC & SAFETY (Where ever applicable) is effective from 11-10-2021 and certification will become mandatory from 01-02-2022 For remaining ER parameters, the acceptance of application on the MTCTE portal will be effective from 01-01-2022, and TEC Certificate Registration will become mandatory from 01-07-2022.

Wire Telephone Equipment

Private Automobile Branch Exchange

G3 Fax Machine

Cordless Telephone

ISDN Customer Premises Equipment

Modem

REQUIREMENTS

1. Authorized Signatory from Authorized Indian Company.
2. In case of Foreign OEM: Foreign OEM needs to appoint an Indian Company to act as Representative for the MTCTE certification procedure. MoU between foreign OEM and Indian Representative.
3. In the case of Indian Manufacturer: Manufacturer based in India needs to provide their legal documents for the registration on the portal.
4. Product with Valid Test report from Indian labs approved by TEC.
5. Brand / Trademark Details.
6. Company Registration.

How to Get TEC Certification in India?

Process of TEC Certification: Mandatory Testing & Certification of Telecommunication Equipments

1. Online portal generation on MTCTE portal: Applicant needs to register on MTCTE portal for login credentials.
2. Application submission with all relevant documents: The applicant may register online and fill all information and upload relevant documents on the MTCTE portal. The documents cannot be changed once they have been submitted.
3. Scrutiny of application: TEC will evaluate the documents, and any document deficiencies will be communicated to the applicant. After correcting any deficiencies, the applicant's registration will be accepted; after that, the applicant will be able to submit applications for testing/certification.
4. Application submission for testing/certification: Applicant must select the product to be certified, its variant details, and information about available interfaces and accompanying models, if appropriate, and upload the BoM and datasheet of equipment to the portal. Applicant must also submit the manufacturing location(s) of the Telecom / ICT Equipment under certification and contact information for the location.
5. Payment of fee: After application submission, the applicant will be shown the applicable certification scheme, ER, and fee payable. Applicant must pay the testing fee.
6. Testing of product: Applicant can select CAB as per his choice on MTCTE portal's testing section. Telecom/ICT equipment must be tested in a designated or recognized Conformity Assessment Bodies (CAB) of an MRA partner country.
7. Submission of test report: Applicant must get his product tested at CAB and upload test report. The applicant must submit a summary of the test reports together with the test results, upload the test reports, and accept an online undertaking about the correctness of the uploaded documents/reports.
8. Scrutiny of test report: The submitted test results will be reviewed, and a certificate will be granted if the equipment is found to be compliant.
9. Grant of certificate: TEC grant certificate if they are satisfied with all test reports and equipment per specified standard.

DOCUMENT REQUIRED FOR MANDATORY TESTING & CERTIFICATION OF TELECOMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT

1. Company Registration document
2. Authorization Letter issued by the company (Indian OEM and AIR in case of Foreign OEM) authorizing for MTCTE related responsibilities.
3. Either Director or CS duly signs the company's Articles of Association (AoA).
4. The company's Memorandum of Association (MoA) duly signed by either Director or Company Secretary as per the norms.
5. The company's latest available Shareholding pattern indicates the board of members/shareholders.
6. MoU between foreign OEM and Indian representative (AIR) for sale and support of the product in India, and
7. Authorizing the AIR for discharging MTCTE related responsibilities.

Note: Authorized Indian representative looking for TEC Certificate Apply should follow TEC procedure for the Mandatory Testing and Certification for Telecom Equipment.

Timeline

Certification procedure may take 30 Days. It may be vary depending on product category, test required and so on.

Guideline for MTCTE