Telecom equipment manufacturers and importers preparing for MTCTE certification typically invest heavily in product testing at accredited labs. What catches them off guard is what happens during TEC's evaluation — a separate process from laboratory testing with its own specific requirements and its own common failure points.

MTCTE — Mandatory Testing and Certification of Telecom Equipment — is administered by the Telecommunication Engineering Centre (TEC), the technical arm of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Government of India. Under the Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Rules, 2017, every telecom equipment must undergo mandatory testing and certification prior to sale, import, or use in India. The Telecommunications (Framework to Notify Standards, Conformity Assessment and Certification) Rules, 2025 now governs the certification framework, covering a wide range of telecom and ICT equipment — from routers and switches to mobile handsets, IoT devices, and networking hardware.

The Essential Requirements Framework

Under the MTCTE procedure, equipment must demonstrate compliance with Essential Requirements covering Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) and Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC), electrical safety, and national and international regulatory standards. Test reports submitted to TEC must address each Essential Requirement individually — not as a bundled certification document. Evaluators check that every ER listed in the applicable product-specific Schedule has a corresponding test result. Applicants sometimes submit reports that cover most but not all ERs, assuming the overall pass result covers gaps. It doesn't.

Firmware Version Mismatches — A Specific TEC Concern

Beyond the pass/fail result, evaluators examine whether the test report identifies the specific product model tested — including hardware version and firmware version — and whether the equipment tested exactly matches what's being registered. Firmware version mismatches are a significant issue. If your product has received a firmware update since testing was commissioned, the test report may no longer accurately represent the equipment being registered. TEC Certification evaluators look for version alignment between the tested product and the registered product.

Authorised Indian Representative for Foreign Applicants

Foreign manufacturers must appoint an Authorised Indian Representative (AIR) with a valid Power of Attorney specifically covering the MTCTE application scope. The AIR must be a legal entity in India — not just a logistics agent acting informally. Poorly drafted PoA documents are among the most common reasons TEC evaluators return applications for correction at the initial stage.

Product Description Consistency Across Documents

Every document in an MTCTE application — the application form, test report, technical specifications, and product photographs — must describe the product consistently. A product marketed as "Widget Pro 2.1" that appears as "Widget-Pro2.1" in one document and "Widget Pro Series 2" in another creates discrepancies that evaluators flag. Standardise your product naming before preparing any documentation and carry that exact description through every document.

Conformity Assessment Body Selection

Test reports must come from a TEC-designated Conformity Assessment Body (CAB) or a CAB from a country with a Mutual Recognition Agreement with India. The acceptance of ILAC test reports under MTCTE has specific conditions. Applicants who commission testing at labs without TEC designation and without MRA coverage produce reports that TEC will not accept — meaning the entire testing investment must be repeated at an eligible lab.

Post-Approval Labelling

The TEC requires manufacturers to affix a TEC certification label on the product after obtaining certification. Importers who ship uncertified stock while the application is in process and then apply the certification label retrospectively need to be careful — this has specific documentation requirements that must be followed precisely.

How ASC Group Can Help

ASC Group supports manufacturers and importers through the complete MTCTE certification process. We identify the applicable Essential Requirements and product schedule for your specific equipment, confirm TEC-designated CABs for testing, manage AIR appointment and PoA preparation for foreign applicants, review product documentation for consistency before portal submission, and manage the full TEC application through to certificate issuance. For applicants who have had applications returned for correction, we assess the specific evaluation gap and manage the rectified resubmission. Contact ASC Group before committing your testing investment to the wrong lab or wrong documentation structure.