The Telecom Authority in Pakistan (PTA) notified “Mobile Device Manufacturing (MDM) Regulations 2021,” which binds production to be carried out locally by 8%, and displays “Manufactured in Pakistan” by a two-year term.
These Regulations shall come into force with effect from 25 January 2021 pursuant to the notification. The form set out in Annex A to these Regulations shall be submitted to grant an authorisation for the manufacture of mobile devices in Pakistan.
At the end of one years, 2 percent of the total packaging of the manufactured device to be done locally, 2 percent of the total loaders of the manufactured device to be manufactured locally, 1 percent of the total hand-free equipment manufactured to be produced on site, 10 percent of the total Motherboa device produced.
All the devices shall be developed for PTA for verification in compliance with ITU-T technical standards and qualification reports for all components.
If any of the above requirements are not met by the authorisation holder, he or she may give the Authority a written excuse. The above-mentioned terms shall be extended, if the Authority recognises certain conditions for no more than 2 years or if the government of Pakistan reviews the MDM policies.
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In order to verify that the holder of the authorization conforms to the requirements set out in the authorization terms, PTAs may perform inspections of the manufacturing facility through their designated representatives.
Given, the holder of authorisation shall display, as part of inspections, reliability test laboratory, battery test laboratory, radio-frequency testing laboratory and optical laboratory, the following equipment is mounted at the manufacturing facilities.
Regulated testing of device (c) electrostatic discharge (ESD) setup/tools on an assembly line, including devices feature test (b) (e.g. ESD Coat, Cap, Wrist band, etc.). Application fee (non-reimbursable fee) of $100 or equivalent of the $100 US dollar in Pak rupees shall be accompanied and the proof of payment shall be submitted with the application under sub-regulation.
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Applicants who meet the free, clear, and non-discriminatory eligibility requirements set out by the Authority may be allowed to manufacture mobile devices in Pakistan.
The Authority shall weigh the following considerations, technological knowledge and experts in the management of the applicant, and key employee members and local involvement in the company, and technical feasibility of the applicant’s business plan for mobile device development, in order to decide whether or not to award a certificate.
If an application seems to be endangered or possibly jealous of national security, the Authority can refuse the grant for the Authorization. The applicant must have a valid Security Exchange Commission Registration in Pakistan (SECP).
The Authority shall offer reasons for its refusal if it wishes to refuse the application. An authorization is valid for ten (10) years.
The Authorization shall be renewed, subject to the terms and conditions applicable at that time, for another period(s) after ten (10) years on a year (1 year) prior to the expiry of the current term.
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The obligations of the Authorization holder are:
- The Holder Authorization will establish a fully automated on-line PTA access searchable system, which holds full device record e.g. serial number, programmed device interface IMEI, device color, year of manufacture, etc.
- The Authorization Holder shall certify and receive approval from the certification boards within one year of the issue of the Authorization to comply with all international and local environmental protection & safety requirements.
- Authorization Holder shall ensure the establishment of its production facility with a minimum protected area of 4000 square feet. In addition, workers must be fitted with suitable clothing to maintain safety standards in line with the best international practices;
- If the current plant is relocated and expanded, the holder of the Authorization shall, at least sixty (60) days in advance, inform PTAs of their relocations and invite PIAs to be inspected within thirty (30) days of their operations to review the changes made;
- The authorization holder shall ensure that CE certification etching and visible labeling/marking for each device manufactured that display “Manufactured in Pakistan” are issued for finished product box/accessories etc.
- The holder of the authorization shall obtain PTA form approval before development for each model by its own name, and shall ensure that the system is programmed with legitimate GSMA TAC (not including any of the Authorities’ blacklisted TACs);
- The holder of the authorization shall ensure, in two (2) years from the date of service, that all emergency relief codes are coded for general public assistance within his mobile devices; I shall incorporate Urdu language functionality within his manufactured system to make it easy for local users;
- The authorizer shall provide a knowledge booklet to the user about any finished product, how to verify the unit’s IMEI status via DIRBS and print IMEIs on each programmed box;
- The holder of the authorization shall create, within one (1) year of the beginning of its operation, after-sales/service centers for customer facilitation and complaint resolution;
- A full-service website and its official domain name, e-mail & mailing addresses, and postal services addresses are provided for the Authorization Holder, as well as the contact information on their website;
- The Authorisation Holder will register all created mobile devices together with IMEI and will receive a Certificate of compliance by means of a DIRBS portal or some other system prescribed from time to time for technical standards/permission for parts as well as for the finished product. The applicant would print and put on its website an annual report on produced devices for the general public;
- The applicant shall only send a stamp paper undertaking of its CEO/BoD (Rs 50/- or greater), which shall have the PTA type-approved mobile devices for the manufacturer for which it has secured Brand Owner/Principal/OEM manufacturing authorization and shall not produce any other brand.