Ireland exempts Garda counter-drone devices from electromagnetic compatibility rules

The Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke, T.D., has made regulations excluding counter-drone devices used by An Garda Síochána from the State’s electromagnetic compatibility rules. The instrument, S.I. No. 478 of 2026, is titled the European Communities (Electromagnetic Compatibility) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 and was published in Iris Oifigiúil No. 76 of 22 September 2026. The exemption allows the force to deploy equipment that deliberately interferes with drone radio and navigation signals.

The regulations were made under section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972 (No. 27 of 1972) and for the purpose of giving further effect to Directive 2014/30/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014. They make a targeted amendment to the European Communities (Electromagnetic Compatibility) Regulations 2017, which until now applied the standard compatibility framework to equipment placed on the Irish market. The amendment is narrow: it does not create a general derogation, but carves out a defined category of law enforcement devices.

A targeted exemption for law enforcement

The exemption applies to devices used by An Garda Síochána, or supplied to An Garda Síochána, for the purpose of interfering with the operation of unmanned aircraft and associated control equipment. Such use must be authorised under the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1926. Where those conditions are met, electromagnetic compatibility requirements no longer apply to the equipment.

The regulations state that the amendment supports powers recently provided to An Garda Síochána to address threats posed by the misuse of unmanned aircraft. The text describes the measure as limited and specific, intended to facilitate the lawful deployment of these technologies by the force in the exercise of its statutory functions.

Why counter-drone equipment sits outside the standard framework

Counter-drone technologies operate by intentionally affecting the radio communications or navigation signals used by drones. By their nature, the regulations note, such devices may not be suitable for assessment under the standard electromagnetic compatibility framework, which was designed for ordinary commercial equipment.

That mismatch is the stated reason for the carve-out. Equipment built to emit interference cannot be assessed against rules written to ensure that ordinary consumer and commercial products do not interfere with one another. The amendment therefore removes the assessment obstacle rather than altering the underlying radio-spectrum authorisation regime.

What it means for operators and organisers

The practical effect falls on three groups:

• An Garda Síochána, which can now deploy counter-drone devices without the equipment being caught by compatibility rules built for commercial products.
• Drone operators, whose unlawful flights are the stated target of the newly supported powers.
• Event organisers and other bodies seeking protection from unauthorised drone activity, who now have a clearer legal basis for Garda counter-drone deployment at their sites.

The exemption is conditional on authorisation under the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1926, so it does not by itself authorise any operator to jam signals. Copies of the regulations may be purchased from Government Publications, Mountshannon Road, Kilmainham, Dublin, D08 XA06, at a price of €1.50.

The change matters because it closes a regulatory gap that sat between two regimes: spectrum law, which governs who may transmit, and product law, which governs what equipment may be sold. By removing counter-drone devices from the compatibility framework, the State has cleared the compliance path for technology that is, by design, disruptive — while keeping the authorisation requirement intact. For drone users, the signal is that interference with unlawful flights is now backed by an explicit regulatory footing.

Source: Iris Oifigiúil, No. 76 of 22 September 2026, Section I (official reference: S.I. No. 478 of 2026).