MIC Promulgates Ordinance on Wireless Power Transfer Type and Permit Requirements

The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) promulgated on November 2 the Ministerial Ordinance Partially Amending the Regulations for Enforcement of the Radio Act, etc. (MIC Ordinance No. 126) under the name of Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications, Hayayuki Fujii. The content organizes the scope of equipment requiring permission and the positioning of type designations for non-contact power transmission devices for electric vehicles, transport robots, and general use, as well as document copying and printing machines utilizing electromagnetic induction heating. MIC Notice No. 394 (Special Provisions for Conditions of High-Frequency Equipment), issued on the same date, defines the permissible values, such as magnetic field strength, applicable to this equipment.

The basis for the amendment is Article 100, Paragraph 1, Item 2 of the Radio Act (Act No. 131 of 1950), which requires installation permission for equipment other than communication equipment that uses a high-frequency output exceeding 50 watts. Paragraph 1, Item 1 of the same article and Article 45 and Article 46-2, Paragraph 1 of the Regulations for Enforcement of the Radio Act (Radio Regulatory Commission Regulation No. 14 of 1950) establish a framework where equipment designated by type by the Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications is treated as not requiring permission; this amendment reapplies this combination to each application of non-contact power supply. Notice No. 394 is based on Article 46-2, Paragraph 1 and Article 46-7, Paragraph 1 of the Enforcement Regulations, and Article 65, Paragraph 1 of the Radio Equipment Regulations (Radio Regulatory Commission Regulation No. 18 of 1950).

Reorganization of Equipment Not Requiring Permission by Application

The amended Article 45 has been restructured such that equipment using a high-frequency output exceeding 50 watts is, in principle, subject to permission, while excluding those that have received type designation. The following categories, which separate applications and installation conditions, are listed as exclusions:

• Medical equipment, ultrasonic cleaners, ultrasonic machining tools, ultrasonic welders, document copying and printing machines utilizing electromagnetic induction heating, and electrodeless discharge lamps
• General-purpose non-contact power transmission devices
• Non-contact power transmission devices for electric vehicles (Non-contact equipment used to supply power to storage batteries, motors, etc., installed in vehicles that use electricity for all or part of their power source, and installed at a position 5 meters or more away from railway tracks)
• Non-contact power transmission devices for transport robots (Non-contact equipment used to supply power to storage batteries, motors, etc., installed in robots that transport materials in factories, logistics hubs, etc.)
• General-purpose radiation equipment, etc. (Those that may be used in facilities directly connected to low-voltage power systems supplying power to residential buildings. Low voltage is defined as 750V DC or less, or 600V AC or less)

The operational judgment criteria will be based on the fact that distance from railway tracks is a condition for electric vehicles, and that transport robots are defined as “robots used for transporting goods in factories, logistics hubs, etc.”

Specific Permissible Values for Magnetic Field Strength from 10 kHz to 150 kHz

Public Notice No. 394 provides permissible values by installation type for the quasi-peak values of magnetic field strength (where 1 microampere is 0 dB) for emissions and spurious emissions based on the operating frequency of wireless power transfer devices between 10 kHz and 150 kHz.

• For those used in facilities directly connected to low-voltage power systems supplying residential buildings: 79.9 dB at a distance of 3 meters from the equipment.
• For those other than the above facility conducting tests at a test site: 48.5 dB at a distance of 10 meters from the equipment.
• For those other than the above facility conducting tests at the installation site: -11.5 dB at a distance of 100 meters from the outer wall of the building (if the distance calculated by dividing the distance to the boundary by 2.5—or 4.5 for 1 MHz or more—and adding 30 meters is less than 100 meters, that distance shall apply).
• For those using frequencies of 450 kHz or less for the purpose of verifying leakage electric field strength reduction technologies or other experiments: 68.5 dB at a distance of 10 meters.

The notice also abolishes MIC Public Notice No. 207 of 2015 (Special Provisions for Maximum Permissible Values of Interference Wave Voltage, etc., for High-Frequency Equipment Other Than Communication Equipment).

Application Forms and Measurement Methods Established Simultaneously, with a Five-Year Transitional Measure

Regarding the practical aspects of type designation, MIC Public Notice No. 396 amends MIC Public Notice No. 544 of 2002 (Matter Determining the Format of Application Forms and Attached Documents for Type Designation of High-Frequency Equipment), adding a column to the application form to specify whether the wireless power transfer device is for general use, electric vehicles, or transport robots. The measurement methods are stipulated in MIC Public Notice No. 395.

The supplementary provisions of the ministerial ordinance state that equipment other than communication equipment that has currently received installation permission at the time of enforcement shall be deemed to comply with the conditions of each item of Article 65, Paragraph 1 of the amended Radio Equipment Regulations as of the enforcement date. For type conditions and installation permission conditions for microwave ovens, medical devices, and industrial ultrasonic equipment, previous examples may be followed until five years have elapsed from the date of enforcement.

For electrical, automotive, and logistics equipment manufacturers involved in wireless charging for electric vehicles, transport robots for logistics warehouses, and non-contact power supply for housing equipment, the requirements regarding which category to apply for type designation and which tolerance levels must be met at which distances have now been clarified as a prerequisite for commercialization and installation decisions. There is a five-year transitional measure for existing permitted equipment and devices such as microwave ovens, making the design of the transition timing a practical challenge.

Sources

• Ministerial Order Partially Amending the Regulations for Enforcement of the Radio Act, etc. (MIC Order No. 126, promulgated November 2, 2026, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications, Hayayuki Fujii)
• Radio Act (Act No. 131 of 1950), Article 100
• Regulations for Enforcement of the Radio Act (Radio Regulatory Commission Regulation No. 14 of 1950), Articles 44, 45, 46-2, and 46-7
• Radio Equipment Regulations (Radio Regulatory Commission Regulation No. 18 of 1950), Article 65
• Special Provisions for Conditions of High-Frequency Equipment (MIC Notice No. 394, November 2, 2026)
• Notice Concerning Measurement Methods for High-Frequency Equipment (MIC Notice No. 395, November 2, 2026)
• Partial Amendment to the Matter Determining the Forms of Application and Attached Documents for Type Designation of High-Frequency Equipment (MIC Notice No. 396, November 2, 2026)