Will the DJI Ban Be Lifted After the Midterms? The Honest 2026 Answer

Will the DJI ban be lifted now that Democrats have won back Congress? Almost certainly not before 2029. The 3 November midterms flipped the House and the Senate (ABC News), but the rule that keeps new DJI drones out of the US does not depend on which party runs Congress. It comes from a law already on the books, an FCC decision that still stands, and a President who can veto any repeal.

Here is how the DJI ban works, the five ways it could end, and what a new Congress can and cannot change.

Will the DJI ban be lifted after the 2026 midterms — Three reasons the DJI ban outlasts the midterms.

Why the DJI ban does not hang on Congress

The ban traces back to Section 1709 of the FY2025 defense bill. It required a US national security agency to audit DJI within a year, and when no agency did, DJI and other foreign drone makers were placed on the FCC’s Covered List in December 2025. Since 22 December 2025, the FCC has not authorized new foreign-made drones, which is why new DJI models such as the Mini 5 Pro, Avata 360 and this week’s Matrice 5T have no official US launch. Our Section 1709 explainer has the full history.

Undoing that takes more than a new majority. Congress would have to pass a repeal, and the President could veto it. Overriding a veto needs two-thirds of both the House and the Senate, a margin no party will have when the new Congress is seated in January 2027. President Trump’s term runs to 20 January 2029.

Timeline of the DJI ban through 2029 — The dates that decide when new DJI drones could return to the US.

Will the DJI ban be lifted? Five ways it could end

Path to lifting the ban	What stands in the way	Outlook
Congress repeals Section 1709	Needs two-thirds of both chambers to beat a veto	Very unlikely before 2029
FCC removes DJI from the Covered List	FCC is still led by Chairman Brendan Carr	No sign of it
FCC grants DJI’s petition for reconsideration	Pending since early 2026	Undecided
Ninth Circuit rules for DJI	FCC wants the case dismissed as premature	Months away at best
A national security agency clears DJI	None has done so	No sign of it

Drone Ranker assessment as of 7 November 2026.

None of these paths runs through the election result. The FCC is an independent agency whose commissioners are not replaced by a midterm, and its chairman, Brendan Carr, has driven the Covered List action. Courts and national security agencies move on their own timelines.

Where DJI’s legal fight stands

DJI is fighting on two fronts. At the FCC, its petition for reconsideration of the Covered List decision is still pending. In the Ninth Circuit, case No. 26-1029, the FCC has asked the court to dismiss DJI’s challenge as premature because that petition is unresolved; DJI filed its response opposing dismissal on 2 November (court docket). A ruling on that motion would only decide whether the case goes forward, not whether DJI wins.

Political pressure is also still running the other way. Senator Rick Scott has urged the FCC to keep DJI and Autel on the Covered List, and his letter is now part of the FCC record. Our coverage of DJI’s lobbying shows the company has kept spending in Washington, so far without a change in policy.

What could get worse, not better

The bigger risk for DJI owners is a tighter rule, not a looser one. The FCC is still weighing a proposal to stop imports and sales of some previously approved foreign drones in “military-grade” categories, including thermal, LiDAR, spray and docking drones. An FCC national security counsel said on 30 October that the idea remains under consideration, possibly with a transition period. Our FCC proposal tracker follows that docket.

What this means if you own or want a DJI drone

If you already own a DJI drone, nothing changes. Models authorized before 22 December 2025 remain legal to own, fly and sell, and they can keep receiving software updates until at least 1 January 2029. If you want a DJI drone, you are limited to models that were approved before the cutoff, such as the Air 3S, Mini 4 Pro, Flip, Neo and Mavic 4 Pro. Our US drone ban checker shows the status of each model, and our best drones of 2026 list covers what you can still buy.

A realistic timeline for any change is the next presidential term. Until then, watch three dates: the Ninth Circuit’s ruling on the motion to dismiss, any FCC decision on DJI’s petition, and the FCC’s order on the military-grade proposal.