Radiocommunication Apparatus Standards and Certification Requirements
Certification is the gatekeeper of the Canadian market: radio apparatus must be certified, or exempt by category, before it is manufactured, imported, distributed, leased or sold in Canada. This domain tests which standard applies, who may test and certify, what the label must carry, and when a hardware change forces new or amended certification.
The standards chain
The Radiocommunication Act gives ISED its authority. RSS-Gen is the general standard covering labelling, measurement methods and exposure references; product standards such as RSS-247 (wideband systems in 902 MHz, 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz), RSS-210 and RSS-310 sit beneath it. RSP-100 describes the certification procedure and RSS-102 covers RF exposure. Terminal equipment connected to the telephone network falls under CS-03.
Who tests and certifies
Testing is performed by a laboratory accredited to ISO/IEC 17025 by an ISED-recognized accreditation body, and certification is issued by an ISED-designated Certification Body, which assigns the certification number in the form CN-UPN (company number, hyphen, unique product number). Mutual recognition agreements allow recognized foreign laboratories and bodies to do this work. Category II licence-exempt apparatus must meet its standard but does not require certification.
Labels, manuals and changes
The label shows the certification number and model identification. Licence-exempt devices carry the standard two-condition statement: the device must not cause interference and must accept any interference received. Antenna gain, connector type and the RF chain are part of the certification; a higher-gain antenna, an added amplifier or a different module-to-antenna combination is a Class II permissive change or a new certification, not a paperwork footnote.
Worked example
A 2.4 GHz module delivers 20 dBm conducted into a 3 dBi antenna, so EIRP = 23 dBm = 200 mW, comfortably inside the 1 W conducted and 4 W EIRP envelope typical of digital transmission rules and far below the RSS-102 exemption level of roughly 2.7 W EIRP at 2.4 GHz. Fitting a 12 dBi panel raises EIRP by 9 dB to 32 dBm, about 1.6 W. That is still under the EIRP cap but outside the certified configuration, so the change must be filed.
Traps that cost marks
Assuming a module certification covers any host or antenna; believing a foreign identifier is automatically valid in Canada; forgetting the certification number on the label; and treating Category II exemption as release from the technical standard.