Functionally aligned with the Global Certification Forum (GCF) in Europe, PTCRB operates under the scope of U.S. wireless standards, as specified in the North American Program Reference Document (NAPRD). It focuses on verifying that devices meet both regulatory and operator-specific requirements applicable to the United States.

PTCRB certification is mandatory for all cellular-enabled products intended for deployment. This encompasses devices supporting legacy and advanced cellular technologies including 2G (GSM), 3G (UMTS/CDMA2000), 4G (LTE, LTE-A), 5G (NR), and Machine-Type Communication (MTC) standards such as LTE Cat M1 and NB-IoT.

To accelerate market readiness and reduce development and testing expenditures, device manufacturers and system integrators can design their products utilizing a PTCRB-certified cellular module. Devices leveraging such modules are classified as Integrated Devices and are typically certified under the PTCRB IoT Network Certified program, which is tailored for IoT applications.

Integrated Devices benefit from pre-certified modules, having already undergone comprehensive conformance testing during the module’s original certification. Consequently, the scope of additional testing is significantly reduced and usually limited to critical device-specific interfaces such as SIM connectivity, power management, and antenna performance.

While the certification workflow for Integrated Devices mirrors the standard PTCRB certification process, manufacturers must explicitly reference the certified module used during the submission process in the PTCRB certification database.

The IoT Network Certified program serves as a validation mechanism for both device manufacturers and mobile network operators, ensuring that Integrated Devices meet current international standards and maintain interoperability with global cellular networks.