The FCC has announced that the fiscal year (FY) 2024 regulatory fees are due no later than 11:59 p.m. EDT, on Sept. 26. Regulatory fee payors, at their discretion, may pay regulatory fees before this deadline. This client alert reviews general regulatory fee payment requirements and procedures and regulatory fee information for specific types of licensees and service providers.

I. General Regulatory Fee Requirements and Procedures

Regulatory Fee Payment Procedures

Regulatory Fee payors must use the FCC’s Commission Registration System (CORES) to make regulatory fee payments using wire transfer, automated clearing house, or Visa/MasterCard debit or credit card. To pay the regulatory fees, payors must log into the CORES system on the FCC’s website with a valid username and password and follow the online prompts to review their data and submit an electronic fee payment. Specifically, after logging into CORES with the payor’s username and password, the payor should select the “Manage Existing FRNs ׀ FRN Financial ׀ Bills and Fees” option, then select “Regulatory Fee Manager” to start the process for paying the FY 2024 regulatory fees. Use of the CORES system for regulatory fee payments is mandatory, and the FCC will not accept payments by check, money order, or cashier’s check.

Each payor must determine its regulatory fee obligation. Although the FCC typically posts regulatory fee information in CORES, the FCC cautions that any errors in the fee information contained in CORES do not relieve fee payors of their responsibility to pay their regulatory fees correctly. The FCC has published industry-specific guidance regarding regulatory fees under the heading “FY 2024 –Who Owes Fees and What Is My Fee,” which can be accessed on the FCC’s website. The FCC’s Payment Methods and Procedures for Fiscal Year 2024 Regulatory Fees Public Notice (also available here) contains additional information regarding payment procedures.

Regulatory Fee Late Payment Penalties

The FCC will impose a late payment penalty of 25% of the unpaid regulatory fee to be assessed on the first day following the Sept. 26 payment deadline, and thereafter, to assess interest on the unpaid fee and penalty until paid in full. Further, unless a payor has requested a waiver, reduction, deferral, or an installment payment arrangement, the FCC will withhold action on and dismiss all pending applications and other requests for benefits filed by a payor if the payor fails to pay its regulatory fees, the 25% penalty and/or accrued interest in full. Such failure also may lead to revocation of the payor’s FCC license or authorization.

De Minimis Regulatory Fee Level

Payors whose total FY 2024 regulatory fee liability is $1,000 or less are exempt from payment of FY 2024 regulatory fees. Payors classified as de minimis do not need to report this exemption to the FCC. The de minimis threshold applies only to filers of annual regulatory fees and is not a permanent exemption. Each payor will need to calculate its regulatory fee liability each year to determine whether it meets the de minimis exemption established by the FCC’s annual regulatory fee order. The FCC reserves the right to request documentation that supports a de minimis exemption claim.

II. Regulatory Fee Information for Licensees and Service Providers

Commercial Mobile Radio Service (CMRS) Providers

CMRS licensees include: specialized mobile radio (SMR) services; public coast stations; public mobile radio, cellular, 800 MHz air-ground radiotelephone, and offshore radio services; PCS broadband services and certain other licensees under Part 27 of the FCC’s Rules. The CMRS messaging services category includes all one- and two-way paging, qualifying interconnected business radio services, 220-222 MHz land mobile systems, PCS narrow band services, and all SMR systems authorized for operation with less than 10 MHz bandwidth.

CMRS cellular licensees, CMRS mobile service licensees, and CMRS messaging licensees owe regulatory fees for each license held as of Oct. 1, 2023, even if a license expired after that date. Further, if a license was subject to a transfer of control or assignment application after Oct.1, 2023, the fee must be paid by the party that is the licensee on the Sept. 26 regulatory fee due date.

CMRS fees are assessed on the number of telephone numbers or subscriber counts, including non-geographic telephone numbers, as indicated in the table below. CMRS providers that filed the Numbering Resource Utilization Forecast (NRUF) on FCC Form 502 were provided with an opportunity to revise their subscriber counts. If the FCC approved such revised subscriber counts, they should appear in CORES as the CMRS count to be used for the payment of FY 2024 CMRS regulatory fees. All other CMRS providers that did not file the NRUF report should report their subscriber count or telephone number units as of Dec. 31, 2023, for the payment of FY 2024 regulatory fees.

CMRS providers that file an NRUF report will have an opportunity to revise their subscriber count when CORES is available for payment by sending an email to the FCC staff at roland.helvajian@fcc.gov. A CMRS provider filing a revised subscriber count must obtain approval from the FCC of the revised subscriber count before a payment can be made based on the revised regulatory fee amount. After the FCC approves such a revision, the FCC will update CORES to reflect the revised subscriber count and fee amount. The FCC will accept revised subscriber counts through Sept. 24, 2024. CMRS providers must retain the business records that were used to calculate their fee payment for a period of two years from the date of regulatory fee payment.
 

Type of Fee	Regulatory Fee Payment	Payment Type Code
CMRS Cellular Radio (Part 22) and CMRS Mobile Services (Parts 22, 24, 27, 80 and 90), including non-geographic telephone numbers. Cellular Radio and Mobile Services are to use the same Payment Type Code 2411, including non-geographic telephone numbers.	$0.16 per telephone number/subscriber count	2411
CMRS Messaging Services (Parts 22, 24, and 90)	$0.08 per subscriber count	2413

Interstate Telecommunications Service Providers (ITSP)

ITSPs typically classify themselves in their FCC Form 499-A filings as offering service in one or more of the following categories, among others: All Distance, Competitive Local Exchange Carrier, Interconnected VoIP Provider, Interexchange Carrier, Local Reseller, Operator Service Provider, Payphone Service Provider, Prepaid Calling Card Provider, and Toll Reseller.

ITSPs will not receive a completed regulatory fee bill (FCC Form 159-B) in the mail from the FCC. Rather, an ITSP regulatory fee bill will be generated and available for viewing through the CORES system here. An ITSP’s regulatory fee bill CORES is based on information that was reported on FCC Form 499-A, which was due on April 1, 2024, and includes revised Form 499-A filings processed through July 31, 2024. For ITSPs, the fee payment amount is $0.00542 per dollar of subject revenue, and the payment type code is 2472.

Toll-Free Number Providers

Responsible organizations (RespOrg) are required to pay regulatory fees for toll-free numbers. The toll-free number counts for FY 2024 regulatory fees already have been loaded in CORES and are based on the toll free number counts as of Dec. 14, 2023. Data for each RespOrg’s toll-free number count has been provided by SOMOS, the administrator of toll-free numbers. RespOrgs do not need to calculate their toll-free number count. Rather, the quantity field will be populated in CORES. To view toll free number counts and pay the fees, RespOrgs must log into CORES with the proper username and password. The fee payment amount is $0.12 per toll free number, and the payment type code is 2491.

Submarine Cable Systems

FY 2024 regulatory fees for submarine cable systems will be paid, per cable landing license, for all submarine cable systems operating as of Dec. 31, 2023. Capacity for calculating fees should be based on “lit” capacity. To calculate submarine cable regulatory fees, a licensee should add up the submarine cable “lit” capacities by cable system and determine the regulatory fee amount and payment type code using the table below. Enter this fee amount and payment type code in CORES. A submarine cable system licensee is responsible for determining and certifying the accuracy of the amount of “lit” capacity in its system. The FCC will accept only a single payment for the full regulatory fee obligation for each international submarine cable license. Submarine cable systems with multiple owners, therefore, must determine their respective portions of the fee, and submit a single full payment of regulatory fees in CORES. Each submarine cable system licensee is equally responsible for the payment of the regulatory fee. 
 

Type of Fee	Regulatory Fee Payment	Payment Type Code
Submarine Cable Systems (lit capacity as of Dec. 31, 2023)
Less than 50 Gbps	$5,570	2486
50 Gbps or greater, but less than 250 Gbps	$11,140	2487
250 Gbps or greater, but less than 1,500 Gbps	$22,275	2488
1,500 Gbps or greater, but less than 3,500 Gbps	$44,550	2489
3,500 Gbps or greater, but less than 6,500 Gbps	$89,095	2490
6,500 Gbps or greater	$178,190	2409