Radio Regulations

The Radio Regulations is an intergovernmental treaty text of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Geneva-based specialised agency of the United Nations which coordinates and standardises the operation of telecommunication networks and services and advances the development of communications technology.

Covering both legal and technical issues, it serves as a supranational instrument for the optimal international management of the radio spectrum.

The Radio Regulations define:

• the allocation of different frequency bands to different radio services;
• the mandatory technical parameters to be observed by radio stations, especially transmitters;
• procedures for the coordination (ensuring technical compatibility) and notification (formal recording and protection in the Master International Frequency Register) of frequency assignments made to radio stations by national governments;
• other procedures and operational provisions.

The drafting, revision and adoption of the Radio Regulations is the responsibility of the World Radiocommunication Conferences (WRCs) of the ITU, meetings of which are typically held every three or four years. Recent WRCs are:

• Geneva, 1995 (WRC-95)
• Geneva, 1997 (WRC-97)
• Istanbul, 2000 (WRC-2000)
• Geneva, 2003 (WRC-03)
• Geneva, 2007 (WRC-07)
• Geneva, 2012 (WRC-12)

The most recent published version of the Radio Regulations, the "Edition of 2008" contains the complete texts of the Radio Regulations as adopted and revised by WRC-07, including all articles, appendices, resolutions, and a subset of the recommendations issued by ITU-R (previously known as the CCIR) (those "recommendations" which have a mandatory nature, as a result of being cited in the Radio Regulations).