Bluetooth SIG Fees

[NickN]

Hi,

We've been working on an IoT device that uses an nRF52840 in a pre-approved module from Moko. We are getting ready for a commercial launch in 2026, but I am very confused about the Bluetooth SIG fees we need to pay.

I am currently attending CES in Las Vegas and stopped by your booth. The very helpful person I talked to suggested I post here and ask for specific step by step guidance and links to make sure I was following the right path.

Background Information:

1. We are a startup with revenue below $1M USD/yr.
2. We are using a pre-approved module with a Nordic nRF52840.
3. We have not modified the module hardware.
4. We are using the standard Nordic softdevice.
5. We joined Bluetooth SIG as an Adopter (the free membership tier).

My understanding is that we do not need to pay the full "Product qualification fee", which is currently $11,040/yr. What we do need to pay is a "Product Listing Fee". However, I can find no reference to this fee anywhere on the Bluetooth SIG site. 

I've searched here and elsewhere and found very conflicting opinions. There is mention of an innovators program that reduces the listing fee to $2500 if your company qualifies (ours would appear to) but the links to the Bluetooth SIG site for that program all show "not found".

I know this has been asked here in the past, but the links in the previous answers are all dead and I could not find any recent answers.

What I need:

1. Confirmation of what process I should follow with Bluetooth SIG.
2. Current cost of that process.
3. Valid links to make sure I am following the correct path.
4. Clarification for multiple products. Can we submit multiple products under a single application if they all use the exact same Bluetooth component?

Thank you for your help.

[Asbjørn]

Hello Nicholas,

https://www.bluetooth.com/fee-schedule/

https://docs.nordicsemi.com/bundle/ncs-latest/page/nrf/protocols/bt/bt_qualification/index.html

You would be an adopter and to qualify a new product the fee for adopters is 11040USD (to be updated 1st of March 2026. That is normally the case.

If you have a module with certificated QDID and not change any of the stack, implementation or SW and HW you could in theory reuse the module manufacturer QDID if they allow it. Although, this is not common as normally there will be a change done to some aspect. So the product qualification fee is the normal route for the case such as yours. 

Best regards

Asbjørn

[NickN]

Respectfully, this is the exact opposite of what I was told by the staff member at your booth.

I reviewed the Nordic link you posted, and it says:

"The nRF Connect SDK contains qualified portions of various Bluetooth features (for example, SoftDevice Controller versions). If your product uses a qualified Bluetooth stack provided as part of the nRF Connect SDK, you can inherit this qualification from Nordic Semiconductor, provided that you do not introduce any changes to the stack." 

This is precisely our use case. We are using the nRF Connect SDK and the Nordic soft controller. We have not introduced any changes to that stack.

Does this not mean that we can "inherit this qualification from Nordic Semiconductor"?

Also, we are using a pre-approved module that we do not physically alter in any way. We simply attach the complete module to our PCB as is.

I cannot emphasize enough how important this issue is to us. The full qualification fee is a significant investment for a company our size and the Bluetooth SIG has been unhelpful in clarifying the nuances of their position.

[Asbjørn]

Hello Nicholas,

I can understand your frustrations as we would like this to be clear as well and for some of our customers this is an issue and concern just as it is for you right now. 

Changes in this conext does also involve implementation of FW running on the device. So you can have qualified HW, qualified stack and using nRF Connect SDK, but unless the module manufacturer has qualified with the profile you are using and you have no access to changing the FW on it, it will come down to you have done a change to the design and most likely the fee will still apply. It's the business model of Bluetooth SIG and their members. It's ok for most, it's frustrating for a few such as yourself.

We can change this from our point of view. What information have you gotten from Bluetooth SIG on this matter? 

Best regards

Asbjørn

[Emil Lenngren]

I agreee that Bluetooth SIG is definitely not friendly to startups, due to the high costs related to the Bluetooth product listing fees, compared to large corporates that sell millions of units, paying the exact same (static) fee.

According to this link, the Innovation Incentive Program was quietly stopped in February 2020.

For your first product using a particular design, you pay the product listing fee, currently $11,040, which is a fixed fee and not a fee that must be paid every year. If you use the same design in multiple products, you can add those additional products to your listing without paying anything extra. Typically, if you use the same Bluetooth stack (hardware and software), it counts as the same design.

Whether you use a pre-approved module or software is irrelevant regarding the listings fee of your first product submission. Using such a pre-approved design only helps you in the way that you don't have to perform any testing (which might otherwise incur further costs, in addition to the product listing fee). Even if you take an off-the-shelf white label product and you sell it as your own under your own name, you need to pay the fee.

Note that paying the fee to Bluetooth gives you two things:

1. The right to use the Bluetooth brand/trademark, including the name and logotype, for example in your marketing or on the product packaging. Bluetooth SIG claims that customs' authorities sometimes look in the Bluetooth SIG product database to see if such products are listed correctly.

2. A license to use necessary patents for the applicable Bluetooth technology. A member company that owns a patent necessary to implement BLE might sue you in court if you have not paid the fee, if your product makes use of the technology in that patent. Since BLE is pretty old now, the patents should expire pretty soon, in the near upcoming years, at least those covering those features included in the original Bluetooth 4.0 specification.

Thus, only if you don't use the Bluetooth brand, and are 100% sure you are not using any technology covered by any patent, then you do not have to perform the qualification process.

[NickN]

Thanks Emil. That's helpful. It doesn't completely square with what I've been told by either the Bluetooth SIG or Nordic, but at least it makes sense.

The fee being a one-time payment and not annual is particularly helpful for us. A SIG rep once claimed otherwise. An annual $11k fee for a pre-revenue small company is tough to swallow.

Similarly, it's very unclear to me what is considered a different device. We are developing IoT sensors and related products, so the Bluetooth functionality is just one small part of the device. We will be using the exact same Bluetooth module and antenna in multiple products. The Bluetooth stack will be identical, but the rest of the firmware and PCB will be different because the devices have different functionality (Bluetooth functionality is the same, the rest of the device features are different). I've heard "this would be considered the same device" and "this would be considered a new device" with no obvious right or wrong answer. 

And it does seem that the SIG will aggressively protect their IP if you try to launch without paying them. That part I can understand and respect, but the lack of clarity and the lack of flexibility for small companies is frustrating.