RFID Frequencies and Transmission Power

Following the chart is more detailed information on UHF and EPCglobal standards by Country .

Frequency Ranges for RFID Systems 
Frequency Range Description Fieldstrength/Transmision Power
<135 kHz. (125 kHz. and 134.2 kHz.)  Low Frequency, Inductive Coupling
72 dBμA/m maximum
3.155 ~ 3.400 MHz.  Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) 13.5 dBμA/m
6.765 ~ 6.795 MHz.
High frequency ISM band (Industrial, Scientific and Medical) 42 dBµA/m
7.400 ~ 8.800 MHz.
High Frequency EAS only 9 dBµA/m
13.553 ~ 13.567 MHz.
High Frequency 13.56 MHz. ISM, inductive coupling, proximity smartcard (ISO 14443, MIFARE®, Legic, etc) Vicinity smartcard (ISO 15693, Tag-It, I-Code) and item management (ISO 18000-3) 60 dBµA/m
26.957 ~ 27.283 MHz.
High Frequency ISM, inductive coupling, special applications only
42 dBµA/m
433 MHz.
Ultra High Frequency (UHF), ISM, backscatter coupling, active RFID
10 ~ 100 mW 
865 ~ 868 MHz.
UHF RFID, Listen Before Talk, backscatter coupling
100 mW ERP Europe
865.6 ~ 867.6 MHz.
UHF RFID, Listen Before Talk, backscatter coupling
2 W ERP (3.8 W EIRP) Europe
865.6 ~ 868 MHz.
UHF Short Range Device (SRD), backscatter coupling
500 mW ERP Europe 
902 ~ 928 MHz.
UHF SRD, backscatter coupling
4 W EIRP – spread spectrum, USA/Canada
2.400 ~ 2.483 GHz. Super High Frequency (SHF) backscatter coupling
4 W – spread spectrum, USA/Canada
2.446 ~ 2.454 GHz.
SHF RFID and Automatic Vehicle Identification
0.5 W EIRP outdoor, 4 W EIRP indoor
5.725 ~ 5.875 GHz. SHF ISM, backscatter coupling
4 W USA/Canada, 500 mW Europe

Note that in Europe there are numerous different frequencies and different maximum power regulations. Some of the European standards and the USA/Canada regulations have been adopted by other countries. When implementing an RFID system it is very important to make sure that all of the hardware meets local regulations.

Country frequency information is shown below the standards organizations information.

In order to understand the local regulations that may or may not apply, you first need to know the standards organizations and how they fit into the local RFID frequency and power transmision regulations.

International Standards Organizations

  • ISO – International Organization for Standardization
  • ITU – International Telecommunication Union
  • IEC – International Electrotechnical Commision

National Standards Organizations

  • ANSI – American National Standards Institute
  • BSI – British Standards Institute

Industry Standards Organizations

  • AIAG – Automotive Industry Action Group
  • EPCglobal – Electronic Product Code global – organization set up to achieve world-wide adoption and standardization of EPC technology and was a joint venture between GS1 and GS1 US, now other countries have also joined (GS1- Canada)
  • GS1 – Global organization dedicated to the design and standardization of global standards and solutions to imporve the efficiency and visibility of supply and demand chains
  • GS1 US – United States version of GS1, there are more than 100 countries that support the GS1 initiative ( GS1-Albania ~ GS1 – Vietnam)

There are three (3) ITU Regions globally:

  • Region 1 – Europe, North Africa, Middle East (west of the Persian Gulf), former Soviet Union
  • Region 2 – North and South America
  • Region 3 – Asia, Middle East (east of the Persian Gulf), Australia and Oceania

While the EPCglobal organization is trying to establish global standards, in many cases the ITU or other groups have already made frequency and transmission power regulations.

This makes the EPCglobal standard for UHF multi-frequency and multi-power ratings between the 860 MHz. and 960 MHz. bandwidth using FHSS (Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum) or LBT (Listen Before Talk)

The following are the current EPCglobal standards for countries or regions starting with North America:

  • United Stated and Canada – 902 ~ 928 MHz
  • Mexico – 902 ~ 928 MHz
  • Puerto Rica – 902 ~ 928 MHz
  • Latin America – Costa Rica, Dominican Republic – 902 ~ 928 MHz
  • South America – Argentina, Chile, Peru, Uruguay – 902 ~ 928 MHz, Brazil – 902 ~ 907.5 MHz and 915 ~ 928 MHz, Venuezuela 922 ~ 928 MHz
  • Europe – 865.6 ~ 867.6 MHz. (power varies by country and region)
  • North Africa – 862 ~ 870 MHz
  • South Africa – 865.6 ~ 867.6 MHz, 915.4 ~ 919 MHz and 919.2 ~ 921 MHz.
  • Different power ratings and technique
  • Israel – 915 ~ 917 MHz
  • Turkey – 865.6 ~ 867.6 MHz
  • Tunisia – 865.6 ~ 867.6 MHz
  • Middle East – 862 ~ 870 MHz
  • United Arab Emirates – 865.6 ~ 867.6 MHz
  • Iran – 865 ~ 868 MHz
  • India – 865 ~ 867 MHz
  • Thailand – 920 ~ 925 MHz
  • Malaysia – 919 ~ 923 MHz
  • Philippines 918 ~ 920 MHz
  • Malta – 865.6 ~ 867.6 MHz
  • Singapore – 866 ~ 869 MHz and 920 ~ 925 MHz – Different power ratings
  • Vietnam – 866 ~ 869 MHz and 920 ~ 925 MHz
  • China – 840.5 ~ 844.5 MHz and 920.5 ~ 924.5 MHz
  • Hong Kong – 866 ~ 868 MHz and 920 ~ 925 MHz
  • Taiwan – 922 ~ 928 MHz
  • Korea – 910 ~ 914 MHz
  • Japan – 952 ~ 954 MHz and 952 ~ 955 MHz – Different power ratings and licenses
  • Australia – 920 ~ 926 MHz
  • New Zealand – 864 ~ 868 MHz