No — Hikvision cameras are not NDAA compliant. Hikvision (Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology) is one of the five companies named explicitly in Section 889 of the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, which makes its video-surveillance equipment federally prohibited for procurement and use.
If you are buying for a federal agency, a defense installation, or as a federal contractor, Hikvision is not a permissible choice for any model, line, or OEM-rebranded version. Existing Hikvision equipment generally must be removed and replaced with compliant alternatives.
Why Hikvision Is Banned, Not Just "Non-Compliant"
Most NDAA questions come down to verifying a specific SKU or bill of materials. Hikvision is different. It is named directly in the statute as a "covered" entity, so the prohibition is categorical — it applies to the entire brand, its subsidiaries and affiliates, and any product sold under a different label that is actually manufactured by Hikvision.
Section 889 (implemented through FAR clause 52.204-25) prohibits federal agencies and their contractors from procuring or using covered telecommunications and video-surveillance equipment from Hikvision, Dahua, Huawei, ZTE, and Hytera. The prohibition reaches further than the camera at the front door: it also covers situations where covered equipment is used as a substantial or essential component of any system. A single Hikvision camera on a network can create a compliance problem for an entire contract.
What This Means in Practice
For an NDAA-compliant deployment, the equipment must (1) not be made by a covered entity and (2) not contain covered components, such as Huawei/HiSilicon system-on-chip processors that have historically appeared in some surveillance hardware. Hikvision fails the first test outright. There is no "compliant Hikvision model" — the brand itself is the disqualifier.
This is also why rebrands matter. A number of consumer and prosumer camera brands are Hikvision- or Dahua-built hardware sold under a different name. Buying one of those does not solve the problem; it simply hides it. If you already operate Hikvision cameras at a federal facility, the standard remediation is a documented rip-and-replace: remove the covered equipment, install compliant gear, and retain records that contracting and audit teams can rely on.
NDAA vs. TAA — Both Still Apply
NDAA compliance and TAA (Trade Agreements Act) compliance are separate requirements. NDAA Section 889 is about who made the equipment and what is inside it. TAA, by contrast, is a country-of-origin rule that applies to many federal contracts: the product must be made or substantially transformed in the US or a TAA-designated country. China is not a designated country, so Chinese-origin hardware fails on both fronts. When you replace Hikvision, the compliant alternative should be verified against both rules — a product can satisfy one and not the other depending on where the specific model is manufactured.
Compliant Alternatives to Specify Instead
There is a deep field of camera and video lines that are not built by covered entities and that offer compliant options. Commonly specified manufacturers include Axis Communications (Sweden), Hanwha Vision/Wisenet (South Korea, with US-assembled lines), i-PRO (Japan/US), Bosch (Germany), Avigilon and Pelco (Motorola Solutions), Digital Watchdog (US), VIVOTEK and ACTi (Taiwan), MOBOTIX (Germany), Speco Technologies (US), and Verkada (US). On the management side, Genetec and Milestone (XProtect) provide compliant video management software. None of these are Section 889 covered entities, and all offer lines suitable for federal use. Because TAA status still depends on the exact manufacturing origin of a given model, the precise SKU should be confirmed before award.
Buy Compliant, Direct
Uniqcli is a TAA- and NDAA-compliant physical-security integrator. We design, install, and manage camera, access-control, and intrusion systems, and we sell direct — sourcing the right compliant line for your mission rather than pushing a single brand. For agencies removing Hikvision, we handle the rip-and-replace end to end and provide the documentation your contracting and audit teams need to close out Section 889 obligations.
If Hikvision equipment is in your environment, or you want to specify a compliant system from the start, request a quote or schedule a compliance assessment with Uniqcli. There is no payment up front — we will confirm your NDAA 889 and TAA posture and map the path to a fully compliant deployment.
