Power banks set to become much safer or be banned from planes altogether

After restricting the type of power banks allowed on commercial flights, China is now preparing to mandate that the companies that manufacture them up their safety profile significantly.

Currently, power banks that don't carry the China Compulsory Certification (3C) stamp of approval, are not allowed on planes there, which has resulted in many an astonished tourist seeing their iPhone Air's $99 MagSafe battery get confiscated during the check-in process.

Anyone who has had the chance of a domestic or connecting flight through China can attest that the luggage scanners there are predominantly looking for rogue power banks, and can single out even gaming laptop charging bricks for rechecks on a suspicion they might be housing batteries.

They can't be blamed, as these are the Chinese government's directives, created after numerous incidents with power banks catching on fire mid-flight. The country then introduced the 3C certification requirement this past June. Given that most power banks like the new Anker Prime that is currently 30% off on Amazon are made in China hence 3C-tested, owners with relatively new charging gear breathed a collective sigh of relief, but not for long.

Chinese power banks plane ban

Under a proposal of the local equivalent of the FCC - the China Electronics Standardization Institute - a 3C certification will no longer be enough to get one's power bank on a plane.

The new "no fires, no combustion, no cracking, and no leakage" requirement may turn the power bank industry on its head. Their products may have to use different battery chemistry and thermal runway prevention technology in order to fulfil those stringent requirements under edge cases like extreme heat or high pressure.

Such safer battery technologies that prevent spontaneous combustion exist, but are more expensive to implement, which could raise power bank prices globally. In addition, power bank manufacturers will have to display the type of battery used inside their products, the production date, and the amount of time it is safe to use the power bank continuously to avoid overheating or other potential issues.

The proposal is currently in the public comment stages until December 11, and is expected to go into force about a year after the 3C requirement was implemented, or in June 2026. The industry will then have a grace period of six months to a year to adopt the dozens of updates to the current standard in their production process. As for plane passengers, they will still be able to take their 3C power banks on flights in the meantime.