National Defense Authorization Act passed without an amendment effectively banning the China-made drones, but left a door open for a prohibition in 12 months.

Lawmakers in Washington are seeking to ban new sales of drones from two dominant Chinese manufacturers, arguing they could be used to spy on Americans and that the low-cost models are hurting the U.S. drone industry.

DJI and Autel Robotics have one year to convince skeptical national security agencies that their equipment doesn't pose a threat to the U.S.

But DJI isn’t out of the woods yet. The NDAA has started a one-year countdown, during which DJI has to prove that its products are not a national security risk to the United States. If it can’t, all of its devices will be automatically banned in the US, as will those of rival firm Autel Robotics.

It was the role of drones in everyday life that drove Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., to get Congress to restrict the purchase of Chinese drones by federal agencies. Those restrictions were included in a bill that Democratic President Joe Biden signed last year.