--- description: The FCC removed Cuba from its exclusions list Friday, making it easier for U.S. telecommunications companies to offer services there title: Feds Lift Restrictions on U.S. Telecoms in Cuba image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta0ef84ae2653aa5e/69887973cf40a8862ec4182a/gettyimages-502880574.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Cuba](/tag/cuba/) ## Cuba Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Feds Lift Restrictions on U.S. Telecoms in Cuba by [Lauren French](/author/lauren-french/) ## Lauren French Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 15, 2016 11:07 PM CUT  ALAMAR, CUBA - DECEMBER 19 - Alberto Garcia Rivera (center) talks on a payphone at the Falcon shopping center, Alamar. ALAMAR, CUBA - DECEMBER 19 - Alberto Garcia Rivera (center) talks on a payphone at the Falcon shopping center, Alamar.The Washington Post—The Washington Post/Getty Images by [Lauren French](/author/lauren-french/) ## Lauren French Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 15, 2016 11:07 PM CUT The Federal Communications Commission [removed Cuba from its exclusions list](http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily%5FReleases/Daily%5FBusiness/2016/db0115/DOC-337326A1.pdf "undefined") Friday, making it easier for U.S. telecommunications companies to offer services there. Cuba was the last country to be removed from the list. Before Friday, service providers had to attain separate approval from the FCC before offering services in the Caribbean country. Cuba’s population of about 11 million has just one modern, fixed Internet connection to the world, the [Wall Street _Journal_ reports](http://www.wsj.com/articles/cuba-opening-shines-light-on-obsolete-telecom-links-1418862828 "undefined"), meaning it is ripe for fresh infrastructure investment. The agency said in a release that lifting the exclusion will “promote competition on the U.S.-Cuba route” and lessen financial and administrative burdens. U.S. [investment in Cuba](http://time.com/4153808/us-cuba-flights-deal/ "undefined") has rocketed, after the two countries normalized diplomatic relations in 2015 after a decades-long detente. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4183283/feds-lift-restrictions-on-u-s-telecoms-in-cuba/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4183283/feds-lift-restrictions-on-u-s-telecoms-in-cuba/"},"headline":"Feds Lift Restrictions on U.S. Telecoms in Cuba","datePublished":"2016-01-15T23:07:15.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T14:11:29.317Z","description":"Cuba was the last country to be removed from the FCC's exclusions list","url":"https://time.com/4183283/feds-lift-restrictions-on-u-s-telecoms-in-cuba/","keywords":["Cuba","Cuba topic","FCC"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta0ef84ae2653aa5e/69887973cf40a8862ec4182a/gettyimages-502880574.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Lauren French","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/lauren-french/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta0ef84ae2653aa5e/69887973cf40a8862ec4182a/gettyimages-502880574.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"ALAMAR, CUBA - DECEMBER 19 - Alberto Garcia Rivera (center) tal","caption":"ALAMAR, CUBA - DECEMBER 19 - Alberto Garcia Rivera (center) tal","creditText":"The Washington Post—The Washington Post/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/cuba/","name":"Cuba"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4183283/feds-lift-restrictions-on-u-s-telecoms-in-cuba/","name":"Feds Lift Restrictions on U.S. Telecoms in Cuba"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Know Right Now: Commercial Flights Between US and Cuba Resumed","description":"","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/rTMtIpyS/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2016-02-16T21:13:11.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/rTMtIpyS.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4183283/feds-lift-restrictions-on-u-s-telecoms-in-cuba/","duration":"PT1M","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4183283/feds-lift-restrictions-on-u-s-telecoms-in-cuba/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```