Regulatory Sandbox Program
Overview of the Waiver Application
Interested parties may begin preparing and submitting applications now. However, before applying, it is recommended that applicants submit an Expression of Interest to meet with the Executive Director and North Carolina Innovation Council leadership. This meeting helps ensure eligibility and provides guidance before completing the full application process.
Please note that the North Carolina Innovation Council cannot provide legal advice to applicants. It is the applicant’s responsibility to understand which regulations may apply to their innovation and which exemptions may be available through the Regulatory Sandbox Program before submitting an application.
Applicants should also review the Frequently Asked Questions, authorizing legislation, and program rules, as these documents outline the administrative framework for the North Carolina Regulatory Sandbox Program. Once these materials have been reviewed and understood, applicants may complete and submit their application to the North Carolina Innovation Council for consideration.
The North Carolina Innovation Council, established under G.S. 169-4, is responsible for reviewing applications, admitting participants into the Regulatory Sandbox, and assigning them to the applicable State agency for regulatory collaboration and oversight. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, and applicants will be notified of the Council’s decision as promptly as possible. In some cases, the Council or its designee may request additional information or a presentation on the proposed innovation at an upcoming Council meeting.
Download the Application Form: All completed applications and supporting documents can be submitted to NCRegulatorySandbox@nc.gov.
- The applicant must own, operate, or belong to a business entity with necessary personnel and requisite technical expertise to test, monitor, or assess the innovative product or service.
- The applicant must be a domestic corporation or other organized domestic entity.
- The applicant must have a physical presence in North Carolina.
- The applicant must be seeking a waiver for a financial or insurance product or service or a substantial component of such, or using or incorporating new or emerging technology, including blockchain technology, or developing a new use of existing technology to address a problem, provide a benefit or otherwise offer a product, service, business model or delivery mechanism to the public that is not known at present to have a comparable widespread offering in this State.
- There is an application fee of $50, due at the time of application submittal.
- Approved Sandbox applicants must pay a one-time participation fee, due upon execution of the waiver agreement, based on the number of employees the entity or parent entity, as appropriate, has and the expected revenue of the innovative product. The minimum participant fee is $450 per approved application.
- A Sandbox participant may be required to post a consumer protection bond, or alternatively, a deposit of cash or readily marketable securities, with the applicable State agency in an amount determined by it, as security for potential losses suffered by consumers. This security may be cancelled or refunded when the waiver has expired or when the applicable State agency has determined that any consumer claims have been satisfied, whichever is later.