A terminal for use within an unknown regulatory domain, the terminal comprising: one or more processors; a computer readable storage medium storing collective regulatory domain data of restricted and unrestricted channels for each regulatory domain and being configured to receive an adaptive domain compliance program function across a network; a wireless local area network (WLAN) interface comprising a radio, the radio being operative in a frequency; and the adaptive domain compliance program function being implemented as a driver on one of said storage media and determining regulatory domain independent channels and regulatory domain dependent channels within a frequency band by parsing the collective regulatory domain data, the driver comprising: first program instructions to actively scan one or more of the regulatory domain independent channels in the frequency band; second program instructions to configure the terminal for use in the unknown regulatory domain in response to the terminal receiving regulatory domain information as a result of actively scanning one or more of the regulatory domain independent channels; third program instructions to passively scan one or more of the regulatory domain dependent channels in the frequency band in response to the terminal not receiving the regulatory domain information as a result of actively scanning one or more of the regulatory domain independent channels; fourth program instructions to configure the terminal for use in the unknown regulatory domain in response to passively scanning one or more of the regulatory domain dependent channels in the frequency band; wherein the first, second, third, and fourth program instructions are executed by the one or more processors. one or more processors; a computer readable storage medium storing collective regulatory domain data of restricted and unrestricted channels for each regulatory domain and being configured to receive an adaptive domain compliance program function across a network; a wireless local area network (WLAN) interface comprising a radio, the radio being operative in a frequency; and the adaptive domain compliance program function being implemented as a driver on one of said storage media and determining regulatory domain independent channels and regulatory domain dependent channels within a frequency band by parsing the collective regulatory domain data, the driver comprising: first program instructions to actively scan one or more of the regulatory domain independent channels in the frequency band; second program instructions to configure the terminal for use in the unknown regulatory domain in response to the terminal receiving regulatory domain information as a result of actively scanning one or more of the regulatory domain independent channels; third program instructions to passively scan one or more of the regulatory domain dependent channels in the frequency band in response to the terminal not receiving the regulatory domain information as a result of actively scanning one or more of the regulatory domain independent channels; fourth program instructions to configure the terminal for use in the unknown regulatory domain in response to passively scanning one or more of the regulatory domain dependent channels in the frequency band; wherein the first, second, third, and fourth program instructions are executed by the one or more processors. first program instructions to actively scan one or more of the regulatory domain independent channels in the frequency band; second program instructions to configure the terminal for use in the unknown regulatory domain in response to the terminal receiving regulatory domain information as a result of actively scanning one or more of the regulatory domain independent channels; third program instructions to passively scan one or more of the regulatory domain dependent channels in the frequency band in response to the terminal not receiving the regulatory domain information as a result of actively scanning one or more of the regulatory domain independent channels; fourth program instructions to configure the terminal for use in the unknown regulatory domain in response to passively scanning one or more of the regulatory domain dependent channels in the frequency band; wherein the first, second, third, and fourth program instructions are executed by the one or more processors.