FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:                                       NEWS
December 20, 2000                                        OTC-VARL

                   VARI-L COMPANY ANNOUNCES EXTENSION OF
                    FORBEARANCE AGREEMENT WITH BANK ONE

DENVER, Colorado -- Vari-L Company, Inc. (OTC-VARL), a leading provider of
advanced components for the wireless telecommunications industry, today
announced it has extended its forbearance agreement with its primary
lender, Bank One Colorado, N.A., from December 15, 2000 to March 31, 2001.

Pete Pappas, CEO of Vari-L, said the Company recently made a $1.1 million
payment to Bank One, principally to bring the loan value into line with
the revised borrowing base.  The revised borrowing base was reduced in
part as a result of the completion of an independent appraisal of the
Company's fixed assets.  However, Vari-L will be able to increase its
collateral base in the future to the extent that the Company purchases new
equipment that it elects not to finance through other sources.  The
revised loan agreement also provided for an increase in the loan rate from
prime plus 1.5% to prime plus 2.0%.  The full amended agreement will be
filed by Vari-L with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Form 8-K.

"We are very pleased that Bank One has agreed to amend our agreement and
continue working with Vari-L," Pappas said.  "We view their decision as an
expression of confidence in the progress we have made in the second half
of 2000, and believe the extension and revised terms are in the best
interests of Vari-L and its shareholders."

Through its headquarters in Denver, Vari-L designs, manufactures and
markets wireless communications components that generate or process radio
frequency (RF) and microwave frequency signals.  Vari-L's patented
products are used in commercial infrastructure equipment (including
cellular/paging/PCS base stations and repeaters, fixed terminal point to
point/multi-point data radios including LMDS/MMDS), consumer subscriber
products (advanced cellular/PCS/satellite handsets, web-enabled smart
phones, 2-way pagers, wireless PDAs, home networking), and
military/aerospace platforms (satellite communications/telemetry, missile
guidance, electronic warfare, electronic countermeasures, battlefield
communications).  Vari-L serves a diverse customer base of the world's
leading technology companies, including Adaptive Broadband, Agilent
Technologies, Digital Microwave, Ericsson, Glenayre Technologies (Wireless
Access), Harris, Hughes, Lockheed Martin, Lucent Technologies, Microwave
Data Systems, Mitsubishi, Motorola, NEC, NeoPoint, Netro, Newbridge
Networks, Nokia, Northrop Grumman, Novatel Wireless, Raytheon, Samsung,
and Siemens.

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Some of the statements contained in this news release are forward-looking
statements. The accuracy of these statements cannot be guaranteed as they
are subject to a variety of risks, including but not limited to the
success of the products into which the Company's products are integrated,
governmental action relating to wireless communications licensing and
regulation, the accuracy of the Company's internal projections as to the
demand for certain types of technological innovation, competitive products
and pricing, the success of new product development efforts, the timely
release for production and the delivery of products under existing
contracts, the outcome of pending and threatened litigation and regulatory
actions, the success and timeliness of the Company's efforts to restate
its prior financial statements, the ability of the Company's new
independent accounting firm to issue an unqualified audit report on those
financial statements, future economic conditions generally, as well as
other factors.

                                 CONTACTS:

Vari-L Company, Inc.              Pfeiffer Public Relations, Inc.
Pete Pappas, CEO                                     303/393-7044
303/371-1560