In our blog shop, most of the news we scan is the nerdy minutia of regulatory nuance. But the other day, we found big news, a real scoop. The ITAR will be rewritten to remove guns and ammunition from its control.

Yes, you read that correctly, a plan has been proposed within the State Department to migrate the first three categories of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) to the control of the Export Administration Regulations within the coming year. Whether the State Department will go so far as to rename ITAR Part 121 the United States Munitions List (USML), the “United States List” remains to be seen.
Continue Reading The United States Munitions List: When Guns Come Off of the ITAR

Every time there is a new round of reforms under the President’s Export Control Reform initiative, we hear the same advice:

  1. Controls on certain items are eliminated or reduced (which creates new opportunities for manufacturers and exporters); but
  2. The new rules bring new complexities, so be careful.

Attorneys in the export control space correspondingly inundate us with articles advising, in effect, call your export control lawyer.Continue Reading Military Electronics Export Reform: Let the Chips Fall Where They May

Glancing through the fictional but fascinating Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Rsch. Ford Prefect; Pub. Megadodo Publications), one might recognize that the assertions therein are a bit confusing. Similarly, one might become confused when reviewing another, less whimsical, guide to the galaxy: the revised United States Munitions List Category XV – Spacecraft and Related Articles.

On November 10, 2014 Export Control Reform revisions will go into effect reshaping the USML category that has covered communications satellites for nearly 20 years. If you are responsible for complying with satellite export controls, we offer the same profound and pithy advice one finds right on the cover of the Hitchhiker’s Guide, “Don’t Panic.”Continue Reading ECR Episode XI: Rewriting the Guide to the Galaxy – Satellites Passed to Commerce Control

Here is a summary of export data for the first year after the initial implementation of ECR:

  • There have been over 61,000 shipments of 600 series items since October 2013.
  • The 600 series exports are valued at approximately $2.1 billion.
  • The top 600 series ECCNs exported are:

Continue Reading Bulletin: Commerce Department Statistics on the First Year of Export Control Reform

The Year Mark

Apparently, it is now fashionable among my peers to host elaborate parties in honor of the first birthdays of their children. I have attended a number of these fêtes, and been impressed to just what lengths the parents will go to celebrate twelve months of growth and achievement for a Guest of Honor who will almost certainly not recall the event. However, we at the Global Trade Law Blog are nothing if not fashionable (thanks to our firm’s Fashion and Apparel blog – your move, “white shoe” firms) and are not to be left out of the latest trend.  As such, we are throwing our own birthday party, celebrating the first anniversary of Export Control Reform.Continue Reading ECR Episode IX: The Export Control Reform Turns One – What are Your Plans for the Big Celebration?

In the country pubs of Ireland, it has long been the practice of the barkeep to “stand the third round” for good customers, meaning to offer the third drink for free.  The practice makes sense both as customer appreciation and as an inducement for those fine customers to continue their revelries right where they are.  The third round represents a tipping point for the patron from an after-work drink to a full night out: the transition from a quiet pint or two, to a full investment in the proceedings.  When the bartender stands the third round, the now-happy, soon-to-be-elated customer is encouraged to see matters through to the evening’s finish.
Continue Reading ECR Episode IX – Serving up the Third Round: The Next Wave of Export Control Reform Takes Effect on July 1, 2014

Background

If you manufacture or export Auxiliary Military Equipment controlled under Category XIII of the U.S. Munitions List, you may rightly consider the category number unlucky.  The current scope of Category XIII controls is broad and can be difficult to interpret.  The category includes SCUBA gear and might be read to cover materials for an army shed or the green paint slapped on to that shed.  On January 15, 2014, amendments to Category XIII go into effect.  Those amendments, briefly described below, both narrow and clarify the Category XIII controls.  Congratulations: it looks as if your luck may be changing.Continue Reading ECR Series Episode VII: Livin’ in a Materials World – Changes to USML Category XIII

By: Matthew Riemer

On August 26, 2013, in yet another move geared toward streamlining the U.S. export control regulatory landscape, the U.S. Department of State’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) published its long-awaited interim final rule on arms brokers and brokering activities.  The revamped International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR) Part 129 directly addresses industry concerns regarding the scope and applicability of the current brokering requirements.  Although the rule comes nearly two years after the most recent proposed brokering rule, the new rule significantly narrows the universe of persons and activities that are subject to the ITAR’s brokering regulations.
Continue Reading Fixing a Broken Brokering Definition: DDTC Eases ITAR’s Regulatory Burden for Brokers and Brokering Activities

By: Reid Whitten

First they came by air, now by sea and by land.

On July 8, 2013, the U.S. Department of State published its final rule revising controls on naval vessels and military vehicles contained in the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).   The changes will take effect on January 6, 2014 and will revise United States Munitions List Category VI (Surface Vessels and Special Naval Equipment), Category VII (Ground Vehicles), and Category XX, (now named Submersible Vessels and Related Articles)The final rule also makes changes to Category XII (Materials and Miscellaneous Articles) which are noteworthy and will be covered separately in an upcoming episode of this series.

This article covers highlights of the regulatory changes for naval vessels and military vehicles, notes the pattern of the Export Control Reform revisions, and comments on how these changes may be important to you and your business.
Continue Reading ECR Series Episode V: Revisions to Naval Vessel and Military Vehicle Controls – A Regulatory Sea (and Land) Change

By: Reid Whitten

The first major wave of the much-discussed U.S. Export Control Reform measures will break on October 15, 2013 as the first round of rule changes take effect.  While many in the affected industries expect that the October changes will be a welcome relief from certain burdensome regulations, many are concerned, confused, and overwhelmed by the complex regulatory shifts being announced by the U.S. State and Commerce departments.

This article is the first in a series addressing various aspects of the ECR changes.  We will do our best to offer a bit of fundamental clarity, provide lay-person explanation, and lend some guidance in parsing nuanced regulations.  We also hope to bring an entirely new concept to the ECR discussion: comprehensibility.  We welcome your feedback by email through our open discussion on Twitter at @ReidGlobalTrade.Continue Reading Export Control Reform Series Episode I: The Basics – Five Points to Remember about Export Control Reform

By: Reid Whitten

In Episode I: The Basics we noted that U.S. Export Control Reform may be causing confusion and consternation among those who will have to take the first theoretical rule changes and apply them in real and practical situations.  Among the first test subjects are those who oversee ITAR compliance for manufacturers and exporters of aircraft and aircraft parts.  While these brave souls will be the front line of the ECR implementers, those in the ranks behind (looking at you, Military Vehicles and Naval Vessels) will do well to learn from their experience.
Continue Reading Export Control Reform Series Episode II: The First Change – Reevaluating your ITAR Aircraft Parts