Export Control Policy & Procedure

First, if the travel is for UA business, you must register for the travel.  More information may be found at the Traveling Abroad webpage.

Second, if the travel is personal, but you will be taking UA equipment, or accessing UA information (such as UA email or One Drive account), contact IT to ensure you are following the required processes for doing so.  More information may be found at the Information Security for International Travel webpage.

Finally, if you are conducting research that does not fall under the Fundamental Research Exemption and collaborating with foreign persons within the U.S., contact the Research Compliance Officer to discuss.

A foreign person is any person who is not a lawful permanent resident of the United States, citizen of the United States, or any other protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3). It also means any business (e.g. a corporation, business association, partnership, trust), or any other entity that is not incorporated in the United States or organized to do business in the United States.  Finally, it also means any international organizations, foreign governments and any agency or subdivision of a foreign government (e.g., diplomatic mission).

“Foreign person” is synonymous with “foreign national,” as used in the EAR, and “foreign person” as used in the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (22 CFR 120.16). This definition does not apply to part 760 of the EAR (Restrictive Trade Practices or Boycotts).

The FRE is an exclusion that exempts sharing of controlled information (but not tangible items) from the Export Control laws.  The FRE applies when basic research is conducted, driven by a scientist’s curiosity or interest in a scientific question. The main motivation is to expand human-kind’s knowledge, not to create or invent something. There is no obvious commercial value to the discoveries that result from basic research.

There are 5 conditions that must be met in order to apply the FRE:

• No publication restrictions can be accepted as part of the research agreement, either verbally or in writing.
• No foreign person restrictions can be accepted as part of the research agreement, either verbally or in writing.
• The scope of the project must constitute either basic or applied research.
• The scope of the project does not constitute development.
• The research project must be conducted at an accredited institution of higher learning in the United States.

Applied research is designed to solve practical problems of the modern world, rather than to acquire knowledge for knowledge’s sake. One might say that the goal of the applied scientist is to improve the human condition.  Thus, applied research does not typically fall into the FRE.

Remember that the FRE applies just to information; even if all 5 conditions are met, export controls may still apply to actual materials, items, or technologies involved in or resulting from the research.

Information released in an academic catalog, that lists courses or teaching labs is not subject to export controls. Further, the ITAR (the regulations administered by the Department of State) recognizes that "information concerning general scientific, mathematical, or engineering principles commonly taught in schools, colleges, and universities, or information in the public domain" is not subject to export controls.

It is important to note that proprietary information or information that the Federal Government determines is classified or sensitive will not fall within this exclusion.

Yes. This work will likely need a technology control plan to safeguard access to the item. Safeguarding involves a physical plan to prevent unauthorized access or use of the item by an (unauthorized) foreign person. Further, each researcher using the item must receive training. Please reach out to ORA for more guidance before you bring the item to campus. The following are the pieces of information we will need to determine the best method to safeguard the item.

• What the item is used for.
• The export classification number (either the ECCN or the ITAR category).
• If the above classification is unavailable from the manufacturer, the ORA will help you classify it. The classification is important for determining the technology control plan details.

Yes. This work will likely need a technology control plan to safeguard access to the information (and any tangible items that are controlled). Safeguarding involves creating a physical and cyber security plan to prevent unauthorized access or use of the item or information by an (unauthorized) foreign person, and training for each researcher using the information or item. Please reach out to ORA for more guidance before you bring the item to campus. The following are the pieces of information we will need to determine the best method of safeguarding.

• What the item is used for.
• The export classification number (either the ECCN or the ITAR category).
• If the above classification is unavailable from the manufacturer, the ORA will help you classify it. The classification is important for determining the technology control plan details.

Note that you will likely be required to store the information in a different cyberenvironment than your standard UA account. There are costs to setting up the environment for each individual. If you anticipate needing such an environment, you should budget in advance for the costs.

Yes. The Federal Government prohibits most exports to the countries listed below. Although some licenses are available to export to these countries, most license exclusions will not apply (even the Educational Instruction Exclusion).

• Cuba
• Iran
• North Korea
• Syria

In addition to these countries, many other countires have mutilple entities within them that are heavily sanctioned, for which export licenses are generally denied. When planning to travel or sent items or information to those countries, please contact the Office of Research Administration to ensure any person or entity you are interacting with is not one of these sanctioned persons or entities. These countries include:

• Afghanistan
• Belarus
• Burma
• China
• Iraq
• Lebanon
• Malaysia
• Pakistan
• Russia
• Singapore
• Sudan
• Turkey
• U.A.E.
• For the complete list, click here

Finally, travel to Russia, Venezueal, and China require registration of exports (even hand-carried items) into a Federeal System.