Due to the Export Control Reform (ECR) that began nearly six years ago, the Department of States’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) has updated 18 of the 21 categories in the United States Munitions List (USML), and most of these categories had items transition to the Commerce Control List (CCL) of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) by respective designated transition deadlines. In accordance with DDTC Guidance published October 13, 2015, any Technical Assistance Agreement (TAA) or Manufacturing License Agreement (MLA) submitted prior to the transitioning date for the USML category described in the TAA or MLA is set to expire three years from that transitioning date. TAAs or MLAs that referred to more than one USML category expire three years from the latest transition date of any of the USML categories described in the TAA or MLA.
Three years have passed since most of the transition deadlines, however, any TAAs or MLS referring to USML Category XII (Fire Control, Laser, Imaging, and Guidance Equipment), USML Category XIV (Toxicological Agents, Including Chemical Agents, Biological Agents, and Associated Equipment), and USML Category XVIII (Directed Energy Weapons) have until December 31, 2019 before they expire.
Any TAA containing these transitioning USML categories should be amended to properly identify the relevant USML categories. Any TAAs that contain the other transitioning USML categories may already have expired, if not properly amended.
We recommend a thorough review of all approved TAAs and MLAs to ensure they did not unwittingly expire. Refer to Section 20 of the Guidelines for Preparing Agreements published by DDTC for more guidance on transitioning items and expiration dates. Please contact us with any further questions.
This post is an excerpt of our US-EU: Export Controls and Sanctions Update, January – March 2019.
