U.S. State Department proposes changes to U.S. Munitions List and ITAR license exemption
Proposal would remove certain items from ITAR controls, revise definitions, and add an exemption for certain temporary exports of foreign defense articles
The U.S. Department of State today released a proposed rule that would amend the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) to focus U.S. Munitions List (USML) controls on technologies the State Department considers the most sensitive, improve regulatory clarity, and reduce regulatory burdens.
The proposed rule would remove certain items from the USML and transfer them to the jurisdiction of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). Among other changes, it would narrow controls involving guns and armament, aircraft and related articles, personal protective equipment, and submersible vessels and related articles. For example, the proposal would remove smooth-bore, fixed-barrel canister launchers and most radar altimeters from the USML.
The proposed rule also would revise several ITAR definitions and related provisions, including those addressing “specially designed,” development and production, and items excluded from the USML. The changes would expand the circumstances in which certain commodities would be excluded from USML catch-all controls. The proposal also would specify circumstances in which certain commodities modified through demilitarization would no longer be described on the USML, while providing that certification of an item as “demilitarized” by the cognizant Department of Defense (DoD) agency does not by itself mean the item is no longer described on the USML.
In addition, proposed new 22 CFR § 123.26 would provide an exemption from ITAR licensing requirements for the temporary export of an unclassified foreign defense article to the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or its authorized service provider when the export is solely for specified activities, including servicing, inspection, testing, calibration, repair, overhaul, upgrading, reconditioning, or one-to-one replacement of a defective item by the original equipment manufacturer or its authorized service provider.
Request for comments
The State Department is requesting comments on the proposed revisions and a series of specific questions concerning the scope and clarity of ITAR controls. Comments are due 60 days after publication in the Federal Register, which is scheduled to be October 1, 2026.