Meshkat Law assists clients with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) export licensing under the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (EAR), from threshold “do we need a license?” analysis to drafting, filing, and managing complex license applications. Our work focuses on providing clear, actionable guidance on BIS licensing and advocating for clients before BIS to secure and maintain the licenses their business needs. We advise on license triggers, scope, and conditions, including the availability of license exceptions under the EAR, and how those issues affect specific exports, reexports, and transfers of commodities, software, and technology (including deemed exports).
Items subject to the EAR may require a license—or may be eligible for a license exception—from BIS for their export, reexport, or in-country transfer, depending on their classification under the EAR’s Commerce Control List (CCL), and the relevant destination, end user, and end use. Items subject to the EAR are those items (i.e., commodities, software, and technology) that fall within the scope of the EAR’s jurisdiction, whether because they are in the United States, of U.S. origin, or otherwise captured under the EAR’s foreign direct product and de minimis rules. We assist clients in determining applicable BIS licensing requirements for their intended transactions and represent them before BIS for the submission and management of any necessary license applications.
The services below reflect some of the most common ways we help clients navigate BIS licensing under the EAR, from early-stage strategic assessments to license preparation, submission, and post-approval compliance.
We help clients determine whether a BIS license is required for specific transactions under the EAR. This work often includes assessing jurisdiction and classification, analyzing destination-, end-use-, and end-user-based controls, and evaluating the availability of license exceptions versus the need for submission of a license application to BIS.
We assist clients with preparing and submitting BIS license applications and related submissions (such as commodity classification requests), including drafting application narratives (such as letters of explanation) that clearly describe the parties, items, technology, end uses, and, where relevant, any compliance safeguards. Our work includes coordinating with internal stakeholders to gather relevant information and supporting documentation, shaping that information into a coherent submission, and ensuring that the application addresses key EAR considerations for BIS’s review.
We also advise on, and represent clients before BIS when it may be appropriate to seek formal advisory opinions relating to complex or novel fact patterns that invoke ambiguity under the EAR. In such matters, we help frame the questions presented, prepare supporting analysis, and interface with BIS to obtain and document the agency’s feedback.
The following matters are representative of the BIS licensing work handled by our attorney.
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Whether your intended shipment of an item (commodity, software, or technology) from the United States requires a license from OFAC, BIS, and/or DDTC, it primarily depends on: (1) the end-user, end-use, and destination; and (2) the classification of the item against the Export Administration Regulations’ (EAR) Commerce Control List (CCL) or the International Traffic in Arms Regulations’ (ITAR) United States Munitions List (USML).
Most U.S.-origin items are subject to the EAR, and a majority are designated as EAR99 which generally consist of low-technology or consumer goods, and generally don’t require a license unless they are being shipped to an embargoed or sanctioned destination, or a restricted end-user or end-use. If an item is of a more dual-use nature, because it can be used for both civilian and military applications, it may be identified on the CCL with an Export Control Classification Number (ECCN), which may require a BIS license.
Items of a primarily defense/military nature are likely to be identified on the USML and may require a license from DDTC for their export.
Whether the intended shipment of an item (commodity, software, or technology) from outside of the United States to a third country requires a license from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), depends on if the item is subject to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). If the item is subject to the EAR, the intended end-user, end-use, and/or destination may invoke the EAR’s licensing requirements for its reexport (i.e. shipment from outside of the United States to a third country).
U.S.-origin items, wherever located, are generally subject to the EAR. However, foreign-made items that incorporate or involve certain controlled U.S. origin content, or that are produced involving certain specified U.S. technology or software, may also be subject to the EAR depending on their intended end-user, end-use, or destination.
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BIS License Necessity and Strategy Assessment