Learn the six steps of every export check, then the words you'll see along the way.
Six steps, always in this order. Tap a step to learn what it means, or follow an example shipment.
Where you end up
1 · What is it?Step 1 of 6
Learn more:EAR →ITAR →USML →EAR or ITAR? →
Each ECCN lists its reasons for control. The Country Chart marks which countries need a license for each reason. Pick a country to see the check.
2B001
Machine tools for cutting metal
Its reasons for control| Country | NS2 | NP1 | AT1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | · | · | · |
| India | · | X | · |
| China | X | X | · |
| Iran | See EAR Part 746 (embargo) | ||
No license is needed for these reasons (NLR). You still check the parties and the end use before you ship.
Simplified from the Commerce Country Chart. Some 2B001 paragraphs carry fewer reasons, and other EAR rules can still apply. Run the real check on the License check page.
Grouped by the three questions. The tag shows which rulebook uses the word.
Sending an item, software or technical information out of the United States. Showing or giving controlled technical information to a foreign person inside the U.S. can count too.
Emailing design drawings to a supplier in Mexico is an export, even though nothing ships.
EAR 15 CFR 734.13 · ITAR 22 CFR 120.50
The Commerce Department's export rules. They cover most commercial products, software and technology, including items with both civilian and military uses.
Laptops, sensors, machine tools, chemicals, encryption software.
15 CFR Parts 730–774 · run by BIS
The State Department's rules for defense items: things on the U.S. Munitions List, their technical data, and defense services.
Missile parts, parts made for military aircraft, training a foreign military to maintain a weapon.
22 CFR Parts 120–130 · run by DDTC
Before anything else, work out which rulebook applies. Check the U.S. Munitions List first. If the item isn't described there, it is usually under the EAR.
Not sure? The State Department can decide through a commodity jurisdiction (CJ) request.
ITAR 22 CFR 120.11 (order of review), 120.4 (CJ)
The EAR's list of controlled items. It has 10 categories (0 to 9), each split into 5 product groups (A to E).
Groups: A equipment, B test and production equipment, C materials, D software, E technology.
Supplement No. 1 to 15 CFR Part 774
The five-character code for an item on the CCL. It tells you why the item is controlled.
2B001: category 2 (materials processing), group B (production equipment), entry 001 (machine tools).
15 CFR 738.2
The label for items that are subject to the EAR but not on the CCL. Most everyday products are EAR99.
Usually no license is needed, except for embargoed countries, restricted parties or prohibited end uses.
15 CFR 734.3(c)
The ITAR's list of defense items, in 21 categories (I to XXI). An item is named by its category and paragraph.
Category VIII is aircraft. VIII(h)(1) covers parts made for certain military aircraft.
22 CFR 121.1
Why an item is controlled, written as a short code. Each ECCN lists one or more.
NS national security, NP nuclear, MT missiles, CB chemical and biological, RS regional stability, AT anti-terrorism.
15 CFR Part 742
A grid of countries against reasons for control. An X means a license is needed for that reason, unless an exception applies.
Find the country's row, then look only at the columns your ECCN lists.
Supplement No. 1 to 15 CFR Part 738
Match the item's reasons for control against the destination's row on the Country Chart. No X means no license for those reasons. An X means you need a license or a license exception.
It's a first step: embargoes, end use and the parties can still require a license.
15 CFR 738.4
A few destinations have much stricter rules, and most exports to them need a license.
Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Syria, Russia and Belarus under the EAR. The ITAR keeps its own list of restricted countries.
EAR 15 CFR Part 746 · ITAR 22 CFR 126.1
A person or company the U.S. government has put on a list. Dealing with them may need a license, or be banned outright.
Entity List, Denied Persons List, Unverified List (Commerce); debarred parties (State); SDN List (Treasury). The Consolidated Screening List searches them together.
15 CFR Part 744 · 22 CFR 127.7 · 31 CFR Ch. V
The Treasury office that runs U.S. sanctions. Some cover whole countries, like Iran or Cuba. Others target listed people and companies, like the SDN List.
Sanctions can block payments and services, not just shipments, and U.S. persons follow them wherever they are.
31 CFR Chapter V
What the item will finally be used for, and by whom. Some end uses need a license even for EAR99 items.
Nuclear, missile, or chemical and biological weapons work. Other rules cover military end uses in certain countries.
15 CFR Part 744
The answer when the EAR needs no license for this export. It is not permission to ship: you still check the parties and the end use.
You'll see it on export filings, and as a result on the License check page.
15 CFR 758.1
Written permission from the government for a specific export. You apply to BIS under the EAR, or to DDTC under the ITAR.
A DSP-5 is the ITAR license for a permanent export of unclassified defense articles.
15 CFR Part 748 · 22 CFR Part 123
A rule that lets some EAR exports go without a license. Each has a three-letter code and its own conditions.
LVS (limited value), TMP (temporary exports), ENC (encryption). General limits in § 740.2 can rule one out.
15 CFR Part 740
A specific situation where the ITAR needs no license. Exemptions are narrow, and you must keep records when you use one.
Some exports to Canada (§ 126.5), some technical data (§ 125.4).
22 CFR 123.16, 125.4, 126.5
Many ideas have a twin in the other rulebook. A few work very differently.
| EAR | ITAR | |
|---|---|---|
| Parallels | ||
| Who runs it | Commerce Department, through BIS | State Department, through DDTC |
| The rules | 15 CFR 730–774 | 22 CFR 120–130 |
| The control list | Commerce Control List (CCL) | U.S. Munitions List (USML) |
| The item's code | ECCN, like 2B001 | Category and paragraph, like VIII(h)(1). There's no table that turns one into the other |
| Ship without a license | License Exception (Part 740) | License Exemption (for example § 126.5, § 125.4) |
| Get a license | Apply to BIS | Apply to DDTC (for example a DSP-5), or an agreement for defense services |
| Restricted parties | Entity List, Denied Persons List, Unverified List, Military End-User List | Debarred parties (§ 127.7). OFAC's SDN List applies under both |
| Sharing know-how in the U.S. | A "deemed export" to the foreign person | An export to the foreign person |
| Differences | ||
| What it covers | Commercial products and items with both civilian and military uses, plus some less sensitive military items (the "600 series") | Defense articles, their technical data, and defense services |
| Not on the list | EAR99: still under the EAR, usually no license | Not an ITAR item. Check whether the EAR applies |
| Does the country matter? | Yes. The Country Chart decides for most listed items | Less so. Almost every export needs a license or exemption; § 126.1 lists countries with stricter rules |
| No license needed | NLR, for many item and country pairs | No general equivalent |
| Register first | No registration to export | Manufacturers and exporters must register and pay a yearly fee (Part 122) |
| Foreign-made products | De minimis and foreign direct product rules decide | No de minimis: the U.S. part stays under the ITAR |
General information to help you get started, not legal advice. The regulations control: EAR at 15 CFR Parts 730–774, ITAR at 22 CFR Parts 120–130, OFAC sanctions at 31 CFR Chapter V. Export Control Studio gives preliminary screening only, never a government determination or permission to ship.