Export Licensing

Thomsen and Burke LLP provides assistance with U.S. export laws and regulations as well as foreign laws and regulations. We advise organizations on their filing and reporting requirements and provide administrative support for those submissions, including:

  • Advisory Opinions
  • Export License Applications
  • Commodity Classification Requests
  • Commodity Jurisdiction Requests
  • Foreign Filings

Advisory Opinions

When organizations have a unique issue where regulations are ambiguous, they may seek an advisory opinion from the Government. We help craft these requests and obtain useful and timely responses to the issues.

Export Licensing and Classification

Three regimes govern U.S. exports: Department of Commerce, Department of State, and Treasury Department. We help organizations identify the proper regime that pertains to their products and determine whether the products require an export license.

Our firm is particularly experienced at handling the intricacies of the encryption regulations contained in the EAR. Recent amendments to these regulations in 2010 created new procedures and requirements for items containing encryption. We help organizations understand these requirements, classify their products and technologies, locate license exceptions, and comply with all license requirements.

Commodity Jurisdiction

Each of the three regulatory regimes control different items. However, when an item seemingly falls within the jurisdiction of multiple regimes, the Government must determine which body has jurisdiction. Thomsen and Burke LLP assists clients with obtaining timely jurisdictional rulings.

Foreign Laws and Regulations

Organizations with foreign operations, suppliers, or customers often face obstacles in foreign laws and regulations. Thomsen and Burke LLP assists clients in complying with foreign requirements. We advise organizations of all sizes and provide foreign filing services for nearly every country, including:

  • China
  • France
  • Israel
  • Japan
  • Russia

Representative Matters

  • Coordinated U.S. and foreign companies’ filings of authorizations to export, import, use and supply encryption products with France’s Central Information Systems Security Division (DCSSI) and Israel’s Ministry of Defense
  • Assisted foreign telecommunications company with obtaining re-export licenses for U.S. origin equipment to countries subject to trade sanctions administered by the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security
  • Advised medical equipment company in connection with export licensing under the trade sanctions administered by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control
  • Coordinated U.S. and foreign companies’ filings of authorizations to export, import, use and supply encryption products with France’s Central Information Systems Security Division (DCSSI) and Israel’s Ministry of Defense
  • Advised pharmaceutical companies in connection with export licensing under the trade sanctions administered by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control
  • Counseled aerospace companies in jurisdiction, classification and licensing matters before the State Department’s Office of Defense Trade Controls
  • Advised a trade association regarding relaxation of international export controls on software for the design of semiconductors and integrated circuits

For more information about our export licensing services, please contact a firm partner.