BIS Update 2008, Day 2 - DDTC to Rewrite 125.4(b)(9)

Terry L. Davis, DDTC's Deputy Director for Licensing, spoke at the second day of the BIS Update 2008 Conference in the breakout session dedicated to the Department of State Licensing Update. Mr. Davis spoke of several DDTC initiatives for the upcoming year, including DDTC plans to amend the ITAR license exemption at 22 CFR 125.4(b)(9) to allow hand-carry exports of technical data for personal use - presumably while an individual is on travel. Specifically, Mr. Davis directed his comments to technical data loaded on laptop computers, but mused that the amendment would be crafted to cover technical data on other types of electronic devices, and would likely cover technical data in hard copy format.

Only a very rigid and conservative reading of the exemption at 22 CFR 125.4(b)(9) would lead one to conclude that the type of export at issue - where an individual hand-carries technical data out of the US for his or her sole use while out of the country - is not already covered by the 22 CRF 125.4(b)(9) exemption. Unfortunately, this is the reading of which DDTC is an apparent proponent. Fortunately, DDTC today expressed an intention to execute a liberalizing amendment.

Until DDTC actually executes the amendment, industry will have to send laptops, other commercial electronic equipment, or documents containing controlled technical data to its US person employees once the employees have already traveled abroad in order to make use of the exemption at 22 CFR 125.4(b)(9) - according to the interpretation Mr. Davis represented. If a traveler must hand-carry the technical data out of the US and no other license exemption applies, General Instruction 4 of the DDTC Guidelines for Completion of a Form DSP-73 suggests DDTC may permit a DSP-73 license to support the activity.