What happened: On April 19, 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) published an interim final rule amending the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”) to remove most remaining export license requirements under the EAR for items exported, reexported, or transferred to and within the United Kingdom and Australia. The rule took effect upon publication, but BIS also seeks comments within 45 days.

Key takeaways: The new rule will simplify transactions in which UK and Australian companies seek to receive US-origin items that previously required a license to those destinations, whether directly from the US or from a third country, or to transfer such items in-country.  It brings most of the licensing requirements currently applicable to the UK and Australia in line what has long applied to Canada, to which relatively few export controls apply.

The removal of licensing requirements extends to a broad range of items, including: “600-series” items (which includes less-sensitive military items moved from the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (“ITAR”) to the EAR); many “500-series” spacecraft items; significant items (“SI”), including hot section technology for the development, production or overhaul of certain commercial aircraft engines; and certain military end-use and end-user licensing requirements as to which Canada had previously been the only exception.

What the rule doesn’t change: Some items subject to the EAR have historically required a license to all destinations, including Canada, and those are not affected by this new rule. In addition, there are at least two notable areas in which more stringent export licensing requirements will continue to apply to the UK and Australia that do not apply to Canada. First, certain items controlled for crime control reasons will continue to require a license to UK and Australia. Second, EI controls on items that use encryption will remain in place as to UK and Australia – however, while such controls are very common, items subject to them are also eligible for fairly permissive licensing exceptions.  Notably, BIS expressly seeks public comment on whether those controls should be removed as to UK/AUS as well.

BIS’s Federal Register Notice containing the subject interim final rule is available here.