What is ITAR?
International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) is a set of regulations administered by the State Department to control the export and import of defense and military related technologies on the United States Munitions List (USML). The objective of the legislation is to control access to these specific types of technology and their associated data.
Who needs to comply with ITAR regulations?
Any U.S. company, research lab or university that engages in either manufacturing or exporting defense articles or furnishing defense services is required to register with DDTC and comply with ITAR regulations.
What are the penalties for not complying with ITAR?
The penalties for ITAR infractions are stiff:
· Civil fines up to $500,000 per violation
· Criminal fines of up to $1 million and/or 10 years imprisonment per violation.
Have there been cases of enforcement in recent years?
Yes, there are quite a few of major fines issued due to ITAR infractions. Some examples are:
· In 2007, $100 million penalty applied to ITT as a result of the unauthorized Retransfer of night vision technology to the PRC.
· In 2018, the State department fined FLIR Systems, Inc. $30 million in civil penalties for transferring USML data to dual national employees. Part of the penalty requires that FLIR implement better compliance measure and hire an outside official to oversee their agreement with the State department.
· In 2019, L3Harris technologies has agreed to pay $13 million settlement following ITAR violations. The State department said it alleged 131 violations.
· In 2021, Honeywell International Inc had entered into a $13 million administrative settlement with the U.S. government to resolve allegations of export control violations related to aerospace and defense technical data (specifically) engineering prints for castings and parts for aircraft, gas turbine engines, and military electronics). The State department alleged that the company committed 34 violations of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) and ITAR in connection with data exported to recipients in Canada, Mexico, Ireland, China, and Taiwan without required government approval.
· In 2021, Keysight Technologies was charged with a $6.6 million in civil penalties for 24 alleged violations in connection with unauthorized exports of technical data.
Where can I find the complete ITAR Regulation?
ITAR regulation can be found here (22 CFR Part 120-130).