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Agency overview | |
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Formed | 2001 |
Jurisdiction | United States |
Headquarters | Washington, DC, United States |
Employees | 587 (2024) |
Annual budget | US$222 million (2024) |
Agency executive | |
Parent agency | U.S. Department of Commerce |
Website | www |
The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce that deals with issues involving national security and high technology. A principal goal for the bureau is helping stop the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, while furthering the growth of United States exports. The Bureau is led by the Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security.
The mission of the BIS is to advance U.S. national security, foreign policy, and economic interests. BIS's activities include regulating the export of sensitive goods and dual-use technologies in an effective and efficient manner; enforcing export control, anti-boycott, and public safety laws; cooperating with and assisting other countries on export control and strategic trade issues; assisting U.S. industry to comply with international arms control agreements; monitoring the viability of the U.S. defense–industrial base; and promoting federal initiatives and public-private partnerships to protect the nation's critical infrastructures.
Items on the Commerce Control List (CCL) – which includes many sensitive goods and technologies like encryption software – require a permit from the Department of Commerce before they can be exported. To determine whether an export permit is required, an Export Control Classification Number (ECCN) is used.
The Bureau of Industry and Security, a component of the United States Department of Commerce, is organized by the United States Secretary of Commerce as follows:
The main focus of the bureau is the security of the United States, which includes its national security, economic security, cyber security, and homeland security. For example, in the area of dual-use export controls, BIS administers and enforces such controls to stem the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the means of delivering them, to halt the spread of weapons to terrorists or countries of concern, and to further U.S. foreign policy objectives. [1] [2] [3] Where there is credible evidence suggesting that the export of a dual-use item threatens U.S. security, the Bureau is empowered to prevent export of the item.[ citation needed ]
In addition to national security, BIS's function is to ensure the health of the U.S. economy and the competitiveness of U.S. industry. BIS promotes a strong defense–industrial base that can develop and provide technologies that will enable the United States to maintain its military superiority. BIS takes care to ensure that its regulations do not impose unreasonable restrictions on legitimate international commercial activity that are necessary for the health of U.S. industry.[ citation needed ]
The Bureau maintains five major lists of parties with whom exportation is forbidden or requires licensing. [4] The five lists are:
The Consolidated Screening List is a searchable database maintained under a collaboration of the Departments of Commerce, State and Treasury, to aid individuals and industries which may be engaged in overseas trade to determine whether transactions involving specific persons or items are legal, or whether licensure or special records are required. [5]
The Entity List, which is regularly updated on both the BIS website and the Federal Register. [6] [7]
The Military End User List, published as a supplement to the Export Administration Regulations Section 744. [8]
The Denied Persons List [9]
The Unverified List [10]
The United States Department of Commerce (DOC) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government concerned with promoting the conditions for economic growth and opportunity.
The International Trade Administration (ITA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that promotes United States exports of nonagricultural U.S. goods and services.
International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) is a United States regulatory agency to restrict and control the export of defense and military technologies to safeguard national security and further its foreign policy objectives.
United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the largest federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security. It is the country's primary border control organization, charged with regulating and facilitating international trade, collecting import duties, as well as enforcing U.S. regulations, including trade, customs and immigration. CBP is one of the largest law enforcement agencies in the United States. It has a workforce of more than 45,600 federal agents and officers. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C.
The export of cryptography from the United States to other countries has experienced various levels of restrictions over time. World War II illustrated that code-breaking and cryptography can play an integral part in national security and the ability to prosecute war. Changes in technology and the preservation of free speech have been competing factors in the regulation and constraint of cryptographic technologies for export.
In politics, diplomacy and export control, dual-use items refer to goods, software and technology that can be used for both civilian and military applications.
The Export Administration Regulations (EAR) are a set of United States export guidelines and prohibitions. They are administered by the Bureau of Industry and Security which regulates the export restrictions of sensitive goods. The EAR apply to scenarios where something is exported from the US, re-exported from a foreign country, or transferred from one person to another in a foreign country. The EAR apply to physical objects as well as intellectual property such as software.
The United States Munitions List (USML) is a list of articles, services, and related technology designated as defense and space-related by the United States federal government. This designation is pursuant to sections 38 and 47(7) of the Arms Export Control Act. These articles fall under the export and temporary import jurisdiction of the Department of State.
Executive Schedule is the system of salaries given to the highest-ranked appointed officials in the executive branch of the U.S. government. The president of the United States appoints individuals to these positions, most with the advice and consent of the United States Senate. They include members of the president's Cabinet, several top-ranking officials of each executive department, the directors of some of the more prominent departmental and independent agencies, and several members of the Executive Office of the President.
The Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security, or USC(IS), is a high-ranking official in the United States Department of Commerce and the principal advisor to the United States Secretary of Commerce on the export of sensitive goods and technologies. The Under Secretary is the head of the Bureau of Industry and Security within the Commerce Department.
Export control is legislation that regulates the export of goods, software and technology. Some items could potentially be useful for purposes that are contrary to the interest of the exporting country. These items are considered to be controlled. The export of controlled item is regulated to restrict the harmful use of those items. Many governments implement export controls. Typically, legislation lists and classifies the controlled items, classifies the destinations, and requires exporters to apply for a licence to a local government department.
The Office of Export Enforcement (OEE) is a agency within the United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS).
The Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control is a German federal agency. The BAFA is authorised to make the final decision on whether German goods are permitted for export.
An Export Management and Compliance Program (EMCP) is required by the U.S. Government to ensure that companies comply with export control policy for dual-use commodities, software, and technology. The policies and regulations are intended to enhance national security; as well as limiting the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. If the regulations are not followed, heavy fines can be levied against the company. Individuals involved at all levels can also be penalized with fines, and imprisonment.
Attempts, unofficially dubbed the "Crypto Wars", have been made by the United States (US) and allied governments to limit the public's and foreign nations' access to cryptography strong enough to thwart decryption by national intelligence agencies, especially the National Security Agency (NSA).
The United States government applies economic sanctions against certain institutions and key members of the Chinese government and its ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP), certain companies linked to the People's Liberation Army (PLA), and other affiliates that the US government has accused of aiding in human rights abuses. The US maintained embargoes against China from the inception of the People's Republic of China in 1949 until 1972. An embargo was reimposed by the US following the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre. From 2020 onward, the US imposed sanctions and visa restrictions against several Chinese government officials and companies, in response to the persecution of Uyghurs in China, human rights abuses in Hong Kong and Tibet, military-civil fusion, support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and fentanyl production.
The Entity List is a trade restriction list published by the United States Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), consisting of certain foreign persons, entities, or governments. It is published as Supplement 4 of Part 744 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Entities on the Entity List are subject to U.S. license requirements for the export or transfer of specified items, such as some U.S. technologies. However, U.S. persons or companies are not prohibited from purchasing items from a company on the Entity List. Being included on the Entity List is less severe than being designated a "denied person" and more severe than being placed on the Unverified List (UVL).
The Unverified List (UVL) is a trade restriction list published by the United States Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), consisting of certain foreign persons, entities, or governments. Inclusion in the UVL is commonly confused with listings in the similar but separate Entity List or Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List.
Effective October 7, 2022, the United States of America implemented new export controls targeting the People's Republic of China's (PRC) ability to access and develop advanced computing and semiconductor manufacturing items. The new export controls reflect the United States' ambition to counter the accelerating advancement of China's high-tech capabilities in these spaces to address foreign policy and national security concerns.