Export controls
Exportkontrolle an der FAU
Please note the updated and new export control lists of the German Foreign Trade and Payments Act and the EU Dual-Use Regulation.
Objectives of export controls
Export controls prevent the unregulated distribution of certain goods (including technology and software) such as defence or military goods, weapons, instruments of torture, dual-use goods, as well as specific chemicals and bacterial substances, and prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
Export controls in research
International economic restrictions can play a role in research, for example in research collaborations with international institutions, working with guest researchers at an institute in Germany, sending scientific equipment (goods) abroad or knowledge transfer and publications.
Export controls do not affect all research activities but it is the responsibility of all parties involved to recognise the scenarios described in this document and take any required action. Responsible use of the legally guaranteed freedom of foreign trade (Section 1, Foreign Trade and Payments Regulation, AWG), freedom of science (Article 5 (3), German Basic Law, GG), etc. presupposes that the limits of this freedom are also known in individual cases.
Individual responsibility of researchers
All researchers and research institutions must be aware of their individual responsibility of compliance with export controls. This affects the export of goods (for example laboratory or test equipment), particularly in the case of tangible exports (e-mails, data carriers, cloud storage) or the intangible transfer of knowledge or expertise, which is known as ‘technical assistance’.
Exporting goods
Check whether your export is subject to export controls by answering the following W-questions. If your export is affected by any of the information provided for each question, you will need a licence from the BAFA. Please contact the Export Controls team for further assistance.
What are you exporting?
Goods that are listed in Article I of the EU Dual-use regulation and in Part I of Export List of the Foreign Trade and Payments Regulation.
Export restrictions may also arise from:
- Firearms regulations
- Embargos
- Anti-torture regulations
- Intended use (for example in the military sector, for civil nuclear purposes, goods that include monitoring and observation technology that could potentially be involved in the infringement of human rights).
All laws and regulations relevant to export controls are included on the Laws, regulations and glossary for export controls page.
Please check whether your goods are included on an export control list. If your goods are included on an export control list, you must apply for an export licence from the BAFA. Please contact the Export Controls team for further assistance.
Export (outside the EU) – relevant export control lists
- Goods subject to authorisation pursuant to Art. 3 EU-VO (EU-Dual-use regulation)
- Annex I (from page 25)
- Goods subject to authorisation pursuant to Section 8, AWV
- Part I Section A (Weapons, munitions and armaments) Section B (National export controls)
Transfer of goods (within the EU) – relevant goods lists
- Goods subject to authorisation pursuant to Art. 11 EU-VO (EU-Dual-use regulation)
- Annex IV (from page 449)
- The obligation to provide information in business documents for Annex I goods (Art. 11 (9) EU regulation) also applies within the EU
- Licence requirements for the transfer of goods pursuant to Section 11, AWV
- Part I Section A (Weapons, munitions and armaments or goods that are designed exclusively or at least predominantly for military use)
The coded index and keyword index are a helpful resource for assessing goods and verifying technical requirements.
A licence is required to export any listed goods, also within the context of research cooperations with a foreign institution. This requirement also applies to knowledge transfer and consequently to the transfer of research findings on technology if these are necessary or could potentially be used for the development, production or use of listed goods. Note that the licence requirement does not automatically apply to all international cooperations of German research institutions, although if it is required, a licence can usually be granted. In principle, licences are only refused if critical goods are to be delivered to a critical recipient/end user.
Where are the goods being exported to?
Check whether an embargo exists for the country you are sending the goods to. If an embargo exists, you will need to apply to the BAFA for an export licence. Please contact the Export Controls team for further information.
| Filename |
|---|
| Embargomerkblatt AWA 01 11 2023.pdf |
| Embargomerkblatt BAFA 30 06 2023.pdf |
| US Embargomerkblatt AWA 02 12 2022.pdf |
Who is receiving the goods?
Irrespective of whether or not goods or technology are to be sent abroad, individual sanctions (known as financial sanctions or, colloquially as terror lists) must also be taken into account. These prohibit the direct or indirect provision of funds or assets of any kind (‘economic resources’) to individuals named in sanctions lists. For research institutions, this means that you must ensure that persons you are collaborating with are not included on sanctions lists.
Check if your business or research partners, guest researchers or potential employees are named on a sanctions list. If you discover that a person you are collaborating with is named on a sanctions list, please contact the Export Control team for further advice.
If you are dealing with business or research partners in China you can also use the China Defence Universities Tracker.
| German financial sanctions list | FiSaLis |
| European Union | EU Sanctions Map |
| United Nations | Consolidated Sanctions List |
| Switzerland | SECO |
| Great Britain and Northern Ireland | HM Treasury |
| USA | OFAC |
| Unverified List | |
| CSL Consolidated Screening List |
What are the goods to be used for?
When concluding a contract, always verify whether the end user or use named on the End-Use Certificate is critical.
The certificate must be original and documented on the business/research partner’s letterhead. The End-Use Certificate (EUC) is required to apply for an export/transfer licence from the BAFA. If a critical end use/end user is confirmed in the EUC, a licence must be obtained from the BAFA prior to export.
| Filename |
|---|
| Formular Endverbleibserklärung Dual use Güter 20-07-2021.pdf |
Export controls process
This diagram shows how you can determine what you need to check, for example when planning a research collaboration. Please contact the Export Controls team if you have any questions
| Procedure-Export |
|---|
| Procedure Export.pdf |
Planning a new deal: What can be checked in advance?
The “Red flags for Export Control” allow you to minimize risks relating to the law governing export control that may otherwise jeopardize your (research) project.
| Filename |
|---|
| RedFlag ExportkontrolleFAU.pdf |
| RedFlag exportcontrolFAU.pdf |
What do I need to know when sending goods abroad?
If you want to send something abroad, an ‘Application for Authorisation to Export Goods’ must be submitted to and approved by the Exports Control team before shipping. Please refer to the Guidelines on Export Controls –Transfer of Goods within the EU and to Third Countries.
| Export Controls |
|---|
| Application for authorisation to export items.pdf |
| Guidelines on Export Controls.pdf |
Research /cooperation agreements and export control
If you intend concluding a research / cooperation agreement with a partner outside the EU, the export controls checklist must be submitted beforehand to the export control team.
| Forschungsvertrag |
|---|
| Checkliste Exportkontrolle Forschungsvertrag.pdf |
| Flow chart research.pdf |
| Forschungsvertrag Flussdiagramm.pdf |
Applying for an export permit from the Federal Office of Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA).
If you require an export permit from the Federal Office of Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA), please contact the Export Control team at FAU. The PDF file below contains an overview of which information is required to file an application for an export permit.
| Ausfuhrantrag |
|---|
| 1 Notwendige Angaben für den Ausfuhrantrag.pdf |
| 2 BAFA Merkblatt optimierte Antragstellung.pdf |