International Shipping

Transfers to Foreign Persons

It is the transfer initiator’s responsibility to ensure that their exports, including person-to-person transfers, a) do not require an export license, and b) have all records retained for five years. Many exports of goods/software are international shipments which use at least one third party for logistics (e.g., UPS, FedEx). However, some exports are carried-out without using a third party (e.g., software files being copied from a first computer to a second computer). In fact, the export may occur with both parties physically located in the United States at the time (e.g., the receiving party is a foreign person).

Ask before Acting

Transfers of items involving embargoed, sanctioned, or prohibited countries generally pose significant risk and must be reviewed by the export control office prior to such transfer occurring. Export of ITAR-controlled articles, technical data, or software require an express written authorization from the export control office in advance for each export. Transfers that require Electronic Export Information (EEI) filing should be reviewed by the export control office prior to initiation of such transfer (e.g., value threshold, destination, end-user).

Recordkeeping

Individual departmental units must keep all records related to the transfer of a tangible item to a foreign person. The transfer of a tangible item to a foreign person includes hand-delivered transfers, international shipments, and the like. If a logistics service provider is utilized, the individual departmental unit responsible for the transaction, working with Procurement and Vendor Services, must keep all records of any activities related to the transaction. If filing of an Electronic Export Information (EEI) is required for any transfer, a logistics service provider must be utilized and all individual departmental units associated with the transaction must keep a copy of the filed EEI.

Resources

Step-by-Step Instructions for International Shipments (PDF) from the University of Virginia.