U.S. Export Administration Regulations (advanced computing, AI model weights, FDP rules and the Entity List)

Before procuring, deploying or supplying any item, determine its Export Control Classification Number. The most relevant entries for AI companies are advanced computing chips and electronic assemblies (3A090, 4A090 and the .z paragraphs of 3A001, 4A003, 4A004, 4A005, 5A002, 5A004 and 5A992), the associated software and technology (3D001, 3E001, 4D001, 4D090, 4E001 and others), high bandwidth memory (3A090.c), specified semiconductor manufacturing equipment (3B001, 3B002 and others) and AI model weights (4E091). Classification conclusions must be documented and refreshed as items change.

Applies when

Chinese AI and embodied-AI companies that build or rent GPU clusters, sell AI accelerators, servers or modules, release or deliver model weights, or deploy inference clusters offshore.

Evidence to retain

• · Item classification register recording ECCN, rationale, determiner and date
• · Written ECCN notifications furnished by suppliers
• · Compute-usage record for model weights and the 4E091 determination memo
• · Reclassification records triggered by product or model version changes

Estimated first-time effort: 10–25 person-days (estimate, not a commitment)

License requirements sit in section 742.6(a) and license review policy sits in section 742.6(b); the two paragraph numbers run independently and must not be conflated. Requirements: a worldwide license requirement applies to top-tier items such as 3A090.a and 4A090.a (section 742.6(a)(6)(iii)(A)); for second-tier items such as 3A090.b a license is required for the UAE and Country Groups D:1, D:4 and D:5, excluding destinations also in A:5 or A:6 (subparagraph (B)); and separate requirements cover specified semiconductor manufacturing equipment and high bandwidth memory (3A090.c) to or within Macau and Country Group D:5 (section 742.6(a)(6)(i)). Review policy in section 742.6(b)(10) is tiered: for 3A090.c there is a presumption of approval for entities not headquartered in Macau or D:5 and a presumption of denial otherwise; for commodities within section 742.6(a)(6)(iii) exported to end users located in China or Macau there is case-by-case review where total processing performance is below 21,000 and total DRAM bandwidth below 6,500 GB/s and the applicant supplies the additional information in supplement no. 2 to part 748 under paragraph (dd), with a presumption of denial otherwise. Applications for 4E091 model weights are reviewed under section 742.6(b)(14) with a presumption of denial for end users headquartered outside the destinations in paragraph (a) of supplement no. 5 to part 740.

Applies when

Companies that procure compute hardware in the United States for shipment abroad, build compute capacity in third countries, or purchase advanced computing items abroad through a China-headquartered group entity. Headquarters and ultimate parent location are themselves determinative variables.

Evidence to retain

• · Per-transaction licensing memo covering destination, country group, end-user headquarters and ultimate parent
• · BIS license applications and the approvals or denials received
• · Working papers computing total processing performance and total DRAM bandwidth
• · End-user and end-use statements including re-export control undertakings

Estimated first-time effort: 5–20 person-days (estimate, not a commitment)

AI model weights specified in ECCN 4E091 require a license for export, reexport or in-country transfer to any destination worldwide. The requirement does not apply to deemed exports or deemed reexports to permanent regular employees of entities headquartered, or with an ultimate parent headquartered, in a destination listed in paragraph (a) of supplement no. 5 to part 740. License Exception AIA (§ 740.27) can authorize model weights only under strict conditions: the receiving entities must be located outside Macau and Country Group D:5, and the weights must be stored in a facility that complies with paragraphs 14, 15 and 18 of supplement no. 10 to part 748. A foreign-produced 4E091 item includes any item further trained or modified by fine-tuning, quantization or other post-training techniques.

Applies when

Companies that deliver model weights trained or stored in the United States to overseas customers, open-source them, or migrate them to offshore inference clusters, and companies whose China-national engineers in a U.S. subsidiary can access controlled model weights (deemed export).

Evidence to retain

• · Training compute-usage records and the 4E091 determination memo
• · Inventory of weight storage locations and access controls with facility security compliance evidence
• · Records of License Exception AIA use, including the written notice to the ultimate consignee
• · Access audit logs for the weights repository covering onshore and offshore personnel

Estimated first-time effort: 10–30 person-days (estimate, not a commitment)

Even an item manufactured entirely outside the United States falls under the EAR if it meets both the product scope and destination scope of an FDP rule. The advanced computing FDP rule (§ 734.9(h)) covers two situations: foreign-produced items that are the direct product of U.S.-controlled technology or software such as 3D001, 3E001, 4D001, 4D090, 4E001, 5D002 or 5E002; and items produced by a complete plant or major component of a plant that is itself a direct product of U.S. technology or software. In both cases the item must also be specified in 3A090, 4A090 or the corresponding .z entries. The AI model weights FDP rule (§ 734.9(l)) has a worldwide destination scope. The Entity List FDP rules (§ 734.9(e)) add separate footnote 1, footnote 4 and footnote 5 provisions.

Applies when

Companies attempting to route around U.S. controls through contract manufacturing or third-party cloud in Southeast Asia, the Middle East or Europe: if the chips, servers or model weights fall within an FDP product scope they remain subject to the EAR, and the routing does not change the jurisdictional conclusion.

Evidence to retain

• · FDP applicability memo addressing product scope and destination scope item by item
• · Technology-origin statements from offshore foundries and cloud providers
• · Supply-chain map annotating each node with item ECCN and the origin of the production tooling
• · Legal opinions or records of BIS advisory opinion requests where obtained

Estimated first-time effort: 10–30 person-days (estimate, not a commitment)

A license is required, to the extent specified on the Entity List, whenever a listed entity or an entity using an address flagged on the Entity List as presenting a high diversion risk is a party to the transaction. The listing itself states which license exceptions are available and the applicable review policy. Screening must cover the purchaser, end user, ultimate consignee, intermediate consignees and freight forwarders, and must be rerun before each shipment. BIS may also impose license requirements on a specific party by informing the exporter under § 744.11(c).

Applies when

All transactions sourced in, transiting through, or subject to the EAR via an FDP rule. For Chinese AI companies the critical exposure is that once the company or an affiliate is listed, its offshore procurement channels are immediately restricted.

Evidence to retain

• · Per-order screening records showing list version, screening timestamp and hit disposition
• · Entity List entry extracts or citations recording the license requirement and exception scope
• · Any BIS is-informed letters received and their internal distribution records
• · Party files for purchaser, end user, intermediate consignees and carriers

Estimated first-time effort: 5–15 person-days (estimate, not a commitment)

On 2025-09-30 BIS published an interim final rule (90 FR 47201, effective 2025-09-29) automatically extending Entity List restrictions to entities 50 percent or more owned by one or more listed entities, and applying the same treatment to 50 percent affiliates of listed military end users and certain sanctioned parties. On 2025-11-12 BIS then published a final rule (90 FR 50857) staying that interim final rule, effective 2025-11-10, until 2026-11-09, absent a future extension. Companies should set a calendar trigger for that date and complete ownership look-through mapping in advance so screening logic can be switched over the moment the stay lapses.

Applies when

Chinese AI companies whose cap tables include listed entities, or that could themselves be treated as affiliates of a listed entity, and their offshore procurement vehicles.

Deadline: Stay runs to 2026-11-09, absent a future extension

Evidence to retain

• · Group ownership look-through chart annotating each tier and any listed entities
• · Watch-list register for the stay expiry date with a named owner
• · Contingency plan for alternative procurement and compliance if the affiliate treatment applies
• · External legal opinion on the aggregate 50 percent test where obtained

Estimated first-time effort: 3–10 person-days (estimate, not a commitment)

Releasing controlled technology or software to a foreign national inside the United States is a deemed export and must be treated like an actual export. Section 742.6 contains specific provisions keyed to persons whose most recent citizenship or permanent residency is in Country Group D:1 or D:5, including controls on GAAFET technology in ECCN 3E905 and a limited carve-out for employees already employed as of 2024-09-06 who are not prohibited persons under part 744. Companies must therefore segment access to R&D systems by nationality and update entitlements on hire, transfer and departure.

Applies when

Chinese AI companies with U.S. R&D centres employing China-national engineers, and companies whose China-based teams access U.S. R&D environments remotely.

Evidence to retain

• · Controlled-technology inventory with an access matrix segmented by citizenship and residency status
• · Export-control review records completed at onboarding and internal transfer for foreign nationals
• · Access audit logs for code repositories, model repositories and design files
• · Deemed-export license applications and approvals where required

Estimated first-time effort: 8–20 person-days (estimate, not a commitment)

Before using License Exception AIA under § 740.27, the exporter must furnish the ECCN of each item to the ultimate consignee and obtain a one-time ultimate-consignee certification, which is submitted to BIS at EARReports@bis.doc.gov with the subject line AIA Certification. Each shipment must be accompanied by written notice to the ultimate consignee that it is made pursuant to License Exception AIA, identifying the covered items or stating that the whole shipment is covered. The reporting requirement is triggered where the ultimate consignee receives items under § 740.27(a)(1) with a cumulative total processing performance of 253,000,000 TPP.

Applies when

Exporters, reexporters and in-country transferors delivering advanced computing items or model weights to destinations in paragraph (a) of supplement no. 5 to part 740 under the AIA exception.

Evidence to retain

• · Original ultimate-consignee certification and the record of its submission to BIS
• · Written ECCN notification letters
• · Copies of the per-shipment AIA notices
• · Cumulative TPP ledger used to test the reporting threshold

Estimated first-time effort: 3–8 person-days (estimate, not a commitment)

Institutionalize the above decisions: item classification workflow, counterparty screening workflow, licensing and exception workflow, red-flag escalation, training, internal audit and complete retention of transaction documents. The EAR imposes independent liability for recordkeeping failures and false statements, so export documents such as invoices, packing lists, end-user statements and internal determination memos should be centrally filed to support BIS end-use checks.

Applies when

Any company engaged in transactions subject to the EAR, including offshore entities of Chinese groups that only receive advanced computing items as end users.

Evidence to retain

• · Export compliance manual and approval workflow chart
• · Red-flag checklist and escalation disposition records
• · Export control training records and assessment results
• · Transaction document archive index covering invoices, end-user statements, determination memos and screening records

Estimated first-time effort: 15–45 person-days (estimate, not a commitment)