Commodity Jurisdiction commonly referred to as a CJ, is a request to the Department of State of the United States Government to help a person or entity determine whether a particular good or service is a product that is covered under the US Munitions’ List (USML). If an item is categorized as a good or service under the USML, then many of the ITAR regulations control which ultimately may mean that DDTC registration is necessary and an export license must be acquired prior to selling the good or service to a foreign person or entity. Additionally, there are numerous
restrictions as to which countries are permitted to receive these types of products. There are many subcategorizations of the USML list and not all products which are part of the USML list are treated the same.
Oftentimes, certain types of goods and services may be self-classified by experienced consultants or attorneys who have a solid grasp as to the regulations and how they are currently being applied. When in doubt, a commodity jurisdiction request using DECCS is the best way to show that a good faith effort was made to properly classify a good or service under ITAR. Indeed, even if the good or service is later determined to have been misclassified, the criminal aspects of ITAR are avoided.
In any event, misclassifications of a product or service can carry significant civil monetary liability. An experienced ITAR attorney should be consulted. Maurice Arcadier, from Arcadier and Associates, is an experienced litigator with deep knowledge as to ITAR regulations, Commodity Jurisdiction, navigating with the DDTC and significant experience in self-reporting a violation to minimize liability and risks.
Our offices are located in Melbourne, Florida, which is commonly referred to as the Space Coast with numerous defense contractors who are often presented with complex ITAR related issues.
