The first step is an examination to determine whether any personal sanctions are in place against the person or organisation involved in your project. The content and scope of the relevant sanctions are set out in national and international sanctions lists. An entry on one of these lists has far-reaching consequences for the person or organisation in question. The freezing of all their funds and economic resources effectively amounts to a deprivation of assets.
Consequently, all economic operators are prohibited from making funds or economic resources available, either directly or indirectly, to the listed persons or organisations. Economic resources are assets of any kind – whether tangible or intangible, movable or immovable – which do not themselves constitute money but can be used to acquire funds, goods or services.

Provided that no personal embargoes are in place, in the event of an intended transfer or export of goods (the term covers goods, software and technology) to a third country, the next step is to assess whether the goods in question are classified as particularly sensitive in the context of foreign trade. This applies to dual-use goods (goods that can be used for both civilian and military purposes) and, secondly, to defence equipment, weapons and ammunition. The goods in question are listed and defined in the National Export List (Annex to the Foreign Trade Regulation) and the European List of Goods (Annex I to the EC Dual-Use Regulation). In addition to goods, these lists also include software and technology.

When making your assessment, please therefore bear in mind in particular that the provision of technology, whether in tangible or intangible form (transmission by telephone or email, or the provision of data via a cloud), may also constitute an export.

In addition to the export of such sensitive goods, the provision of certain services referred to as ‘technical assistance’ (e.g. in connection with a military end-use or nuclear facilities) is also subject to export controls.

Technical assistance means any technical help relating to repair, development, manufacture, assembly, testing, maintenance or any other technical service. Technical assistance may take the form of instruction, training, the transfer of practical knowledge or skills, or consultancy services. It also covers verbal, telephone and electronic forms of assistance.

The intended export of sensitive goods, as well as technical assistance in certain areas, usually requires prior contact with the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control due to the goods-related authorisation or notification requirements.

To make an initial assessment of whether an item (goods, software, technology) to be exported or for which technical assistance is to be provided is subject to restrictions, a tool provided by Customs can be used: https://auskunft.ezt-online.de/ – to determine the relevant commodity code, you can use the website https://www.zolltarifnummern.de/.

If in doubt, you can contact the export control officer at any time.

The next step is to consider the country involved in your project with regard to any potential embargoes. Foreign trade with certain countries may be restricted or prohibited. Such country-specific restrictions may also affect individuals residing in Germany, provided they are nationals of such a country or are resident there.

A distinction is made between a total embargo (usually a complete ban on foreign trade), a partial embargo (restrictions on specific goods and services, always applied on a case-by-case basis) and an arms embargo (prohibitions on the sale, export, import and transit of military equipment and related services).

An overview of current country-specific embargoes, including the underlying legal acts, can be found here: www.sanctionsmap.eu

Further information on the subject of embargoes can be found on the BAFA website.

Finally, the actual intended use of the goods to be exported must be assessed.

This is because even the export of goods not listed in the Goods List or the Export List is subject to authorisation requirements based on their intended use if they are associated with a sensitive use (‘catch-all provision’). Such uses include, amongst others, chemical, biological or nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices and missiles designed for them, where they are intended for general military use, nuclear purposes or nuclear applications.

An authorisation requirement applies if you yourself are either aware of the sensitive use or have been informed of it by the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control.

Please note that there is no obligation to investigate this matter. However, should you become aware of the planned sensitive use, or should this be evident from the circumstances, please contact the export control officer.