Key Notes:
- Proposed rule would allow persons working under a long-term contract to be considered “regular employees” under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) even if they work remotely.
- Remote work would be permitted so long as people were not working in Belarus, Burma, China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Syria or Venezuela, or any other country subject to a U.S. arms embargo.
- Persons considered “regular employees” are exempt from various licensing requirements under the ITAR.
- Public comments must be submitted on or before July 26, 2021.
At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) announced a temporary suspension of and exception to the ITAR’s requirement that regular employees or long-term contractual personnel must work on-site at a company’s facilities, allowing individuals to telework during the public health emergency. On May 27, DDTC proposed a rule that would amend the ITAR’s definition of “regular employee” to make this change permanent and include (1) persons working under long-term contracts and sufficiently subject to the employer’s control, and (2) contractors not working under long-term contracts but who have active security clearances and are sufficiently under the employer’s control.