The State Department has filed correcting amendments to restore provisions inadvertently removed by its September 18 amendments to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). The corrections restore three conditions governing universities’ releases of technical data to foreign employees and two exceptions to restrictions on exemption use involving proscribed destinations. Publication is scheduled for September 23, with effectiveness upon publication. Correction notice, FR Doc. 2026-19404.
The errors arose because the September 18 rule’s amendatory instructions replaced entire paragraphs when State intended to revise only specified portions. Instruction 7 replaced § 125.4(b)(10), omitting its subordinate conditions; instruction 9.a. replaced § 126.1(a), omitting two existing exceptions. State expressly identifies both deletions as inadvertent. September 18 final rule, 91 FR 59059.
The material differences are:
| Provision | September 18 rule | Correction scheduled for September 23 |
|---|---|---|
| University employee exemption, § 125.4(b)(10) | Retained the exemption’s introductory language but inadvertently removed paragraphs (i)–(iii). | Restores requirements that the employee maintain a permanent abode in the United States throughout employment; not be a national of a country prohibited under § 126.1; and receive written notice that further transfers to foreign persons require prior written DDTC approval. |
| Transfers by or for the U.S. Government, § 126.1(a)(2) | Inadvertently removed the exception. | Restores the exception for transfers under § 126.4(a)(1), (a)(3), and (b)(1), and under § 126.4(a)(2) or (b)(2) for exports destined for Russia in support of government space cooperation. |
| U.S. Government recipients, § 126.1(a)(3) | Inadvertently removed the exception. | Restores the exception when the recipient is a U.S. Government department or agency. |
These restored provisions match the earlier regulatory language in substance. The correction retains the September 18 terminology changes in the university exemption—replacing “Disclosures” with “Releases” and hyphenating “full-time”—and preserves the revised § 126.1(a) introduction and paragraph (a)(1). Comparison sources: earlier § 125.4 text, earlier § 126.1 text, and the correcting amendments.
The correction makes no further changes to the major non-NATO ally list. Saudi Arabia and Peru were added by the September 18 rule. That rule’s Ethiopia, Somalia, Libya, South Sudan, and Canadian-exemption amendments also remain outside the scope of this correction. September 18 final rule.
For compliance teams, the corrections matter because they restore both restrictions on university exemption eligibility and exceptions permitting specified government-related transfers.
Institutions and exporters should check any procedures or exemption determinations revised in response to the September 18 text. The correction provides for effectiveness upon publication; it contains no express retroactivity provision or separate treatment of transactions during the intervening period.
The public-inspection notice itself contains apparent citation errors: its explanatory text twice cites “90 FR 59061” instead of “91 FR 59061” and once identifies the restored university provisions as § 125.4(b)(1)(i)–(iii). The operative amendment correctly identifies and reproduces § 125.4(b)(10)(i)–(iii). Correction notice.
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