Qualifying services under 31 CFR § 560.540(a)(1) are those that are “incident to the exchange of communications over the internet,” as well as cloud-based services in support of such services or of any other transaction authorized or exempt under the ITSR. Qualifying software under 31 CFR § 560.540(a)(2) is software that is incident to, or enables services incident to, the exchange of communications over the internet, as well as certain cloud-based services. In addition, qualifying software under 31 CFR § 560.540(a)(2) must meet the stated export control-related criteria. Both paragraphs provide an illustrative but not exhaustive list of the types of services that are authorized: “instant messaging, chat and email, social networking, sharing of photos and movies, web browsing, blogging, social media platforms, collaboration platforms, video conferencing, e-gaming, e-learning platforms, automated translation, web maps, and user authentication services, as well as cloud-based services in support of the foregoing or of any other transaction authorized or exempt under the ITSR.
Qualifying services or software need not be specifically listed in the 31 CFR § 560.540 List of Services, Software, and Hardware Incident to Communications in order to be authorized by 31 CFR § 560.540(a)(1) or (a)(2), provided that they otherwise meet the requirements of 31 CFR § 560.540(a)(1) or (a)(2).
Date Updated: May 16, 2024