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442. For purposes of category (5) of the 31 CFR § 560.540 List of Services, Software, and Hardware Incident to Communications, what would be considered “software required for effective consumer use” of personal computing devices, laptops, and tablets?

Answer

“Software required for effective consumer use” consists of software essential to the operation of the hardware listed in category (5) of the 31 CFR § 560.540 List of Services, Software, and Hardware Incident to Communications, including, for example, drivers and patches.  Operating systems are separately authorized in category (5) of the 31 CFR § 560.540 List of Services, Software, and Hardware Incident to Communications.

In addition, effective June 16, 2024, OFAC is amending the 31 CFR § 560.540 List of Services, Software, and Hardware Incident to Communications to exclude laptops, tablets, and personal computing devices with an “Adjusted Peak Performance” (“APP”) exceeding 1 Weighted TeraFLOP (WT).  After this change is effective, the only laptops, tablets, and other computing devices that may be exported to Iran are ones with an APP of 1 WT or less.

Date Updated: May 16, 2024

Date Released
February 17, 2015