Legislation and Policy
The processing and practicalities of issuing export licences for strategic goods (military or dual-use items) result ultimately from international regimes and agreements, legislation and policy. This is all distilled into the Control Lists which are essential documents in listing controlled items.
International Regimes and Agreements
The UK participates in a number of export control regimes. Each regime maintains a list of controlled goods and technology which is discussed and updated regularly. These agreed lists are then incorporated into each countries different legislation and respective Control Lists. Read more about the international regimes .
EU and UK Legislation (Statutory Law)
This is derived from 2 aspects:
- EU law which has direct effect within all EU member states separate legal systems (including the UK) and overrides national law.
- UK national law which is specific to the UK situation.
As an exporter, you need to be aware of the following EU legislation, which is directly applicable in the UK:
- EU Dual-Use Regulation (also known as Council Regulation (EC) No 1334/2000)
- EU Regulation on Torture (also known as Regulation (EC) No 1236/2005)
You should also be aware of specific UK legislation:
- Export Control Act (2002) and resulting secondary legislation (known as “orders”). These are:
- The "Main" Order
- Trade in Goods (Control) Order
- Trade in Controlled Goods to Embargoed Destinations Order
- Export of Radioactive Sources (Control) Order
The Act is currently undergoing a Review.
A summary of the UK's legislation is available under Current UK Strategic Export Control Legislation.
Strategic Export Control Lists
These are key documents. As the name suggests they are a list of controlled items. The Control Lists comprise several different parts, in particular:
- The UK Military List
- The Dual-Use List
Both lists form part of the UK Strategic Export Control Lists: The Consolidated UK Military and UK and EC Dual-Use Lists
End Use Controls
These are so called “catch-all” controls where there are concerns about the end-user. End Use Controls fall into 2 categories – Military End Use and WMD End Use.
License Decision Making
The UK Government is a party to internationally agreed criteria governing the export of arms and military equipment. These are:
- The UN Register of Conventional Arms
- The principles governing arms transfers agreed by the Forum for Security Cooperation of the OSCE.
- EU Code of Conduct on Arms Exports
(48KB)All licence applications to export arms and other goods controlled for strategic reasons are considered against these criteria on a case by case basis.
Background to Export Controls
If you want to know more about the history and developments of export controls in the UK, the following documents and pages might be of interest:
Keep Updated
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Export Control Organisation
Updated: July 2008