Treasury Department Eases Sanctions on Medical Device Exports to Iran

The U.S. Treasury Department has recently expanded the range of medical devices that may be exported or reexported from the United States to Iran without the need for specific authorization from the department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

OFAC has established a new list of medical devices requiring specific authorization which includes a range of products from biocontainment chambers to HEPA filters. Other than the listed products, medical devices classified as EAR99 under the U.S. Export Administration Regulations are now generally authorized for sale and export to Iran.

“This new list represents a significant change in OFAC’s approach for Iran with respect to the licensing of medical devices classified as EAR99,” says Margaret Gatti, a partner in the International Trade and Sanctions Practice at Morgan Lewis.

The final rule also expanded general authorizations to include training, replacement parts, software, and services for medical devices. — Jeff Kinney