Export/Import Licensing and Tracking Special Nuclear and Source Material – Policies, Regulations and Enforcement

Under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is responsible for licensing exports and imports of nuclear materials, facilities and equipment to ensure these items are used only for peaceful purposes. This authority extends to production and utilization facilities, to special nuclear, source and byproduct materials, to certain nuclear facility components, and to certain other materials, including nuclear grade graphite and deuterium. In conducting case-by-case reviews of applications for export licenses, the NRC solicits the views and recommendations of other U.S. government agencies as needed or required. NRC specific licenses for exports of special nuclear or source material document the details and establish specific terms and conditions including expiration dates for either single export transactions or a series of export transactions. Such licenses authorize the export only. They do not authorize any person to receive title to, acquire, receive, possess, deliver, use, transport or transfer the material. The licenses set the total maximum quantities of special nuclear or source material including the chemical forms of the material authorized for export and identify the intermediate and ultimate end users who will receive the material and indicate how they will use it.