Provision of technical assistance under EU Dual-Use Regulation
Controls apply to provision of technical assistance1 related to dual-use items by University or members of Aalto community under EU Dual-Use Regulation.
| Technical assistance | Technical assistance means any technical support related to repairs, development, manufacture, assembly, testing, maintenance, or any other technical service, and may take forms such as instruction, advice, training, transmission of working knowledge or skills or consulting services, including by electronic means as well as by telephone or any other verbal form of assistance. |
| Provider of technical assistance | Aalto employees are acting as providers of technical assistance when they (a) provide technical assistance from the EU to a recipient located outside the EU (b) when they themselves are in a third country and provide technical assistance there or (c) when they provide technical assistance to a resident of a third country who is temporarily present in the EU. |
An authorisation for the provision of technical assistance is needed if
- the technical assistance relates to a dual use item listed in Annex I or in the national control list, and
- the provider of technical assistance is aware, has grounds for suspecting, or has been informed by the competent authorities that the item that they are about to provide technical assistance for is or may be intended to be used:
- for weapons of mass destruction or their delivery systems, or
- for any military end-use in a country subject to an arms embargo, or
- for use as parts or components of military items exported from EU member state without or in violation of authorization.
However, there are some activities qualifying as provision of technical assistance noteworthy to the University that do not require an authorization. Firstly, authorisation is not required if technical assistance takes the form of transferring information that is in the public domain or basic scientific research within the meaning of the General Technology Note or of the Nuclear Technology Note set out in Annex I. Secondly, authorization is not needed if technical assistance is provided within or into the territory of any of the following countries Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland (including Liechtenstein), United Kingdom or United States, or to a resident of any of the foregoing countries.
1 Technical assistance in this context refers to the Article 8 of the EU Dual-Use Regulation. Please note that this differs from the notion of 鈥渢echnical assistance鈥, as a form of controlled technology.
Accordingly, the concept of "providing technical assistance鈥 differs from the concept of 鈥漚n export of controlled technology鈥 in several important ways, including:
- Unlike technology export, the provision of technical assistance does not necessarily involve the disclosure of information to a third party. For instance, traveling from the EU to a third country to fix a dual-use item located in such country would constitute provision of technical assistance, even if no one in the third country would be able to see or understand what exactly was broken or how it was fixed; and
- Unlike technology exports, the provision of technical assistance does not necessarily involve a cross-border element. For example, instructing a non-EU researcher temporarily visiting Otaniemi campus on how to use a dual-use item would constitute technical assistance, even if both persons are physically in the same room; and
- Unlike technology exports, provision of technical assistance itself does not have to involve transmission of technology (information) that qualifies as controlled dual-use technology as it is requisite that technical assistance being provided relates to an item listed in Annex I or in the national control list.
In practice, technical assistance in the meaning used here requires a license only in the rare instances where a catch-all would apply, i.e., where the end-use is related to weapons of mass destruction or their delivery systems, or military uses in arms embargoed countries. Please see Catch-all control and cyber-surveillance items for more information on catch-all situations.
The effect of the above control is that, depending on circumstances, prior license may be required for any of the following activities (as an example):
- a member of Aalto community, while on Otaniemi campus, provides online support to an individual in a third country (i.e. outside EU) related to a dual-use item;
- a member of Aalto community travels to a third country (i.e. outside EU) to conduct research in a foreign university during which such member provides support to an individual in the host university related to a dual-use item; or
- visiting researcher arrives in Otaniemi campus from a third country (i.e. outside EU) to temporarily conduct research herein during which support is provided to him/her related to dual-use item by a member of Aalto community.
Please note that provision of technical assistance is oftentimes prohibited in EU鈥檚 sanctions programs. Such prohibition captures technical assistance for items in the product coverage of a particular sanctions program. Please see EU sanctions programs | Aalto University for more information.