An Export Control Classification Number is a five-character alphanumeric code that identifies whether goods, software, or technology require a US government license before they can leave the country or be shared with a foreign national. The Bureau of Industry and Security maintains the list on the Commerce Control List. Finding the right code is the first real step in any export compliance decision, because the code carries the reasons for control, and the reasons for control decide whether a license is needed.
The code is structured. The first character is a digit from 0 to 9 for one of ten broad categories, from nuclear materials through aerospace and propulsion, with electronics, computers, telecommunications, information security, and sensors in between. The second character is a letter from A to E for the product group: equipment, test and production equipment, materials, software, or technology. The rest narrows to the specific entry.
An ECCN is not the same as a Schedule B or HTS number. The HTS code is for trade statistics and duties. The ECCN is for licensing. One identifies the commodity. The other decides whether it is controlled. A product can have a straightforward HTS code and a controlled ECCN, and the HTS code will not warn you.
Most exporters self-classify. The method is to gather the technical specifications, identify the likely category and product group, and compare the item's specifications against the technical thresholds in the candidate ECCN entry, in Supplement No. 1 to Part 774 of the EAR. The classification must be based on what the item actually does, its performance parameters, encryption, materials, and capability, not on what it looks like or what it is marketed as. If no entry fits, the item is EAR99.
When self-classification is not practical, because the parameters sit near a control threshold or the entry is ambiguous, BIS will classify it. The request goes through the SNAP-R online portal, and BIS responds within 14 calendar days with a formal determination called a CCATS. Each request is limited to six items, and it needs enough technical detail for BIS to make the determination. A CCATS is a determination you can rely on. A guess is not.
The classification is only the first of four factors. The license decision combines the ECCN's reasons for control, the destination country checked against the Commerce Country Chart, the end use, and the end user. An ECCN alone does not tell you whether you need a license. A controlled item to a friendly destination may ship freely. An EAR99 item to an embargoed destination may not ship at all.
Before shipping, screen the buyer, the consignee, the end user, and any freight forwarder or intermediary against the federal restricted-party lists: the BIS Entity List, the Denied Persons List, and the Unverified List. A correct ECCN does not authorise a shipment to a prohibited party, and a license-free item can still be blocked by end-use and end-user controls.
EAR99 items usually ship without a license, but they cannot go to an embargoed destination such as Cuba, Iran, North Korea, or Syria, to a restricted end user, or for a prohibited end use without authorization. Certain end uses, such as nuclear, missile, or military end uses, trigger controls regardless of classification. The screening is the check that catches what the classification misses.
Once the item is cleared to ship, file the Electronic Export Information in the Automated Export System for shipments over 2,500 dollars per Schedule B number, or for any shipment that requires a license, and put the correct ECCN or EAR99 on the export documents. The EAR require exporters to keep records of export transactions for five years. For administrative violations, BIS can impose a civil penalty of up to roughly 374,474 dollars per violation, the 2025 inflation-adjusted figure carried into 2026, or twice the value of the transaction. The record is the defence. Keep it.
Related reading on this site: Country of origin marking: what has to be marked, and what happens when it is not, Export controls: when does a shipment need a licence, and what is EAR99?, and What Is an ECCN, and How Do You Find Yours?.
An Export Control Classification Number is a five-character code on the Commerce Control List that tells you whether an item needs a license to be exported, and to where. It is assigned by the Bureau of Industry and Security under the Export Administration Regulations.
It means the item is subject to the Export Administration Regulations but is not listed on the Commerce Control List. Most commercial products are EAR99, and they generally ship without a license, but they still cannot go to embargoed destinations, restricted end users, or prohibited end uses.
Submit a classification request through the SNAP-R online portal. BIS responds within 14 calendar days with a CCATS determination. Each request covers up to six items and needs enough technical detail for BIS to decide.
No. The HTS code is for trade statistics and duties. The ECCN is for export licensing. A product can have a simple HTS code and a controlled ECCN, and the HTS code will not tell you that.