A rack of accelerated servers sits in an EU warehouse, sold to a customer outside the Union. The freight is booked and the export declaration is drafted. Whether it can lawfully leave depends on the EU dual-use control list, and on a question most shipments never ask, which is who, in law, is the exporter.
On 14 September 2026 the European Commission adopted an update to Annex I of Regulation (EU) 2021/821, the EU dual-use control list. It adds further advanced computing chips and electronic assemblies, and more semiconductor manufacturing and testing equipment. As of 22 September 2026 it is not yet in force, but that does not mean uncontrolled. The list in force already includes advanced computing controls added in 2025.
Carra Globe provides exporter of record services, and an outsourced importer of record service for the import side, so we have a commercial interest in your answer. What follows is written to be usable whether or not you ever speak to us.
What the Commission adopted on 14 September 2026
Delegated Regulation C(2026)6323 brings the list in line with 2025 decisions in the Wassenaar Arrangement, the Australia Group and the Nuclear Suppliers Group. Dual-use items are items, including software and technology, that can be used for both civil and military purposes. For IT and data centre hardware, the additions that matter are these.
- Advanced computing integrated circuits, and electronic assemblies such as those incorporating one or more digital processing units
- Semiconductor manufacturing and testing equipment and materials, including atomic layer deposition equipment for molybdenum and ruthenium, EUV mask and reticle inspection equipment, and single wafer cleaning equipment
- Changes to control parameters, technical definitions and descriptions across the list
It builds on Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2003, in force since 15 November 2025, which added the first controls on advanced computing integrated circuits and electronic assemblies, including field programmable logic devices. So the question for AI hardware is not only what is coming but what already applies. Outside IT, the 2026 update also covers items such as ceramic matrix composites and gas turbine compressor technology.
Does the 2026 update apply to my AI hardware yet? Not yet. It enters into force on publication in the Official Journal, after the usual two-month scrutiny period. Until then the list in force since November 2025 applies, and it already contains advanced computing controls. Classify against that list now. The adopted delegated regulation is public, so you can prepare for the new entries too.
This does not make every AI server a controlled item. Whether a server, GPU system or accelerator is controlled depends on the Annex I entry and its technical parameters, plus any catch-all or national control. The item still has to be classified against the list that legally applies.
The EU list is usually amended at least once a year. Our guide to export controls for data centre hardware shows how it sits alongside the Wassenaar, UK and US regimes.
Who needs to check
- EU manufacturers and distributors exporting servers, accelerators, network equipment or electronic assemblies
- Non-EU vendors selling stock held in an EU warehouse to customers outside the Union
- Data centre operators moving hardware from an EU site to a third country
- Resellers and IT asset disposal companies selling on used AI hardware
- Suppliers of semiconductor manufacturing and test equipment and materials
- Anyone using an exporter of record for shipments leaving the EU, including from Germany or the Netherlands
Why “it’s just a server” is not an export control analysis
Annex I controls items by technical parameters, not product names. A server, GPU card, accelerator module or network appliance can fall inside or outside an entry depending on what its chips can do. “Standard IT equipment” is a description, not a classification, and three common shortcuts do not replace one.
| Shortcut | Why it does not answer the question |
|---|---|
| The HS code | A customs classification for tariff and statistical purposes. It does not decide dual-use status. See HS code 8542 for GPU chips and HS code 8471 for servers |
| A US ECCN on the datasheet | Useful supporting evidence, but the EU and US lists are not identical. The EU classification comes from Annex I itself |
| “We imported it without a licence” | Lawful import into the EU does not decide whether the export needs authorisation |
What to collect before classifying
- Manufacturer, exact model and part number
- The chip or accelerator model, and how many are fitted
- Technical specifications and the datasheet
- Board or module configuration, and any firmware or software supplied
- Destination, end user and end use
- Country of origin, and any US-origin content or technology
- Any existing EU or US classification, and previous authorisations
Two kinds of hardware need extra care once the 2026 entries apply. Boards or modules with the relevant digital processing architecture may need assessing against the new electronic assembly entries, and until then they may already be caught by an existing entry, Article 4 or Article 9. Semiconductor manufacturing and test tools also gain new entries, as covered in importer of record for semiconductor manufacturing equipment.
Who is the exporter under the EU dual-use regulation?
Article 3 requires authorisation to export items listed in Annex I, and Articles 4 and 9 can add requirements for unlisted items. Under Article 12, individual and global authorisations are granted by the Member State where the exporter is resident or established, or, for an exporter outside the Union, an individual authorisation by the Member State where the items are located. So the exporter has to be identified correctly before anyone applies.
Article 2 defines the exporter as the person who, when the export declaration is accepted, holds the contract with the consignee in the third country and has the power to determine the sending of the items out of the Union. Where there is no such contract, it is the person with that power. The legal exporter is not automatically the shipper, the customs filer or the exporter of record.
One sentence catches non-EU vendors. Where the right to dispose of the item belongs to a person outside the Union under the export contract, the exporter is the contracting party resident or established inside the Union. That party carries the obligations. The answer turns on the contract and the facts, so document it rather than assume it.
An exporter of record is not a licence. Appointing one does not create or remove an authorisation requirement, and it does not by itself make the provider the exporter under Article 2. Where Annex I captures the item, the Article 2 exporter has to establish the authorisation route. Settle the structure before the goods move.
| Situation | Who is the exporter | The question to settle |
|---|---|---|
| An EU company exporting goods it has sold | Usually that company | Does the item need authorisation, and which route applies? |
| A non-EU seller shipping from EU stock | Where the right to dispose sits outside the EU, the EU contracting party | Who is the contracting party established in the EU? |
| An exporter of record is appointed | Depends on the contractual and factual structure | Does the arrangement make the exporter of record the Article 2 exporter? |
Our guide to what an exporter of record does explains the role, and IOR versus EOR sets out where each one sits.
The check, in order
For an EU export of IT or AI hardware, this order avoids the expensive mistakes. Logistics comes last on purpose.
- Identify the hardware precisely. Model, configuration and the chips inside, not the marketing name.
- Classify against Annex I. Use the list in force, then check the 2026 entries once published.
- Check national lists. Under Article 9, Member States can control certain unlisted items, including for public security or human rights reasons.
- Identify the exporter. Apply the Article 2 test, including the rule for non-EU sellers.
- Check destination, end user, end use and sanctions. Article 4 can require authorisation for unlisted items, and an exporter aware of a covered end use must notify the competent authority. EU restrictive measures can apply as well.
- Choose the authorisation route. Individual, global, national general or Union general.
- Only then book the freight.
Export under Article 2 also covers re-export, outward processing and sending software or technology electronically outside the Union, so controlled files sent by email or made available online need assessing too. Brokering, technical assistance and transit are controlled separately.
What to keep on file
The Commission lists record-keeping and registers among the compliance measures the regulation requires. Regular exporters hold this in an internal compliance programme (ICP), which is mandatory for global authorisations unless the authority considers it unnecessary. Each shipment file should show how every step was answered.
- A classification memo naming the Annex I entry, the list version used and the 2026 changes reviewed
- End user, end use, destination, sanctions and embargo screening
- The Article 4, Article 9 and Article 2 analyses
- Any US-origin or EAR analysis
- The authorisation obtained, or the reasoned no-licence decision, with sign-off
- The software and technology transfer assessment
- The commercial invoice, packing list and export declaration
EU dual-use export authorisations, and where EU001 fits
The regulation speaks of export authorisations, which is what most exporters mean by an EU export licence. Article 12 provides four types, and which applies depends on the item, the destination and how often you export.
| Authorisation | What it covers | Who grants it |
|---|---|---|
| Individual | One exporter, one end user or consignee, one or more items | The exporter’s Member State, or where the items are located if the exporter is outside the Union |
| Global | One exporter, a type or category of items, one or more end users or countries | The exporter’s Member State |
| National general | Defined by national law within the regulation’s limits | The Member State concerned |
| Union general (EU001 to EU008) | All exporters meeting the Annex II conditions, for certain destinations | Set in the regulation, subject to national registration and notification |
EU001 covers Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland including Liechtenstein, the United Kingdom and the United States. It is not a blanket authorisation for AI hardware. It excludes items in Section I of Annex II and cannot be used where its conditions bar it, including specified weapons of mass destruction uses and certain military uses.
Using it is not automatic either. National authorities attach registration and notification conditions. Ireland, for example, requires exporters to register and notify first use within 30 days. Check the rules of the Member State where the exporter is established.
EU and US: why one check is not enough
An AI server leaving Germany or the Netherlands can fall under two regimes at once. The EU list governs the export from the Union, while the US Export Administration Regulations can apply independently to US-origin items and, in specified cases, to certain foreign-made items under 15 CFR 734.3. An EU authorisation, or a finding that none is needed, does not settle the US position, and the reverse is equally true.
Our guide to ITAR and EAR compliance for IT hardware shipments covers the US side, and our note on the Chip Security Act and AI hardware covers a related US development.
Retired, redeployed and repaired hardware
Second-hand hardware is not outside export control. A decommissioned cluster sold on or moved to a group site outside the Union still has to be assessed, as covered in exporting retired AI hardware. The same goes for units sent out for repair. The customs side of the round trip is in exporting equipment for repair, but the export control question still has to be answered for the outbound leg.
How Carra Globe approaches EU exports of AI hardware
Carra Globe Ltd is a UK company, number 16657216, providing importer of record, exporter of record, DDP and trade compliance services across 175+ countries. Moving IT and data centre hardware is a large part of our work, and on controlled items the legal route comes before the logistics.
The classification and authorisation position must be established for the Article 2 exporter, under the procedures of the Member State concerned. Where we are appointed in an exporter of record structure, we work through that position with the parties, flag where the Article 2 exporter may differ from the one you expected, and move the shipment once the authorisation position is clear. See our exporter of record service and exporter of record by country.
Exporter of Record · EU
We handle EU exports of IT and AI hardware. The legal route comes first.
Being clear about the boundary: appointing an exporter of record does not by itself make us the exporter under Article 2, and it does not create or remove an authorisation requirement. What we do is gather the technical data, work through classification, the exporter question and the authorisation route with you and your advisers, and only then book the freight.
- Exporter of record services
- What an exporter of record does
- Export controls for data centre hardware
- ITAR and EAR for IT hardware
- Exporting retired AI hardware
- HS code 8542 for GPU chips
- Exporter of record in Germany
- Exporter of record in the Netherlands
- EOR by country
Free tools HS Code Finder Volumetric Weight Calculator Pallet Calculator
Exporting servers or accelerators from the EU? Send the model, configuration, destination and end user. We will map the checks before quoting, and say so plainly if the route needs an authorisation first.
Check your EU export routeFrequently asked questions
Is the 2026 EU dual-use update in force?
Not yet. It enters into force on publication in the Official Journal, after a two-month scrutiny period. Until then the list in force since November 2025, which already includes advanced computing controls, applies.
Do AI servers need an export licence from the EU?
It depends on the specific hardware and the applicable control entry. An authorisation may be required where the item is listed in Annex I, or where a catch-all or national control applies.
Who is the exporter if a non-EU company sells from EU stock?
Where the right to dispose belongs to a person outside the EU under the contract, the regulation treats the contracting party established in the EU as the exporter.
Can an exporter of record be the exporter?
Potentially, where the contract and the facts make it the exporter under Article 2. Appointment alone does not decide it.
Does EU001 cover exports to the US and UK?
Yes, both are EU001 destinations, but items in Section I of Annex II are excluded and national registration and notification conditions apply.
Does a US ECCN tell me the EU classification?
No. The lists share multilateral roots but are not identical, so the EU classification has to be established against Annex I itself.
Does an HS code show whether an item is controlled?
No. An HS code is a customs classification for tariff and statistical purposes. Export control status comes from the dual-use list and its technical parameters.
Sources and verification
- Primary instrument: Regulation (EU) 2021/821, for the definitions of export and exporter in Article 2, the authorisation requirement in Article 3, the catch-all in Article 4, national lists in Article 9, authorisation types and the granting Member State in Article 12, and penalties in Article 25.
- The 2026 update: European Commission, 2026 update of the EU control list of dual-use items, 14 September 2026, Delegated Regulation C(2026)6323. The scope of the additions and the entry into force mechanism are taken from this notice.
- The 2025 update: Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/2003, published in the Official Journal on 14 November 2025 and in force from the following day, and the Commission’s 2025 update notice, for the scope of the 2025 additions, including advanced computing, and the annual amendment cycle.
- Compliance measures and sanctions: European Commission, exporting dual-use items, for record-keeping and registers, brokering, technical assistance and transit controls, and the note that EU restrictive measures may also apply.
- Union general export authorisations: Government of Ireland, Union general export authorisation guidance, for the EU001 destinations, the Annex II exclusion and an example of national registration and notification conditions.
- US scope: 15 CFR 734.3, for the items subject to the Export Administration Regulations.
- This is not legal advice. Classification and authorisation are matters for the exporter, its advisers and the competent authority of the Member State concerned.
Disclaimer: This guide is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax or customs advice. The EU dual-use list, its entry into force, and the conditions attached to authorisations may change, and the 2026 update had not been published in the Official Journal when this article was written. This article reflects publicly available information as at 22 September 2026. Always confirm classification and authorisation requirements with a qualified adviser and the competent authority before exporting.