10 CFR 810: Authorization Types, Deemed Exports, and Penalties

10 CFR Part 810 is the U.S. Department of Energy regulation that controls the export of unclassified nuclear technology, technical data, and assistance to foreign countries and foreign nationals. It draws its authority from Section 57 b.(2) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, which bars anyone from helping produce or develop special nuclear material abroad without the Secretary of Energy’s authorization.¹ The National Nuclear Security Administration runs the program day to day, and every proposed transfer falls into one of two buckets: pre-approved for a listed set of countries, or requiring a case-by-case application to the Secretary.

What Part 810 Actually Controls

Part 810 covers intangible transfers: technical data, instruction, training, consulting services, and expertise related to nuclear fuel-cycle activities, commercial power plants, and research or test reactors.¹ The form of the transfer does not matter. A physical document, an email attachment, a training session, or a conversation can all count. The rule reaches all persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction, including U.S.-controlled companies and individuals overseas.

What Part 810 does not do is control physical hardware or nuclear material. Exports of reactor components, enriched uranium, plutonium, and similar items are handled by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission under 10 CFR Part 110.² Part 810 also does not cover classified “Restricted Data” or nuclear propulsion technology.

Several categories of activity fall outside Part 810 entirely:

Information already in the public domain, including the results of fundamental research.
Exports already licensed by the NRC, the Department of State, or the Department of Commerce.
Uranium and thorium mining and milling, including production of yellowcake.
Nuclear fusion technology, with a narrow exception for hydrogen isotope separation systems.
Production or extraction of medical radiopharmaceuticals where no special nuclear material is involved.
Transfers to U.S. lawful permanent residents and “protected individuals” under immigration law.

General Authorization vs. Specific Authorization

Every transfer within scope falls into one of two tiers.

Generally Authorized Transfers

Non-sensitive nuclear technology going to a country listed in Appendix A of Part 810 is pre-approved by the Secretary. No individual application is required.¹ Countries earn Appendix A status by having a peaceful nuclear cooperation agreement (a “123 agreement”) with the United States and no outstanding U.S. policy or security concerns. A 123 agreement alone is not enough. China and Russia have such agreements but are not on the list.³

General authorization is not the same as no paperwork. Companies must submit a report to the DOE within 30 days of beginning a generally authorized activity.⁴ Separate procedures apply to operational safety assistance for foreign reactors, which requires DOE approval within 45 calendar days, and to radiological emergency response, which may proceed if the DOE does not object within 48 hours.⁵

Specifically Authorized Transfers

Any transfer to a country not on Appendix A needs case-by-case specific authorization from the Secretary of Energy.⁶ So does any transfer of “sensitive nuclear technology,” regardless of destination, even to an Appendix A country. Sensitive nuclear technology means non-public information important to the design, construction, operation, or maintenance of a uranium enrichment facility, a reprocessing facility, or a heavy water production facility.⁷ These processes can produce weapons-usable material, which is why they get heightened scrutiny.

Which Countries Are Generally Authorized

As of June 2026, Appendix A lists 51 destinations: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile (limited to activities related to its IAEA safeguards agreement), Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, the International Atomic Energy Agency, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, the Republic of Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam.⁸

The list moves. Mexico was upgraded to full general authorization in January 2023 after its 123 agreement entered into force in November 2022, while Colombia and Egypt came off the list when theirs lapsed.⁹ The Philippines and Singapore were added in September 2025 following their 123 agreements’ entry into force in 2024.¹⁰ Thailand joined in May 2026 after the U.S.-Thailand 123 agreement took effect on July 9, 2025.¹¹

How the Specific Authorization Process Works

Applications go to the Senior Policy Advisor in NNSA’s Office of Nonproliferation and Arms Control. The application must describe the applicant (including any foreign ownership or control), the recipient country and facility, the proposed activity and its monetary value, and any information the applicant considers competitively sensitive.¹²

Before the Secretary can grant authorization, an interagency process must run its course. The State Department must concur, and the NRC, the Defense Department, and the Commerce Department must be consulted.⁶ NNSA export control officers obtain an independent technical review from a DOE national laboratory and prepare their own analysis. Where appropriate, the State Department secures written nonproliferation assurances from the recipient government.

The legal standard is that the activity “will not be inimical to the interest of the United States.” Section 810.9 lists ten factors the Secretary weighs, including whether the recipient country is a party to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, whether it has accepted comprehensive IAEA safeguards, the significance of the technology relative to the country’s existing nuclear capabilities, whether comparable technology is available elsewhere, and other U.S. political, economic, or security interests.¹³

Timing has tightened. Executive Order 14299, signed on May 23, 2025, directs the Secretary of Energy to approve or deny each request within 30 days of receiving a complete application and completing the required analysis. That 30-day clock excludes time spent awaiting State Department concurrence and recipient-government nonproliferation assurances.¹⁴ Roughly 30 calendar days after an authorization is granted, the Secretary’s determination may be made public unless the applicant shows that disclosure would cause substantial competitive harm.⁵

Foreign Nationals in the United States: Deemed Exports

Part 810 applies inside the country as well as across borders. Sharing controlled nuclear technology with a foreign national is treated as an export to that person’s country of citizenship, regardless of where the disclosure happens.⁴ Simply employing a foreign national does not trigger Part 810. The rule kicks in only when the employer actually needs to share controlled technology with that employee.

Section 810.6(b) provides a workable path for the nuclear industry. A U.S. employer can share Part 810-controlled technology with a foreign national employee at an NRC-licensed facility without specific authorization if the employee is lawfully employed, has been granted unescorted access under NRC rules, and has signed a confidentiality agreement.¹⁵ The employer then has to meet the reporting requirements in Section 810.12(g) and notify the DOE when the employee’s access is canceled, expires, or is revoked.⁴

When specific authorization is needed for a foreign national, the application must include the individual’s citizenship, countries of residence, education, work history, and immigration status, along with a copy of the confidentiality agreement and a signed statement from the individual agreeing not to disclose the technology or use it for any nuclear explosive device or military purpose.¹²

Penalties for Violations

Civil penalties became available in early 2023. A DOE final rule effective February 13, 2023, established procedures for imposing monetary civil penalties for violations of Section 57 b. of the Atomic Energy Act and Part 810, using authority Congress granted in the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019.¹⁶

The regime is strict liability. Even inadvertent or negligent violations can draw a penalty, and each day a violation continues counts as a separate violation.¹⁶ The maximum per-violation amount adjusts annually for inflation; the current figure in the Code of Federal Regulations is $127,973.¹⁷ Eight factors shape the amount, including the nature and gravity of the violation, ability to pay, prior history, degree of culpability, and whether the entity voluntarily self-disclosed.

The penalty rule is not retroactive. The DOE will not impose civil penalties on conduct that ended before February 13, 2023, and for continuing violations that began earlier, penalties apply only to conduct after that date.¹⁶

Criminal exposure is much larger. Willful violations of Section 57 of the Atomic Energy Act carry fines of up to $10,000 and up to 10 years in prison. If committed with intent to injure the United States or aid a foreign nation, the maximum rises to $20,000 and possible life imprisonment.¹⁷ The DOE can also revoke, suspend, or modify authorizations and may seek injunctive relief under Section 232 of the Atomic Energy Act.

Voluntary self-disclosure matters. The DOE encourages reporting potential violations within 30 days of discovery, and prompt, complete self-reporting combined with corrective action is weighed when the agency decides whether to mitigate a penalty.¹

How Part 810 Fits With NRC Export Controls

Part 810 and the NRC’s 10 CFR Part 110 are complementary. Part 810 governs intangible transfers of technology, know-how, and assistance. Part 110 governs physical equipment, reactor components, and nuclear material such as enriched uranium and plutonium.¹⁸ In practice, U.S. companies often seek Part 810 authorization first so they can hold proprietary pre-bid discussions with a foreign customer, then pursue a Part 110 license for the hardware.¹⁹ Obtaining a Part 810 authorization does not relieve anyone of complying with NRC, State, or Commerce export requirements.⁵

Where the Program Is Heading

Two recent developments are worth tracking. The ADVANCE Act, passed by Congress in June 2024 with bipartisan majorities of 88–2 in the Senate and 393–13 in the House, directed the DOE to improve the Part 810 approval process for American nuclear technology exports while maintaining nonproliferation safeguards.²⁰ Executive Order 14299 followed in May 2025, imposing the 30-day decision clock on the Secretary and directing the Secretary of State to aggressively pursue at least 20 new 123 agreements by the close of the 120th Congress and to renegotiate agreements expiring within the next decade.¹⁴ The Thailand addition in 2026 was framed by the DOE as an early product of that push.²¹ The list of generally authorized destinations is likely to keep growing as new 123 agreements enter into force.

1
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U.S. Department of Energy. US Department of Energy Streamlines American Civil Nuclear Exports Thailand