Promulgation of the Twenty-Third Ordinance Amending the Foreign Trade and Payments Ordinance
Act of 16 October 2026 – file reference unknown: The Twenty-Third Ordinance Amending the Außenwirtschaftsverordnung (AWV, German Foreign Trade and Payments Ordinance) was issued on 14 October 2026 and promulgated on 16 October 2026 in the Bundesgesetzblatt (Federal Law Gazette) under BGBl. 2026 I No. 300. It concerns the subject area of foreign trade and payments in general and, according to the information in the official publication, falls under the lead responsibility of the Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Energie (Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy).
The Ordinance entered into force on 17 October 2026. It has therefore applied since the day after its promulgation in the Bundesgesetzblatt. Pursuant to § 12 paragraph 4 Außenwirtschaftsgesetz (AWG, German Foreign Trade and Payments Act), the Ordinance was forwarded to the Bundestag (German Federal Parliament) and the Bundesrat (German Federal Council) after promulgation; the published Bundestagsdrucksache (Bundestag printed paper) in this regard is dated 23 October 2026.
Amendments to the Foreign Trade and Payments Ordinance
Affected provisions and export list
Article 1 of the Ordinance amends §§ 74, 76a and 82 AWV as well as Annex 1, the Ausfuhrliste (Export List). The official publication contains the regulatory text, including the revised version of the affected list components.
The consolidated new Export List is published as an annex to Article 1 number 5 of the Ordinance. It bears the reference BGBl. 2026 I No. 300 of 16 October 2026 and is also available from the Bundesamt für Wirtschaft und Ausfuhrkontrolle (BAFA, Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control) as a goods list.
Administrative fine provisions in connection with Russia sanctions
A key regulatory element is the implementation of restrictive measures adopted by the Council of the European Union against Russia. This is achieved in particular through new administrative fine provisions in § 82 AWV.
According to the explanatory memorandum, the amendments to § 82 AWV also serve to delineate the provision from § 18 paragraph 1 number 1 AWG. In implementation of the Sanctions Criminal Law Directive (EU) 2024/1226, that provision provides for criminal penalties for certain transaction prohibitions in connection with central banks and entities attributable to third countries.
Revised version of § 76a AWV
Expanded scope for goods of German authorities
§ 76a AWV is revised and its scope is expanded. Paragraph 1 will in future create the possibility of obtaining an authorisation for the export and transit of goods of German authorities to embargoed countries.
This authorisation option was previously limited to cases in which the relevant goods were carried in the authority’s own custody. The new provision therefore expands the area covered without removing the authorisation requirement as such.
Reference to national security
The newly regulated authorisation-requiring exception from prohibitions under EU secondary law is based on the sectoral exemption under Art. 4 paragraph 2 sentence 3 EUV (Treaty on European Union). Under that provision, national security remains the sole responsibility of the Member States.
Adjustments to the Export List
Amendments relating to Syria
In the Export List, items for dual-use goods are being deleted primarily for the destination country Syria. This is consistent with the gradual lifting of EU sanctions against Syria.
The amendment therefore concerns list entries that were previously relevant in connection with corresponding restrictions. The deletion is carried out as part of the revision of the Export List.
Arms embargo against Zimbabwe
The arms embargo against Zimbabwe, which had previously been regulated nationally in the AWV, is being lifted for the export of weapons and other military equipment. The background is that this area is governed directly by Regulation (EU) No 314/2004.
According to the explanatory memorandum, the national provision no longer has any practical relevance in this respect. The repeal concerns the national provision in the AWV, not the directly applicable requirements under EU law.
National list entries for emerging technologies
National list entries for emerging technologies in Part I Section B of the Export List are discontinued insofar as the goods concerned were included in Annex I to the EU Dual-Use Regulation on 15 November 2025. These goods are therefore subject to uniform authorisation requirements across Europe.
In addition, in anticipation of an international listing, the Ordinance introduces the new goods listing 2B905. In line with standard practice, this coverage is also extended to technology and software items.
Impact on business and administration
Compliance burden for companies
According to the preliminary section, no new compliance burden arises for the business community other than as a result of the new list entry. The market for the newly covered good is described there as manageable at international level.
According to the explanatory memorandum, the additional burden is likely to concern only a single-digit number of cases. The statement therefore refers to the additional burden triggered by the new list entry.
Expected administrative fine proceedings
According to the explanatory memorandum, the new administrative fine provisions are expected to lead to an increase in administrative fine proceedings. For the administration, however, this is expected to result at most in only a minor new compliance burden.
For affected companies, the following regulatory areas in particular may be relevant:
- amended administrative fine offences in § 82 AWV,
- the revised version of § 76a AWV,
- amendments to the Export List in Annex 1,
- the deletion of certain national list entries,
- the inclusion of the new goods listing 2B905.
Official publication and integrity of the documents
The official publication in the Bundesgesetzblatt provides the regulatory text as a PDF document. According to the information on the publication page, the integrity of the download can be verified using an MD5 hash value.
For the PDF file, the hash checksum 6078bb3f4697f2dedb26439c3cbb1962 is specified. In addition, a bundled download of the documents is provided as a ZIP file; according to the information on the publication page, this is not accessible.
MTR Legal Rechtsanwälte is an internationally active full-service commercial law firm and advises companies, investors and high-net-worth private individuals on matters of business law.
