FAR and DFARS › DFARS Part 225: Foreign Acquisition › Subpart 225.73
DFARS 225.7303-2 Cost of doing business with a foreign government or an international organization.
The codified text (eCFR, as of 2026-10-02). Under the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul ↗, agencies follow class deviations with new text for many parts while the formal rules go through the Federal Register: check the solicitation and your contract's clauses, which rule.
In plain English
This DFARS section explains which costs a contractor may recognize when pricing Foreign Military Sales (FMS) contracts, including selling expenses, product support, and offset costs. It matters because it allows certain costs of doing business with foreign governments or international organizations that might not be recognized in the same amounts on other defense contracts, while still generally barring costs unallowable under FAR Part 31.
Applies to: Contractors pricing FMS contracts with foreign governments or international organizations
What it requires
- Obtain appropriate Government approval if required by 22 CFR 126.8 for sales promotion, demonstration, and related travel costs
- Submit to the contracting officer a signed offset agreement or other documentation showing the FMS customer made an indirect offset a condition of the FMS acquisition
- Use the best estimate of reasonable costs in forward pricing for certain FMS contracts
- Use actual expenditures, to the extent reasonable, in determining final cost for certain FMS contracts
Key terms: FMS contracts · offset agreement · LOA · indirect offset costs · IR&D costs
Written by AI from this section's text. A guide, not legal advice: the text below rules.
The text
(a) In pricing FMS contracts where non-U.S. Government prices as described in 225.7303-1 do not exist, except as provided in 225.7303-5, recognize the reasonable and allocable costs of doing business with a foreign government or international organization, even though such costs might not be recognized in the same amounts in pricing other defense contracts. Examples of such costs include, but are not limited to, the following:
(1) Selling expenses (not otherwise limited by FAR Part 31), such as—
(i) Maintaining international sales and service organizations;
(ii) Sales commissions and fees in accordance with FAR Subpart 3.4;
(iii) Sales promotions, demonstrations, and related travel for sales to foreign governments. Section 126.8 of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (22 CFR 126.8) may require Government approval for these costs to be allowable, in which case the appropriate Government approval shall be obtained; and
(iv) Configuration studies and related technical services undertaken as a direct selling effort to a foreign country.
(2) Product support and post-delivery service expenses, such as—
(i) Operations or maintenance training, training or tactics films, manuals, or other related data; and
(ii) Technical field services provided in a foreign country related to accident investigations, weapon system problems, or operations/tactics enhancement, and related travel to foreign countries.
(3) Offsets. For additional information see 225.7306.
(i) An offset agreement is the contractual arrangement between the FMS customer and the U.S. defense contractor that identifies the offset obligation imposed by the FMS customer that has been accepted by the U.S. defense contractor as a condition of the FMS customer's purchase. These agreements are distinct and independent of the LOA and the FMS contract. Further information about offsets and LOAs may be found in the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) Security Assistance Management Manual (DSCA 5105.38-M), chapter 6, paragraph 6.3.9. (http://samm.dsca.mil/chapter/chapter-6).
(ii) A U.S. defense contractor may recover all costs incurred for offset agreements with a foreign government or international organization if the LOA is financed wholly with foreign government or international organization customer cash or repayable foreign military finance credits.
(iii) The U.S. Government assumes no obligation to satisfy or administer the offset agreement or to bear any of the associated costs.
(iv) Indirect offset costs are deemed reasonable for purposes of FAR parts 15 and 31 with no further analysis necessary on the part of the contracting officer, provided that the U.S. defense contractor submits to the contracting officer a signed offset agreement or other documentation showing that the FMS customer has made the provision of an indirect offset a condition of the FMS acquisition. FMS customers are placed on notice through the LOA that indirect offset costs are deemed reasonable without any further analysis by the contracting officer.
(4) Costs that are the subject of advance agreement under the appropriate provisions of FAR part 31; or where the advance understanding places a limit on the amounts of cost that will be recognized as allowable in defense contract pricing, and the agreement contemplated that it will apply only to DoD contracts for the U.S. Government's own requirement (as distinguished from contracts for FMS).
(b) Costs not allowable under FAR part 31 are not allowable in pricing FMS contracts, except as noted in paragraphs (c) and (e) of this section.
(c) The limitations for all contractors described in 231.205-18(c)(iii) and (iv) do not apply to FMS contracts, except as provided in 225.7303-5. The allowability of independent research and development (IR&D) costs and bid and proposal (B&P) costs on contracts for FMS not wholly paid for from funds made available on a nonrepayable basis is limited to the contract's allocable share of the contractor's total IR&D expenditures and total B&P expenditures. In pricing contracts for such FMS—
(1) Use the best estimate of reasonable costs in forward pricing; and
(2) Use actual expenditures, to the extent that they are reasonable, in determining final cost.
(d) Under paragraph (e)(1)(A) of Section 21 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2761), the United States must charge for administrative services to recover the estimated cost of administration of sales made under the Army Export Control Act.
(e) The limitations in 231.205-1 on allowability of costs associated with leasing Government equipment do not apply to FMS contracts.
Sections it refers to
- 225.7303-1 Contractor sales to other foreign customers.
- 225.7303-5 Acquisitions wholly paid for from nonrepayable funds.
- 225.7306 Offset arrangements.
- 231.205-18 Independent research and development and bid and proposal costs.
- 231.205-1 Public relations and advertising costs.
Sections that refer to it
- 225.7306 Offset arrangements.
- 231.205-1 Public relations and advertising costs.
- 231.205-18 Independent research and development and bid and proposal costs.
← 225.7303-1 Contractor sales to other foreign customers. · 225.7303-3 Government-to-government agreements. →
Rule changes for DFARS Part 225
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Modifications to Printed Circuit Board Acquisition Restrictions (DFARS Case 2022-D011) ↗ · proposed 2026-07-02 · comments due 2026-08-31
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Small Purchase Exception for the Acquisition of U.S. Flags (DFARS Case 2024-D013) ↗ · proposed 2026-06-25 · comments due 2026-08-24
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Inflation Adjustment of Acquisition-Related Thresholds (DFARS Case 2024-D002) ↗ · final rule 2025-08-25 · effective 2025-10-01
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement; Technical Amendments ↗ · final rule 2025-08-25 · effective 2025-08-25
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Inflation Adjustment of Acquisition-Related Thresholds (DFARS Case 2024-D002) ↗ · proposed 2025-01-17 · comments due 2025-03-18
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement; Technical Amendments ↗ · final rule 2024-12-18 · effective 2024-12-18
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Inapplicability of Additional Defense-Unique Laws and Certain Non-Statutory DFARS Clauses to Commercial Item Contracts (DFARS Case 2018-D074) ↗ · final rule 2024-11-15 · effective 2024-11-25
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement; Technical Amendments ↗ · final rule 2024-11-15 · effective 2024-11-15
Source: eCFR, 48 CFR chapters 1 and 2 (GPO GovInfo bulk data) ↗. Plain words for the terms: glossary.