[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 31, Volume 2]
[Revised as of July 1, 2003]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 31CFR515.206]

[Page 582-583]
 
                  TITLE 31--MONEY AND FINANCE: TREASURY
 
 CHAPTER V--OFFICE OF FOREIGN ASSETS CONTROL, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
 
PART 515--CUBAN ASSETS CONTROL REGULATIONS--Table of Contents
 
                         Subpart B--Prohibitions
 
Sec. 515.206  Exempt transactions.

    (a) Information and informational materials. (1) The importation 
from any country and the exportation to any country of information or 
informational materials as defined in Sec. 515.332, whether commercial 
or otherwise, regardless of format or medium of transmission, are exempt 
from the prohibitions and regulations of this part except for payments 
owed to Cuba for telecommunications services between Cuba and the United 
States, which are subject to the provisions of Sec. 515.542.
    (2) This section does not authorize transactions related to 
information or informational materials not fully created and in 
existence at the date of the transaction, or to the substantive or 
artistic alteration or enhancement of information or informational 
materials, or to the provision of marketing and business consulting 
services by a person subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. 
Such prohibited transactions include, without limitation, payment of 
advances for information or informational materials not yet created and 
completed, provision of services to market, produce or co-produce, 
create or assist in the creation of information or informational 
materials, and payment of royalties to

[[Page 583]]

a designated national with respect to income received for enhancements 
or alterations made by persons subject to the jurisdiction of the United 
States to information or informational materials imported from a 
designated national.
    (3) This section does not authorize transactions incident to the 
transmission of restricted technical data as defined in the Export 
Administration Regulations, 15 CFR parts 730-774, or to the exportation 
of goods for use in the transmission of any data. The exportation of 
such goods to designated foreign countries is prohibited, as provided in 
Sec. 515.201 of this part and Sec. 785.1 of the Export Administration 
Regulations.
    (4) This section does not authorize transactions related to travel 
to Cuba when such travel is not otherwise authorized under Sec. 515.545.

    Example #1: A U.S. publisher ships 500 copies of a book to Cuba 
directly from Miami aboard a chartered aircraft, and receives payment by 
means of a letter of credit issued by a Cuban bank and confirmed by an 
American bank. These are permissible transactions under this section.
    Example #2: A Cuban party exports a single master copy of a Cuban 
motion picture to a U.S. party and licenses the U.S. party to duplicate, 
distribute, show and exploit in the United States the Cuban film in any 
medium, including home video distribution, for five years, with the 
Cuban party receiving 40% of the net income. All transactions relating 
to the activities described in this example are authorized under this 
section or Sec. 515.545.
    Example #3: A U.S. recording company proposes to contract with a 
Cuban musician to create certain musical compositions, and to advance 
royalties of $10,000 to the musician. The music written in Cuba is to be 
recorded in a studio that the recording company owns in the Bahamas. 
These are all prohibited transactions. The U.S. party is prohibited 
under Sec. 515.201 from contracting for the Cuban musician's services, 
from transferring $10,000 to Cuba to pay for those services, and from 
providing the Cuban with production services through the use of its 
studio in the Bahamas. No information or informational materials are in 
being at the time of these proposed transactions. However, the U.S. 
recording company may contract to purchase and import preexisting 
recordings by the Cuban musician, or to copy the recordings in the 
United States and pay negotiated royalties to Cuba under this section or 
Sec. 515.545.
    Example #4: A Cuban party enters into a subpublication agreement 
licensing a U.S. party to print and publish copies of a musicial 
composition and to sub-license rights of public performance, adaptation, 
and arrangement of the musical composition, with payment to be a 
percentage of income received. All transactions related to the 
activities described in this example are authorized under this section 
and Sec. 515.545, except for adaptation, and arrangement, which 
constitute artistic enhancement of the Cuban composition. Payment to the 
Cuban party may not reflect income received as a result of these 
enhancements.

    (b) Donation of food. The prohibitions contained in this part do not 
apply to transactions incident to the donation of food to 
nongovernmental organizations or individuals in Cuba.

[54 FR 5233, Feb. 2, 1989, as amended at 60 FR 39256, Aug. 2, 1995; 64 
FR 25812, May 13, 1999]