WASHINGTON- The U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) today issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to propose updates to the Outbound Investment Security Program (OISP) based on direction from Congress in the Comprehensive Outbound Investment Security (COINS) Act, passed as part of the Fiscal Year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act. The COINS Act codifies the U.S. Government’s approach to regulating certain outbound investments by U.S. persons and builds upon Treasury’s existing OISP.
In passing the COINS Act, Congress made clear that restricting certain U.S. outbound investments into dual-use strategic technologies that benefit a foreign adversary’s military modernization efforts, surveillance states, and human rights abuses is necessary to prevent harm to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests. President Trump is committed to protecting our national security and the implementation of the COINS Act is consistent with maintaining a strong, open investment environment that benefits our economy and supports our national security interests.
The COINS Act directs the Secretary of the Treasury (the Secretary) to issue regulations that (1) require United States persons to provide notification to Treasury regarding certain transactions involving covered foreign persons that are engaged in notifiable technologies, and (2) prohibit United States persons from engaging in certain other transactions involving covered foreign persons that are engaged in prohibited technologies. The COINS Act authorizes the Secretary to prescribe regulations with technical parameters for “prohibited technology” and “notifiable technology” in five technology sectors: semiconductor technologies and microelectronics; artificial intelligence systems; quantum information technologies; high-performance computing and supercomputing; and hypersonic systems. The COINS Act also authorizes the Secretary-in consultation with the appropriate congressional committees and subject to notice and comment rulemaking-to add and define technologies beyond those specifically listed in the law that enable the military, intelligence, surveillance, or cyber-enabled capabilities of a country of concern. Accordingly, the Secretary has added biotechnology to the proposed regulations.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, we are committed to putting America’s national security first,” said Secretary Scott Bessent. “The proposed regulations would strengthen the existing Outbound Investment Security Program to prevent our adversaries from using U.S. investment to develop critical technologies that threaten U.S. national security. This important step also helps promote our commitment to an open investment environment by providing clarity to U.S. and foreign investors as well as an opportunity for them to provide feedback on the proposed regulations.”
“The proposed regulations are designed to address risks that can arise when foreign adversaries try to benefit from U.S. investment in key technology sectors,” said Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Investment Security Christopher Pilkerton. Pilkerton added, “It will enhance the Outbound Investment Security Program and our efforts to protect U.S. national security.”
The NPRM issued today provides details on key concepts and aspects of the program’s proposed implementation, including:
- Requirements applicable to a U.S. person (including any controlled foreign entities);
- Categories of covered national security transactions;
- Definitions;
- The scope of covered foreign persons;
- Excepted transactions;
- Technical specifications to inform the scope of covered national security transactions based on certain technologies and products in the areas of semiconductor technology and microelectronics, quantum information technologies, super intelligence systems, hypersonic systems, high-performance computing and supercomputing, and biotechnology;
- Information that a U.S. person is required to provide to Treasury as part of a notification;
- The process of requesting non-binding feedback and submitting confidential information;
- The knowledge standard and expectations for a U.S. person to conduct a reasonable and diligent inquiry prior to undertaking a transaction; and
- Conduct that would be treated as a violation of the proposed rule and applicable penalties for such conduct.
Treasury invites comments from a wide range of stakeholders on all aspects of the NPRM including feedback on the scope of a covered national security transaction, definitions of key terms, the notification requirements, and the penalty and enforcement processes for violations, among other aspects. Treasury will carefully consider this input before issuing the final implementing regulations.
Written comments may be submitted by the deadline in the official NPRM, available at https://www.regulations.gov . The NPRM will be followed at a later date by final implementing regulations, which will set an effective date for the program.
The NPRM, fact sheet, and additional information are available at:
https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/international/outbound-investment-program .