(a) General license for educational activities. Persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction, including U.S. academic institutions and their faculty, staff, and students, are authorized to engage in transactions, including the travel-related transactions set forth in § 515.560(c), that are related to the following activities:
(1) Participation in a structured educational program in Cuba as part of a course offered for credit by a U.S. graduate or undergraduate degree-granting academic institution that is sponsoring the program;
(2) Noncommercial academic research in Cuba specifically related to Cuba and for the purpose of obtaining an undergraduate or graduate degree;
(3) Participation in a formal course of study at a Cuban academic institution, provided the formal course of study in Cuba will be accepted for credit toward the student's graduate or undergraduate degree;
(4) Teaching at a Cuban academic institution related to an academic program at the Cuban institution, provided that the individual is regularly employed by a U.S. or other non-Cuban academic institution;
(5) Sponsorship of a Cuban scholar to teach or engage in other scholarly activity at the sponsoring U.S. academic institution (in addition to those transactions authorized by the general license contained in § 515.571).
Note to paragraph (a)(5):
See § 515.571(a) for authorizations related to certain banking transactions and receipt of salary or other compensation by Cuban nationals present in the United States in a non-immigrant status or pursuant to other non-immigrant travel authorization issued by the U.S. government.
(6) Educational exchanges sponsored by Cuban or U.S. secondary schools involving secondary school students' participation in a formal course of study or in a structured educational program offered by a secondary school or other academic institution and led by a teacher or other secondary school official. This includes participation by a reasonable number of adult chaperones to accompany the secondary school students to Cuba.
(7) Sponsorship or co-sponsorship of non commercial academic seminars, conferences, symposia, and workshops related to Cuba or global issues involving Cuba and attendance at such events by faculty, staff, and students of a participating U.S. academic institution;
(8) Establishment of academic exchanges and joint non-commercial academic research projects with universities or academic institutions in Cuba;
(9) Provision of standardized testing services, including professional certificate examinations, university entrance examinations, and language examinations, and related preparatory services for such exams, to Cuban nationals, wherever located;
(10) Provision of internet-based courses, including distance learning and Massive Open Online Courses, to Cuban nationals, wherever located, provided that the course content is at the undergraduate level or below; or
(11) Provision of educational grants, scholarships, or awards to a Cuban national or in which Cuba or a Cuban national otherwise has an interest; and
(12) The organization of, and preparation for, activities described in paragraphs (a)(1) through (a)(11) of this section by employees or contractors of the sponsoring organization that is a person subject to U.S. jurisdiction;
(13) Facilitation by an organization that is a person subject to U.S. jurisdiction, or a member of the staff of such an organization, of licensed educational activities in Cuba on behalf of U.S. academic institutions or secondary schools, provided that:
(i) The organization is directly affiliated with one or more U.S. academic institutions or secondary schools; and
(ii) The organization facilitates educational activities that meet the requirements of one or more of the general licenses set forth in § 515.565(a)(1), (2), (3), and (6).
Note 1 to paragraph (a):
See § 515.560(c)(6) for an authorization for individuals to open and maintain accounts at Cuban financial institutions; see § 515.573 for an authorization for entities conducting educational activities authorized by § 515.565(a) to establish a physical presence in Cuba, including an authorization to open and maintain accounts at Cuban financial institutions.
Note 2 to paragraph (a):
The authorization in this paragraph extends to adjunct faculty and part-time staff of U.S. academic institutions. A student enrolled in a U.S. academic institution is authorized pursuant to § 515.565(a)(1) to participate in the academic activities in Cuba described above through any sponsoring U.S. academic institution.
Note 3 to paragraph (a):
The export or reexport to Cuba of goods (including software) or technology subject to the Export Administration Regulations (15 CFR parts 730 through 774) may require separate authorization from the Department of Commerce.
(b) General license for people-to-people travel. The travel-related transactions set forth in § 515.560(c) and such additional transactions as are directly incident to educational exchanges not involving academic study pursuant to a degree program are authorized, provided that:
(1) Travel-related transactions pursuant to this authorization must be for the purpose of engaging, while in Cuba, in a full-time schedule of activities intended to enhance contact with the Cuban people, support civil society in Cuba, or promote the Cuban people's independence from Cuban authorities;
(2) Each traveler has a full-time schedule of educational exchange activities that will result in meaningful interaction between the traveler and individuals in Cuba;
(3) The predominant portion of the activities engaged in by individual travelers is not with a prohibited official of the Government of Cuba, as defined in § 515.337 of this part, or a prohibited member of the Cuban Communist Party, as defined in § 515.338 of this part;
(4) For travel conducted under the auspices of an organization that is a person subject to U.S. jurisdiction that sponsors such exchanges to promote people-to-people contact, an employee, paid consultant, or agent of the sponsoring organization must accompany each group traveling to Cuba to ensure that each traveler has a full-time schedule of educational exchange activities; and
Note to § 515.565(b)(4):
An organization that sponsors and organizes trips to Cuba in which travelers engage in individually selected and/or self-directed activities would not qualify for the general license. Authorized trips are expected to be led by the organization and to have a full-time schedule of activities in which the travelers will participate.
(5) In addition to all other information required by § 501.601 of this chapter, persons relying on the authorization in paragraph (b) of this section must retain records sufficient to demonstrate that each individual traveler has engaged in a full-time schedule of activities that satisfy the requirements of paragraphs (b)(1) through (3) of this section. In the case of an individual traveling under the auspices of an organization that is a person subject to U.S. jurisdiction and that sponsors such exchanges to promote people-to-people contact, the individual may rely on the entity sponsoring the travel to satisfy his or her recordkeeping requirements with respect to the requirements of paragraphs (b)(1) through (3) of this section. These records must be furnished to the Office of Foreign Assets Control on demand pursuant to § 501.602 of this chapter.
Example 1 to § 515.565(b):
An organization wishes to sponsor and organize educational exchanges not involving academic study pursuant to a degree program for individuals to learn side-by-side with Cuban individuals in areas such as environmental protection or the arts. The travelers will have a full-time schedule of educational exchange activities that will result in meaningful interaction between the travelers and individuals in Cuba. The organization's activities qualify for the general license, and the individual may rely on the entity sponsoring the travel to satisfy his or her recordkeeping requirement.
Example 2 to § 515.565(b):
An individual plans to travel to Cuba to participate in discussions with Cuban artists on community projects, exchanges with the founders of a youth arts program, and to have extended dialogue with local city planners and architects to learn about historical restoration projects in Old Havana. The traveler will have a full-time schedule of such educational exchange activities that will result in meaningful interaction between the traveler and individuals in Cuba. The individual's activities qualify for the general license, provided that the individual satisfies the recordkeeping requirement.
Example 3 to § 515.565(b):
An individual plans to travel to Cuba to participate in discussions with Cuban farmers and produce sellers about cooperative farming and agricultural practices and have extended dialogue with religious leaders about the influence of African traditions and religion on society and culture. The traveler fails to keep any records of the travel. Although the traveler will have a full-time schedule of educational exchange activities that will result in meaningful interaction between the traveler and individuals in Cuba, the traveler's failure to keep records means that the individual's activities do not qualify for the general license.
Example 4 to § 515.565(b):
An individual plans to travel to Cuba to rent a bicycle to explore the streets of Havana, engage in brief exchanges with shopkeepers while making purchases, and have casual conversations with waiters at restaurants and hotel staff. None of these activities are educational exchange activities that will result in meaningful interaction between the traveler and individuals in Cuba, and the traveler's trip does not qualify for the general license.
Example 5 to § 515.565(b):
An individual plans to travel to Cuba to participate in discussions with Cuban farmers and produce sellers about cooperative farming and agricultural practices and have extended dialogue with religious leaders about the influence of African traditions and religion on society and culture. The individual also plans to spend a few days engaging in brief exchanges with Cuban food vendors while spending time at the beach. Only some of these activities are educational exchange activities that will result in meaningful interaction between the traveler and individuals in Cuba, and the traveler therefore does not have a full-time schedule of such activities on each day of the trip. The trip does not qualify for the general license.
Note to § 515.565(a)and (b):
Except as provided in § 515.565(b)(5), each person relying on the general authorizations in these paragraphs, including entities sponsoring travel pursuant to the authorization in § 515.565(b), must retain specific records related to the authorized travel transactions. See §§ 501.601 and 501.602 of this chapter for applicable recordkeeping and reporting requirements.
(c) Transactions related to activities that are primarily tourist-oriented are not authorized pursuant to this section.
(d) Specific licenses. Specific licenses may be issued on a case-by-case basis authorizing the travel-related transactions set forth in § 515.560(c) and such other transactions as are related to educational activities that do not qualify for the general licenses under paragraph (a) or (b) of this section.
[80 FR 2296, Jan. 16, 2015, as amended at 80 FR 56922, Sept. 21, 2015; 81 FR 13992, Mar. 16, 2016]