Guide

Why does Foreign Military Sales take so long?

Updated 11 September 2026

The manual puts a clock on only part of the calendar: the Implementing Agency is expected to offer 85% of Letters of Offer and Acceptance within 45 days to 150 days of the request, a congressional notification runs through an informal review of 20 days to 40 days and then a statutory 15 days or 30 days, and an accelerated-closure case is expected to close within 24 months of its last delivery. Most of the rest — the requirements work before the request, the wait for the initial deposit, contracting and production lead time, reconciliation — carries no standard at all, and the manual's own list of extenuating factors explains why even the clocked stretch is met only 85% of the time.

In this guide

How long does it take to prepare a Letter of Request?
The process begins with the partner defining its requirement, before any case exists. Reaching out to the Implementing Agency early helps ensure a future Letter of Request includes the necessary details, and checklists exist to help purchasers write a readily actionable one.
How long does Letter of Request assessment take?
Case development may not begin until the Letter of Request meets the mandatory actionable criteria. Other U.S. Government reviews of the request vary with the items requested and should, to the extent possible, run concurrently to minimize the response time.
How long does it take to get a Letter of Offer and Acceptance?
The time required to respond to a Letter of Request with a Letter of Offer and Acceptance depends on the type of case and the complexity of the program. A hold does not stop the clock, and an extenuating-factor code records why a document is expected to miss the standard.
How long does a purchaser have to accept a Letter of Offer and Acceptance?
Purchasers should strive to accept a case by its offer expiration date. The date may be extended without restating the case only under conditions the manual sets, and a short one should not be used to justify prioritizing a document.
How long does it take to implement a Foreign Military Sales case after acceptance?
After the purchaser signs and accepts, financial implementation is posted when the initial deposit is received, and only then does the Implementing Agency process obligational authority.
How long does delivery take under Foreign Military Sales?
Execution is the longest phase in the life cycle of a case and can last many years for a major system sale, because the articles are bought under the same acquisition regulations and procedures the United States uses for itself.
How long does it take to close a Foreign Military Sales case?
Every Letter of Offer and Acceptance carries an estimated closure date, measured from final delivery or from the close of the longest underlying contract, and standard sets of inhibitors identify the conditions that keep a case from being certified and closed.

Why does FMS take so long?

SAMM C5.T9 — Case Development Categories and Standards

Table C5.T9. Case Development Categories and Standards
Category	Description	Standard	Clock Start	Clock Stop
A	Blanket order LOAs (including blanket order training); Cooperative Logistics Supply Support Arrangements (CLSSAs), and associated Amendments and Modifications. Note: Modifications for cases that were originally prepared as Category C documents will be prepared using Category A or B standards.	85% within 45 days	Letter of Request (LOR) Receipt	Offer
B	Defined order LOAs (including defined order training) and associated Amendments and Modifications. Notes: An LOA document originally assigned to Category B can be re-assigned by the IA to Category C if the IA subsequently determines the document meets the requirements of Category C. Modifications for cases that were originally prepared as Category C documents will be prepared using Category A or B standards.	85% within 100 days	LOR Receipt	Offer
C	Defined Order LOAs, and associated Amendments with specific factors that are expected to significantly impact the LOA document development processing time. See Figure C5.F7. for a list and definition of eligible factors. Note: Modifications for cases that were originally prepared as Category C documents will be prepared using Category A or B standards.	85% within 150 days	LOR Actionable	Offer
D	BPC (or other non-FMS programs that use FMS processes and procedures) and associated Amendments and Modifications. Note: All BPC LOAs and associated Amendments and Modifications must be tracked as Category D regardless of the type of items included on the document. While these documents may include Blanket Order or Defined Order articles and services, they are inherently BPC cases. Assignment of BPC case documents to Category A, B, or C is not allowed.	85% within 60 days	LOR Receipt	BPC Wait
D	Title 10 funded BPC cases utilizing the Long Term Solution effective 1 October 2024.	85% within 60 days	Customer Request Complete	BPC Wait

Synced 11 September 2026 · View on samm.dsca.mil

By policy, the IA should offer 85 percent of its cases within 45 to 150 days after the receipt of an LOR, depending on the type and complexity of the case.

The DOD, DOS, and Congress are constantly trying to speed up the FMS process by trying to reduce time in several different lanes to include the following: case development, foreign disclosure and technology transfer decisions, acquisition, contracting, and more.

Care should be taken when comparing timelines under FMS and DCS; neither FMS nor DCS are faster than the other in general, and many factors impact delivery timelines. The FMS acquisition process involves the development, review, and acceptance of the case, plus the assembling of requirements for economic quantity or consolidated purchasing cycles as well as contract negotiations and production lead times. An individual international partner’s priorities must be integrated into the overall DOD-acquisition priority in the FMS process.

References

Drawn exclusively from publicly available authorities.

SAMM

SAMM C5.T9 — Case Development Categories and Standards
SAMM C5.2 — Letter of Request Submissions.
SAMM C5.6.2 — Letter of Offer and Acceptance Document Preparation Timeframe.
SAMM C5.6.3 — Holds During Case Development.
SAMM C5.6.11 — Coordination and Countersignature of Letter of Offer and Acceptance Documents.
SAMM C5.6.12 — Pen and Ink Changes.
SAMM C5.7 — Congressional Notification - Arms Export Control Act 36(b) for Security Assistance Programs.
SAMM C5.T22 — Tiered Review Periods
SAMM C6.1 — Case Implementation
SAMM C6.2 — Case Execution - General Information
SAMM C16.3 — Closure.

Public authorities

Arms Export Control Act of 1976, as amended, §36(b) (22 U.S.C. §2776(b)) — AECA §36(b)
Accelerated Case Closure Procedures (ACCP) — ACCP

Facts referenced

Case development standard — share of documents expected to meet the standard — 85% (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Case development standard — Category A (blanket order, CLSSA) — 45 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Case development standard — Category C (defined order with complicating factors) — 150 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Tiered review period — Tier 1 (NATO +5) — 20 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T22
Tiered review period — Tier 3 (sensitive) — 40 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T22
36(b) statutory review period — NATO members, Australia, Israel, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand — 15 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.7
36(b) statutory review period — all other countries and international organizations — 30 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.7
ACCP closure goal after Supply/Services Complete — all cases other than training — 24 months (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C16.3
Case development standard — Category B (defined order) — 100 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Case development standard — Category D (BPC) — 60 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Case development clock start — Category A (blanket order, CLSSA) — Letter of Request (LOR) Receipt (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Case development clock start — Category B (defined order) — LOR Receipt (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Case development clock start — Category C (defined order with extenuating factors) — LOR Actionable (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Case development clock stop — Category A (Categories B and C state the same milestone) — Offer (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Case development clock stop — Category D (BPC) — BPC Wait (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T9
Working days for IA comments on an LOR Advisory — 10 working days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.2
Days after LOR receipt by which the IA is encouraged to follow up if the LOR is not yet actionable (no performance standard is set for this period) — 30 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.2.5.2.2
Tiered review period — Tier 2 (other) — 30 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T22
Formal congressional review period (Table C5.T23) — NATO countries and organizations, Australia, Israel, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand — 15 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T23
Formal congressional review period (Table C5.T23) — all other countries and international organizations — 30 days (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.T23
Latest an Offer Expiration Date extension may be requested without case restatement, counted from the current OED — 6 months (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C5.6.12.1
ACCP closure goal after Supply/Services Complete — training cases — 36 months (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C16.3
Estimated case closure date written into the LOA — ACCP cases, after projected final delivery or service performance — 24 months (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C16.3.3
Estimated case closure date written into the LOA — non-ACCP cases, after closure of the longest underlying contract — 36 months (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C16.3.3
Months after delivery during which a partner may submit a Supply Discrepancy Report, after which cases are closed (ACCP eligibility) — 12 months (as of 11 September 2026) — SAMM C16.3.1.1.1.1

Pipeline stagePre-LOR — Requirements & Engagement Pipeline stageLetter of Request Submission Pipeline stageLOR Assessment Pipeline stageCase Development / LOA Preparation Pipeline stageCongressional Notification Pipeline stageLOA Offered Pipeline stagePartner Acceptance Pipeline stageImplementation Pipeline stageExecution Pipeline stageReconciliation & Closure GuideHow long does Congress have to review an arms sale?

Why does Foreign Military Sales take so long?

Why does FMS take so long?

References

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