Under "rights related to patents, processes, and trade secrets," why is there no category for "rights to reproduce and/or distribute?"

In the case of patents, processes, or trade secrets, one typically uses that patent or process to reproduce or distribute a product or service. One does not reproduce and/or distribute the patent itself. Therefore, we concluded that it was not appropriate to include a subcategory for "rights to reproduce and/or distribute" those types of intellectual property. If your company is paying or collecting fees based on the use of a patent (i.e.

Do "education services" include tuition charged to foreign exchange students?

No. Education services consist of services relating to education, such as correspondence courses and education via television or the Internet, as well as by teachers and so forth who supply services directly in host economies. However, education services provided to nonresidents who are present in the territory of the service provider (i.e. foreign exchange students) are not reportable on the survey.

Do "health services" include in-patient or out-patient care provided directly to foreign residents?

No. The types of services that should be reported under this category include remote diagnostic, laboratory or imagery services, or "telemedicine," as well as fees paid to foreign medical professionals who provide their services on-site in the United States or vice-versa. Charges for medical services provided to a foreign person visiting the U.S., for example, the provision of services to a Kuwaiti citizen who flies to the United States for chemotherapy treatments, are not reportable on the survey.

For financial services providers - Are fees and commissions received and paid reported on the survey?

If you are a financial services provider, you should be reporting fees and commissions for financial services and commissions on the BE-185 Quarterly Survey of Financial Services Transactions between U.S. Financial Services Providers and Foreign Persons. Your transactions with foreign persons in non-financial services, such as advertising, computer services, should be reported on the BE-120.

Why does BEA conduct the BE-12 Benchmark Survey?

The BE-12 is BEA's most comprehensive survey, in terms of both the number of companies covered and the amount of information gathered, on financial and operating data of U.S. affiliates of foreign multinational enterprises. The survey is used to produce statistics on the scale and effects of foreign-owned business activities in the United States. Business leaders use these statistics to inform decisions about hiring and investing. Policymakers and researchers use them to analyze the impacts of direct investment on jobs, wages, productivity and taxes.

Are the data submitted on BEA surveys confidential?

Reporting on BEA’s direct investment surveys is mandatory under the International Investment and Trade in Services Survey Act (P.L. 94–472, 90 Stat. 2059, 22 U.S.C. 3101–3108, as amended). The act protects the confidentiality of the data that companies report.

The act specifies that the survey data may only be used for statistical and analytical purposes. BEA is prohibited from granting another agency access to the data for tax, investigative, or regulatory purposes. In addition, data reported on BEA’s surveys are not subject to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.