How a Letter of Offer and Acceptance is drafted

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1. A drafting standard, not a free hand

The agreement at the heart of a foreign military sale is written to a house style. There is an appendix of the manual devoted to how it is put together, and its purpose is stated at the top: "This Appendix provides standardized guidance to be used when developing Foreign Military Sales (FMS) and Building Partner Capacity (BPC) Letters of Offer and Acceptance (LOAs)" (SAMM AP9.1.1).

What the document is remains simple. "A Foreign Military Sales (FMS) Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) Basic case is the legal instrument used to provide defense articles, services and/or training to Partner governments and international organizations" (SAMM AP9.2.1). What it contains is described in inside the Letter of Offer and Acceptance. This piece is about the rules the drafter works to.

Two people share the pen. "The Defense Security Assistance Management System (DSAMS) is the primary system used by the Implementing Agencies (IAs) and DSCA to develop LOAs" (SAMM AP9.2.1), the system described in the systems a case runs on. Responsibility for each field is allocated between the implementing agency and a case writing division inside the agency, and checking is continuous rather than final: "Quality control of LOAs must occur throughout the entire LOA Development process per Section C5.5.15" (SAMM AP9.1.1).

2. Words that have to be the same every time

The manual fixes vocabulary. Months is abbreviated one way throughout. United States is written out when it is a noun and abbreviated only as an adjective. A buyer under an ordinary sale is called the purchaser and never the customer, while the recipient of a case paid for by United States appropriations is called the benefitting partner. Dates are spelled out in full, so that the twelfth of January 2025 appears as a written month rather than as digits (SAMM Table AP9.T1).

These look like small things. They are the reason two agreements drafted years apart by different services read alike, and the reason a reader can tell which program a document belongs to from its nouns alone.

3. What cannot go in

Two categories of content are kept out of the document entirely. The first is classified material: "Classified data cannot be entered into DSAMS" (SAMM Table AP9.T1), and anything classified that belongs to the development of a case travels separately. "Classified documentation associated with the development of an LOA must be sent via the Secret Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNET)" (SAMM Table AP9.T1).

The rule reaches back to the request that started the case. "Letters of Request (LORs) must have the equivalent USG classification markings to ensure only unclassified information is documented on the LOA and uploaded in the Case Tracking System (CTS) LOA package" (SAMM Table AP9.T1). What that request has to contain is set out in before a Letter of Request.

The second exclusion is personal data. The manual states it in one garbled line that nonetheless leaves no doubt of the intent: "Exclude any information that would identify a person is prohibited from the LOA" (SAMM Table AP9.T1). Named individuals do not belong on the face of the agreement.

4. The fields that carry the deal

The reference block lists the requests behind the case in date order, oldest first, with the purchaser name and reference, or signed meeting minutes if that is what the record is. The case description gives a short overview of what is being supplied.

One field is written for a different reader. "This description, entered by the IA, provides the Department of State (State) LOA details, and should include Major Defense Equipment (MDE) items and quantities, services and end-item supported" (SAMM Table AP9.T1). The state department sees a purpose built summary rather than the whole agreement.

The expiry of the offer is usually automatic. "DSAMS will automatically generate Offer Expiration Date (OED), unless the IA identifies and manually enters a short or long OED" (SAMM Table AP9.T1). That date then drives the money, because payment timing is keyed to it.

Terms of sale are constrained by who the buyer is. "Dependable Undertaking (DU) and Cash Prior to Delivery are only authorized for countries identified as Arms Export Control Act (AECA) eligible and DU eligible" (SAMM Table AP9.T1), and the lines must match the term chosen, with procurement lines and stock lines treated differently. The substance of that choice is in terms of sale and the dependable undertaking.

The schedule itself is not drafted by the implementing agency. It is entered centrally, based on the term of sale and what the buyer is authorized to have, and "Payments are quarterly, based on the line value, MOS, and on costs incurred the next quarter" (SAMM Table AP9.T1). The opening deposit has to cover part of the administrative surcharge, any unwaived nonrecurring charges, and costs falling before the first quarterly payment. The mechanics are described in payment schedules and billing.

5. Lines, notes and restatements

Each line carries a fixed set of data. "This includes the following data fields: Description, Military Articles and Services List (MASL), Unit of Issue, Source Code, Type of Assistance, Offer Release Codes and Delivery Term Codes, and other required information" (SAMM Table AP9.T1). The delivery codes in that list are the subject of delivery term codes and freight forwarders.

Notes are drawn from a published list rather than written fresh. "Notes are added (either by the IA or DSCA) based on what is provided in the LOA" (SAMM Table AP9.T1). Most sit after the payment schedule, while a few, such as those about training inside the United States and travel outside it, are attached to the line description instead.

One label depends on a fact about the post rather than about the text. "If a document is in Offered Status and sent to the Purchaser but then requires a change, the new document is considered Restated" (SAMM Table AP9.T1). The converse is stated just as plainly: "If the document is in Offered Status but not yet actually sent to the Purchaser, then it does not need to be classified as a Restated document" (SAMM Table AP9.T1).

6. What a supplier can take from this

Much of what looks like boilerplate in an agreement is mandated wording pulled from a list, which means it is rarely negotiable and rarely accidental. A note that seems oddly specific is usually a standard note that attached because of something on a line.

The word restated on the front of a document carries information as well. It means an offer had already gone out and then changed, which is worth knowing when a delivery schedule looks shorter than the program history would suggest.

Key terms

Basic case	The original agreement, before any later change. SAMM AP9.2.1.
Offer expiration date	The date the offer lapses, generated automatically unless the implementing agency overrides it.
State description	A separate summary written for the state department, listing major equipment, quantities and the end item supported.
Restated document	A replacement for an offer that had already been sent to the buyer before it changed.
Benefitting partner	The term used instead of purchaser when United States appropriations pay for the case.

Every statement above links to the document behind it. The full source list for this piece is on the sources page.

This page describes public United States government programs for general information. It is not legal, regulatory or procurement advice, and it does not address the facts of any particular case.

How Sentfore supports this

A document drafted in one country governs work carried out in another. Sentfore works at the delivery end of defense programs in difficult environments, providing secure movement, protective security, facilities and life support around equipment and people once they arrive. Requirements can be sent through the contact page.