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How is military training bought through Foreign Military Sales?

Updated 27 September 2026Checked against the SAMM: 26 September 2026

A partner nation buys U.S. military training on a training line of a case, either on the case for the equipment it supports or on a separate training case, paid with its own funds or with Foreign Military Financing. The tuition rate it pays depends on how the training is funded.

BEFORE THE STUDENT TRAVELS fmsedge.com The requirement the SCO defines the country's training requirements in the CETPP; the CCMD's annual SCETWG reviews them SAMM C10.5.1.2 · C10.5.2 How is military training bought through Foreign Military Sales? FMS: a training line C10.7.8 partner-funded: the IA puts a separate training line on every case with training What is International Military Education and Training (IMET)? IMET: a U.S. grant C10.6.6 a State program; State, DSCA and the CCMD approve the country's program What is the Military Articles and Services List (MASL)? Programmed, quota confirmed the MILDEP training activity programs it in DSAMS-TM, then confirms quotas and report and start dates with the school; the T-MASL lists each course's prerequisites SAMM C10.5.4 · C10.5.5 · C10.4.3 What is Leahy vetting of foreign security forces? Screened and tested security screening; a medical exam no more than three months before arrival; Leahy vetting if U.S. funds pay; English (ECL) tested unless exempt: most courses 70, higher PME, management or hazardous courses 80 SAMM C10.8.1 · C10.8.4 · C10.8.5 · C10.10.3 screening complete THE STUDENT'S JOURNEY What is an invitational travel order (ITO)? Invitational Travel Order the controlling document the student travels on: where and when to train, the fund cite, support and privileges; one per student, issued by the SCO; the passport must have six (6) months left when programmed training ends SAMM C10.11.1 · C10.11.2.1 · C10.4.7 Do international military students need to speak English? English training at DLIELC, where required: it prepares students for follow-on U.S. training; U.S. military courses are taught in English, with a few exceptions; entry to general English training at DLIELC needs an ECL of 55 SAMM C10.10.1 · C10.10.2 · C10.10.3.3 What does an international military student officer (IMSO) do? The course at a DoW school or installation; its commander designates an International Military Student Officer (IMSO) to support the student and the FSP SAMM C10.20.1 Return and reporting the SCO monitors how U.S.-trained personnel are used, and each year the CETPP is updated, positions of prominence included SAMM C10.21.4 · C10.21.1 Field Studies Program a view of U.S. society, institutions and goals outside the classroom; offered, mandatory only in a course's POI SAMM C10.18.1 · C10.18.2 Alumni engagement DSCA (DSCU/IMTE) runs the IMS Alumni Connectivity and Engagement Program, subject to funding availability SAMM C10.23.1 offered during training afterwards Who does what SCO: plans the country's training; prepares, explains and issues each ITO C10.5.1 · C10.11.1 CCMD: hosts the annual SCETWG that reviews the country's training C10.5.2 MILDEP training activities: program the training and confirm the quotas C10.5.4 · C10.5.5 SATFA · NETSAFA · AFSAT · TECOM Security Assistance Branch · CG-DCO-I DLIELC: runs DoW English language training; supplies the ECL test C10.10.2 · C10.10.3 State: owns IMET; approves each country's IMET program with DSCA and the CCMD C10.6.2 · C10.6.6 DSCA (DSCU/IMTE): approves later IMET changes; reviews questionable FSP activities C10.5.5 · C10.18.3 FMS Edge a step · the order the student travels on · where required, or offered fmsedge.com · Current as of 11 September 2026 · SAMM C10.4–C10.23

An international military student reaches a U.S. course through a chain of plans and paperwork: the Security Cooperation Organization defines the requirement, the training is paid for on a Foreign Military Sales training line or through IMET, the Military Department's training activity programs it and confirms a seat, and the student is screened. The Invitational Travel Order is the document the student travels on; English language training comes first where required, and the Field Studies Program is offered during the course.

The student pipeline · Current as of 11 September 2026 · SAMM C10.4–C10.23 · Download PNG

How is military training bought through Foreign Military Sales?

Training can also be purchased via a , funded by either host nation funds or funds such as the Foreign Military Financing Program (FMFP).

training cases are developed between the and country representatives, with coordination by the . If the training is in support of a materiel purchase, the materiel or systems command of the MILDEP providing the item may also be involved. No matter if the training on an case is for training only or if it is in support of a materiel purchase, it is essential that the military service training activities be made aware of the training requirement so that it can be programmed into the and accounted for.

Once defined, -funded training requests are entered into the by the military service training activity. training on the is identified by Country Code, , case line number, and (e.g., BN-D-YCY989-2004). The implementation procedures are similar to those for . cases normally do not include , as those are the responsibility of the country and are provided to the IMS directly without U.S. involvement. training cases may include a medical services line to cover medical costs incurred by the IMS. Alternatively, the country may decide to not include medical coverage in the case and, instead, have the bills for such services sent to the country’s embassy for payment, or the IMS may obtain health insurance. If the country wants the case to pay for or medical care, this must be annotated in the and subsequently written into the . Arrangements must be made in advance to cover associated costs such as special clothing and personal equipment either by including such items in the case or having the IMS or IMS’s government pay for them upon issuance at the training installation.

training is provided through the normal process either on a training line of the case for the system sale or on a separate training case, written as a Defined Order or a Blanket Order. Blanket Order cases give more flexibility for a major system purchase or an annual training program.

Can Foreign Military Financing pay for training?

Many training managers and host nation personnel do not realize that a blanket order training case can be funded with Foreign Military Financing () program funds. The value of this is that some of the constraints and restrictions placed on the program do not apply under FMFP. For example, there would be no requirement to obtain a waiver for an funded by FMFP. Most importantly, this additional source of funds can provide for training that exceeds the country’s allocation.

Implementation of an -funded case mirrors that of host nation-funded cases except that funds are paying for the training.

What does training cost under Foreign Military Sales?

The and the prescribe a multi-tier tuition pricing structure for training. The separate tuition rates for the same course differ because various cost elements have been authorized by law to be excluded or charged at an incremental rate based on various tuition rate categories.

The total cost of training includes all associated costs to include the tuition price, paid to IMS, medical and dental costs, special clothing, and personal equipment items not included in the tuition, etc. Any of these articles and services to be furnished by the U.S. training facility, which are not included in the tuition price, must be identified and included as specific items to be funded in the training case, or reimbursed in cash by the student or the participating government.

References

Drawn exclusively from publicly available authorities.

SAMM

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