Market Entry Pathways
International firms entering the US defense market face a consistent set of structural challenges: regulatory complexity, entity formation requirements, procurement vehicle selection, and the need for credible US-based relationships.
Levenhall's services address each of these systematically. Every engagement is tailored. We do not sell packaged solutions. Your technology, your target agencies, your competitive position, and your organizational readiness determine the pathway we recommend.
Market Entry Advisory
Entering the US defense market is not a matter of registering an entity and responding to solicitations. The procurement landscape is deliberately layered, shaped by regulation, classification requirements, industrial base policy, and political dynamics that shift with each administration.
Levenhall conducts a structured assessment of your technology, your competitive position, and the specific agencies and programs most likely to acquire what you build. We identify the procurement vehicles available to you, the regulatory barriers you will face (ITAR, EAR, FAR, DFARS) and the realistic timeline from market entry to first contract.
The result is not a report. It is an operational plan with named targets, identified pathways, and a clear sequence of actions.
Rapid Procurement Pathways
The US Department of Defense has built an alternative procurement ecosystem designed for speed. Commercial Solutions Openings (CSOs), Other Transaction Authority (OTAs), and follow-on production agreements bypass traditional FAR-based processes, reducing timelines from years to months and lowering the compliance burden that deters international entrants.
CSOs allow DoD to publish a problem statement and evaluate proposed solutions on merit, with awards in as few as 60 days. OTAs, which are exempt from the FAR entirely, enable negotiable terms, protected intellectual property, and direct prototype-to-production pipelines without re-competition. For allied firms, these mechanisms remove the barriers that traditionally required years of US infrastructure to overcome.
Levenhall architects the pathway: identifying which consortia to join, which agencies are active in CSO and OTA solicitations, structuring teaming arrangements with US-based partners, and positioning your technology for prototype awards that lead directly to production contracts. Your status as a non-traditional defense contractor is not a limitation. Under OTA rules, it is a qualifying advantage.
Executive Placement
International firms entering the US defense market face a structural problem: the people who understand your technology are not the people who understand US procurement. And the people who understand procurement need clearances, agency relationships, and operational credibility that cannot be acquired quickly.
Levenhall maintains a curated network of former senior government officials, military officers, and defense industry executives who have led programs, held clearances, and built businesses within the US defense ecosystem. These are not advisors. They are operators, ready to serve as your US-based leadership.
We match executives to your specific requirements: technology domain, target agencies, clearance level, and organizational culture. Every placement is structured to align incentives and protect both parties.
International Tax Services
Cross-border defense transactions create tax obligations that are simultaneously complex and consequential. Entity structure, transfer pricing, treaty benefits, and withholding requirements all interact, and errors in any one area can create liabilities that dwarf the underlying contract value.
Through our partnership with CST Tax, Levenhall provides clients with specialized tax advisory for US market entry. This includes entity formation and structuring, transfer pricing documentation, treaty benefit analysis, and ongoing compliance for firms operating across multiple jurisdictions.
Learn MoreEngagement Process
From initial assessment to contract award, Levenhall remains engaged at every stage.
Initial Assessment
Confidential discussion of your technology, market objectives, and organizational readiness. No obligation. We will tell you honestly whether Levenhall is the right partner for your entry.
Strategy Development
Detailed market mapping, procurement vehicle analysis, regulatory pathway identification, and partnership architecture. This becomes your operational plan.
Execution
Entity formation, consortium membership, executive placement, procurement vehicle selection, and active positioning with target agencies. Levenhall remains engaged through contract award.
Ready to Enter the US Defense Market?
Schedule a confidential consultation to explore how Levenhall can architect your market entry through strategic partnerships and proven procurement pathways.