On the eve of the 2024 Group of Seven (G7) Leaders’ Summit, the United States imposed new sanctions and export control measures against Russia further targeting sanctions evaders and, for the first time, the Russian...more
6/19/2024
/ Asset Seizure ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Foreign Financial Institutions (FFI) ,
Information Technology ,
Infrastructure ,
International Securities Market (ISM) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
Software ,
UK
On the second anniversary of the start of the war in Ukraine and in response to the death of activist Aleksey Navalny in a Russian prison, the United States, European Union, and United Kingdom, along with Australia and...more
3/4/2024
/ Asset Freeze ,
Australia ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Canada ,
China ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Services Industry ,
India ,
Mining ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
Transportation Industry ,
Turkey ,
UK ,
Ukraine ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE) ,
US State Departments
On September 25, 2023, the U.S. Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) issued the final rule (the “Final Rule”) regarding the use of funds offered under the CHIPS and Science Act (the “CHIPS Act”).
The Final Rule...more
10/11/2023
/ Clawbacks ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Final Rules ,
Importers ,
National Security ,
NIST ,
Risk Management ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Semiconductors ,
U.S. Commerce Department
On April 18, 2023, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement, Matthew Axelrod, published a memorandum marking a shift in policy regarding voluntary...more
Since February 2022, the United States, United Kingdom, and European Union have imposed unprecedented economic sanctions on Russia and various Russian entities and individuals in response to the war in Ukraine.
Actions have...more
12/19/2022
/ Asset Freeze ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Investment ,
Good Faith ,
Imports ,
Maritime Transport ,
Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Safe Harbors ,
SDN List ,
U.S. Treasury ,
UK ,
Ukraine
At a New York City Bar Association event on April 27, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco described economic sanctions as “the new FCPA.” Her characterization should put corporate compliance departments on notice. ...more
5/6/2022
/ Anti-Corruption ,
Compliance Management Systems ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Export Controls ,
FCPA Guidance ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Internal Controls ,
Military Conflict ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Russia ,
Ukraine ,
White Collar Crimes
Background As noted in our prior update, the United States, European Union and United Kingdom imposed a number of sanctions in connection with Russia’s recognition of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine. ...more
2/28/2022
/ Asset Freeze ,
Biden Administration ,
Economic Sanctions ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Transactions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Foreign Trade Regulations ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
UK ,
Ukraine ,
Vladimir Putin
Russia's Actions -
On February 21, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed two executive orders recognizing the DNR/LNR Regions as “sovereign and independent states.”...more
2/23/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Blocked Person ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Transactions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Foreign Trade Regulations ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
Ukraine ,
Vladimir Putin
As concerns continue to build between Russia and the West over the situation in Ukraine, the United States, the European Union, and the United Kingdom are preparing measures that could be utilized if diplomacy is...more
Executive Summary - On March 2, 2021, the Biden Administration, in a coordinated announcement by the U.S. Departments of Treasury, State, and Commerce, tightened export restrictions against Russia and imposed sanctions and...more
3/4/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Chemical Weapons ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime ,
Human Rights ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
UK
The U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) on October 5, 2020, published a final rule implementing new export controls on six categories of emerging technology. In doing so, the U.S. government...more
The Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”), published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (“the Notice”), on August 27, 2020, announcing the initiation of its review of foundational technologies...more
9/5/2020
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Commodities ,
ECCNs ,
Export Control Reform Act (ECRA) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Popular ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Request For Information ,
Software ,
Technology Sector ,
U.S. Commerce Department
The U.S.-China trade war continues to escalate, most recently fueled by U.S. concerns over China’s assertion of increasing authority over Hong Kong. The U.S. and Chinese governments have exchanged jabs through the use of...more
7/17/2020
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Exceptions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Free Speech ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
Freedom of the Press ,
Hong Kong ,
Hong Kong Autonomy Act (HKAA) ,
Human Rights ,
Open General Export Licences (OGELs) ,
Popular ,
Revocation ,
Right to Peaceful Assembly ,
SDN List ,
Section 301 ,
Tariffs ,
Technology Sector ,
Trade Act of 1974 ,
Trade Policy ,
Trade Wars ,
Travel Ban ,
Trump Administration ,
United States
On April 28, 2020, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) published two final rules and one proposed rule targeting national security controlled exports and reexports to China, Russia, and...more
4/30/2020
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Commerce Control List ,
ECCNs ,
End-Users ,
Exemptions ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Final Rules ,
Licensing Rules ,
Military End Use ,
National Security ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Russia ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
US Trade Policies ,
Venezuela
The outbreak of COVID-19 is impacting international trade as global markets deal with uncertain supply and companies and governments work to ensure personal safety while developing contingency plans for handling the virus. In...more
3/12/2020
/ Breach of Contract ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Force Majeure Clause ,
General Licenses ,
Humanitarian Assistance ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Medical Supplies ,
Multinationals ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Risk Management ,
Sanction Violations ,
Supply Chain
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (“DDTC”) published an interim final rule on December 26, 2019, bringing the International Traffic in Arms Regulations’ (“ITAR”) treatment of encrypted electronic...more
1/9/2020
/ Cloud Computing ,
Defense Sector ,
Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) ,
Electronic Data Transmissions ,
Encryption ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Persons ,
ITAR ,
Licensing Rules
On December 1, 2018, acting at the request of the United States, Canadian authorities arrested a senior officer of Huawei Technologies Co. (“Huawei”), the Chinese telecommunications equipment and consumer electronics device...more
12/12/2018
/ Arrest ,
China ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Transactions ,
Hong Kong ,
HSBC ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Sanction Violations ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Relations ,
US Trade Policies
The U.S. Government has instituted a major new initiative to regulate emerging technology, potentially including artificial intelligence, biotechnology, robotics, data analytics and many other types of emerging technology,...more
11/19/2018
/ Analytics ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Biotechnology ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
CFIUS ,
Commerce Control List ,
Emerging Technology Companies ,
Export Control Reform (ECR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Foreign Investment ,
Multinationals ,
National Security ,
NDAA ,
Public Comment ,
Research and Development ,
Robotics ,
Trump Administration
The U.S. Department of the Treasury (“Treasury”) published two sets of interim rules on October 10, 2018, implementing certain provisions of the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (“FIRRMA”). In addition to...more
10/16/2018
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
CFIUS ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Interim Rule ,
ITAR ,
Mandatory Declarations ,
National Security ,
Non-Controlling Interests ,
Petrochemicals ,
Technology Sector ,
Trump Administration
On August 24, 2018, the U.S. Department of State announced a new but limited export licensing policy for defense and national security-sensitive goods and technology to Russia, effective August 27, 2018. The export licensing...more
8/27/2018
/ Chemical Weapons ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Exchanges ,
Foreign Subsidiaries ,
Government Officials ,
Legislative Agendas ,
National Security ,
Russia ,
State-Owned Enterprises ,
UK ,
US State Departments
After conferees from the U.S. House of Representatives (House) and U.S. Senate (Senate) reached agreement on the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRRMA), the House on Thursday, June 26, 2018, passed...more
8/1/2018
/ CFIUS ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Export Controls ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Investment Funds ,
Mergers ,
National Security ,
National Security Review Proceedings ,
Private Equity ,
Real Estate Investments ,
Trump Administration
The U.S. House of Representatives (the House) on June 26, 2018, passed legislation designed to reform and strengthen the authority of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS or the Committee), the...more
6/28/2018
/ Acquisitions ,
CFIUS ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Export Controls ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Manufacturers ,
National Security ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Trump Administration
While the rules regarding CFIUS review have remained largely unchanged over the past decade, CFIUS has operated under a new paradigm in recent years. After the U.S. government blocked just two transactions from its inception...more
6/21/2018
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Covered Transactions ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Disparate Treatment ,
Export Controls ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Direct Investment ,
Foreign Investment ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
National Security ,
NDAA ,
Passive Investments ,
Pending Legislation ,
Real Estate Investments ,
Rollbacks ,
Sanctions ,
Telecommunications ,
Transfer of Control ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
ZTE
The U.S. Government this week announced changes to U.S. sanctions against Cuba to implement various policy changes announced by President Trump in July 2017 (for additional background, see our prior OnPoint from June 2017)....more
11/10/2017
/ Cuba ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Financial Transactions ,
Foreign Policy ,
Government Officials ,
International Travel ,
Open General Export Licences (OGELs) ,
Travel Restrictions ,
Trump Administration
The U.S. Commerce and Treasury Departments announced on January 26, 2016, actions to ease certain restrictions on transactions involving Cuba. The new actions do not significantly expand the types of activities in which U.S....more