On June 3, 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order to modify sanctions initially imposed by former President Trump regarding investments in Chinese companies with alleged ties to the Chinese military. The new...more
On April 15, 2021, the United States imposed new sanctions expanding restrictions on the purchase of certain Russian sovereign debt and other financing instruments and adding numerous Russian entities and individuals to the...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
In this OnPoint, we discuss new rules announced by China’s Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM”) aimed at counteracting the extraterritorial impact of foreign law on Chinese persons. ...more
On December 28, 2020, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) released guidance on the implementation of sanctions targeting securities of Communist Chinese military companies (“CCMCs”) imposed...more
President Trump issued an Executive Order on November 12, 2020 that will prohibit U.S. persons from investing in publicly traded securities of certain companies determined to be affiliated with China’s military. Executive...more
11/16/2020
/ Biden Administration ,
China ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities Transactions ,
Trump Administration
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
Weeks ago, on September 14 2020, the Trump Administration made news by announcing a ban on the importation of certain products made in China’s Xinjiang region, where widespread human rights abuses—including slave labor work...more
10/6/2020
/ China ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) ,
Forced Labor ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Human Rights ,
Imports ,
Park Doctrine ,
Supply Chain ,
Trump Administration ,
US Trade Policies
President Trump signed into law the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018 (“FIRRMA”) on August 13, 2018. FIRRMA made several substantial changes to the CFIUS process and expanded the scope of the...more
9/22/2020
/ Amended Regulation ,
CFIUS ,
Covered Transactions ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Exports ,
Final Rules ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Mandatory Declarations ,
NAICS ,
Non-US Entities ,
Technology Sector ,
Trump Administration
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
Key Takeaways -
- On July 31, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department, as chair of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS” or the “Committee”), published its Annual Report to Congress on all notices...more
8/7/2020
/ Annual Reports ,
CFIUS ,
China ,
Congressional Reports ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Global Dealmaking ,
Japan ,
National Security ,
National Security Review Proceedings
Key Takeaways -
On July 28, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department, as chair of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS” or the “Committee”), released the final rule to establish filing fees for CFIUS...more
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
Background -
The U.S. Government, through the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), has imposed comprehensive sanctions against Syria since 2011. ...more
Key Takeaways
- On May 19, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department, as chair of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS” or the “Committee”), published its Annual Report to Congress on all notices filed...more
President Trump signed into law the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018 (“FIRRMA”) on August 13, 2018, which made several substantial changes to the CFIUS process and expanded the scope of the Committee’s...more
5/28/2020
/ CFIUS ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
ITAR ,
Mandatory Declarations ,
NAICS ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Substantial Interest Test ,
Technology Sector ,
Trump Administration
This Interim Rule follows the Proposed Rule on filing fees published by the Committee on March 9, 2020...The Interim Rule also implements one of the last remaining changes to the CFIUS process initiated by the Foreign...more
5/6/2020
/ CFIUS ,
Covered Transactions ,
Filing Fees ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Interim Rule ,
Joint Venture ,
Minority Equity Investments ,
National Security ,
Threshold Requirements ,
Voluntary Transaction Notices
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
Key Takeaways
- The Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) issued a regulation allowing companies to export personal protective equipment (“PPE”) in 10 defined circumstances discussed below.
- U.S. Customs and...more
4/22/2020
/ Border Closures ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Delays ,
Duties ,
Executive Orders ,
Exemptions ,
Exports ,
FEMA ,
Imports ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Relief Measures ,
State of Emergency ,
Tariff Act of 1930 ,
Time Extensions ,
Trump Administration
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
On March 4, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department, as chair of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS” or the “Committee”), released a proposed rule to establish for the first time filing fees for CFIUS...more
3/11/2020
/ CFIUS ,
Covered Real Estate Transactions ,
Covered Transactions ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Declaration ,
Filing Fees ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
National Security ,
Notice Requirements ,
Proposed Rules ,
U.S. Treasury
The U.S.Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) added Rosneft Trading SA (“Rosneft Trading”), a subsidiary of Russian oil major Rosneft Oil Company (“Rosneft”), to the List of Specially Designated...more
2/25/2020
/ Crude Oil ,
Debt Instruments ,
Economic Sanctions ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Risk Assessment ,
Russia ,
Sanction Violations ,
SDN List ,
Secondary Sanctions ,
SSI List ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Venezuela ,
Winding Down
On January 13, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department, as chair of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS” or the “Committee”), issued a final set of regulations (“Real Estate Final Regulations”) to...more
1/18/2020
/ CFIUS ,
Commercial Leases ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Excepted Investors ,
Final Rules ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Jurisdiction ,
Non U.S. Person ,
Ports ,
Property Owners ,
Real Estate Investments ,
Real Estate Transactions
On January 13, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department, as chair of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (“CFIUS” or the “Committee”), finalized two sets of regulations to implement the Foreign Investment Risk...more
1/18/2020
/ CFIUS ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Excepted Investors ,
Final Rules ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Investment Funds ,
Jurisdiction ,
Mandatory Disclosure Rules ,
Mergers ,
National Security ,
National Security Review Proceedings ,
Non-Controlling Interests ,
Principal Place of Business ,
Private Equity ,
Real Estate Transactions ,
U.S. Treasury
On January 15, 2020, U.S. President Trump and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He signed a Phase 1 trade deal between the countries. The agreement includes a pledge from China to increase its imports of U.S. goods and services by...more
1/17/2020
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Anti-Dumping Duty ,
CFIUS ,
China ,
Counterfeit Goods Regulation ,
Countervailing Duties ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Exports ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Foreign Direct Investment ,
Goods or Services ,
Imports ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Pharmaceutical Patents ,
Subsidies ,
Tariffs ,
Technology Transfer Agreements ,
Trade Agreements ,
Trade Negotiations ,
Trade Secrets ,
Trade Wars ,
Trademarks ,
Trump Administration ,
United States ,
WTO