Export Controls and Sanctions

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Effective January 14, 2021, the Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) announced amendments to Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”) to implement the rescission of Sudan as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.  The U.S. Department of State removed Sudan’s designation effective December 14, 2020.

The changes to the EAR remove export control licensing requirements for many exports…

Today, the Bureau of Industry & Security (BIS) added China National Offshore Oil Corporation Ltd. (CNOOC) to the U.S. Entity List.  Under the new rule, U.S. and non-U.S. exporters are generally prohibited from transferring items subject to the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to CNOOC without first obtaining a U.S. export license.  As noted in…

On December 30, 2020, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) announced a settlement agreement with BitGo, Inc. (“BitGo”) for providing digital wallet services to users located in sanctioned jurisdictions, including Crimea, Cuba, Iran, Sudan, and Syria.  The case is notable because OFAC makes clear its expectation that companies consider Internet Protocol (“IP”) address geolocation…

Today, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced that it will create a new “Military End-User List” (MEU List) to help exporters comply with the recently expanded military end-use and end-user restrictions (MEU Rule) that apply to exports of certain items to China, Russia, and Venezuela.  The current MEU List includes 102…

Today, the United States added 60 companies in China and 17 companies located elsewhere to the Commerce Department’s Entity List.  Among the Chinese firms targeted are chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) and ten semiconductor companies related to SMIC, shipbuilder China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), and drone manufacturer DJI.  The move is the latest step…

Yesterday, the United States imposed secondary sanctions on Turkey’s Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB), the country’s main defense procurement entity, for purchasing the Russian S-400 missile system.  The sanctions were imposed pursuant to Section 231 of the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), which authorize secondary sanctions against non-U.S. parties that conduct a “significant…

Yesterday, the Department of Defense (DoD) designated four additional companies as owned or controlled by the Chinese military, expanding the list of “Communist Chinese military companies” (CCMCs) to 35 companies.  As previously recounted on this blog, Executive Order 13959 (the Order) will prohibit U.S. persons from purchasing the publicly traded securities of CCMCs once…

On November 30, the United States sanctioned China National Electronics Import and Export Corporation (CEIEC) by adding the Chinese technology company to the Specially Designated National (SDN) List.  Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated the company under Executive Order 13692 for providing goods and services to the Venezuelan government that were used to…

On November 12, 2020, the President issued Executive Order 13959 (the Order) to prohibit U.S. persons from purchasing the publicly traded securities of certain companies that are affiliated with China’s military.  While the Order does not come into force until January 11, 2021, U.S. financial services companies and U.S. investors will need to carefully review…

Last week, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued an Art Advisory, warning of the sanctions risk presented by high-value artwork transactions due to the anonymity, lack of transparency, mobility of assets, and subjective valuations that often characterize that market.  OFAC cautions that bad actors, like terrorist financiers and others subject to sanctions,…