As we wrote previously, the U.S. Department of the Treasury has issued a final rule that takes effect on December 26 that will dramatically raise the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) penalties from...more
12/30/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Canada ,
CFIUS ,
China ,
Conspiracies ,
Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
False Statements ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Investment ,
International Trade ,
Investment ,
Iran ,
ITAR ,
Mexico ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Outbound Transactions ,
Russia ,
Tariffs ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Treasury
The Commerce Department issued new guidance for financial institutions on best practices for compliance with the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). Available here, the guidance emphasizes enhanced due diligence, ongoing...more
11/15/2024
/ China ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Duties ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Investment ,
Hedge Funds ,
International Trade ,
ITAR ,
NASA ,
North Korea ,
Private Equity ,
Semiconductors ,
Solar Panels ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury ,
US State Departments
The Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) recently issued an interim final rule implementing licensing requirements for these emerging technology products for export to all foreign countries. See the...more
9/20/2024
/ AUKUS ,
Australia ,
Belarus ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
CFIUS ,
Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Emerging Technologies ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Direct Product Rule ,
Foreign Governments ,
Foreign Investment ,
ITAR ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
Technology ,
U.S. Treasury ,
UK ,
US Department of State
In line with Group of Seven (G7) efforts to disrupt the Russian military-industrial base’s reliance on foreign IT systems, in June 2024 the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Department of the Treasury jointly issued new...more
8/5/2024
/ Belarus ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Cloud Computing ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Information Technology ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
SaaS ,
Software ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury
On June 20, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) for the first time banned a software and cybersecurity company using authority provided by June 2023’s “Protecting Americans’ Sensitive Data from...more
7/15/2024
/ Building Information Modeling (BIM) ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Entity List ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Foreign Adversaries ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
SaaS ,
Sensitive Business Information ,
Software ,
Technology Sector ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury
On May 10, 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued an Interim Final Rule (IFR), effective August 8, 2024, that updates the Reporting, Procedures, and Penalties Regulations....more
6/14/2024
/ Antiboycott Requirements ,
Biden Administration ,
Blocked Entities ,
China ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Exports ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Israel ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Russia ,
Section 301 ,
Self-Disclosure Requirements ,
Senate Finance Committee ,
Tariffs ,
Turkey ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Ukraine ,
USTR ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
On April 15, the U.S. Department of the Treasury published a proposed rule that would enhance certain Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS or the Committee) procedures and increase CFIUS penalty and...more
5/9/2024
/ AUKUS ,
CFIUS ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Investment ,
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
ITAR ,
Made in the USA ,
National Security ,
NDAA ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Proposed Rules ,
Russia ,
U.S. Treasury ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
US Department of State ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
Ford Motor Company Agrees to $365M Settlement for Attempted Tariff Engineering Ford has agreed to settle the long-standing dispute over the tariff classification of vans imported from 2009 to 2013. At the time, Customs and...more
4/8/2024
/ Antiboycott Requirements ,
Bribery ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
CFIUS ,
Connected Cars ,
Court of International Trade ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Executive Orders ,
Export Controls ,
Forced Labor ,
Ford Motor ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Personal Data ,
SDN List ,
Section 301 ,
Tariffs ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
USDA ,
USTR ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
Teradyne, a Massachusetts-based supplier of semiconductor testing equipment, has reportedly pulled $1 billion of manufacturing equipment out of China in 2023 following export controls on advanced computing materials and...more
2/15/2024
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Cloud Computing ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
IaaS ,
International Trade ,
Know Your Customers ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Proposed Rules ,
Semiconductors ,
Software ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Ukraine ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE) ,
US Department of State
TRADE TIP OF THE MONTH: New Companies Have More Time To Report Ownership-
The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network issued a final rule in late November to delay the deadline for newly created...more
12/11/2023
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Beneficial Owner ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) ,
Exports ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Financial Crimes ,
FinCEN ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Ransomware ,
Reporting Requirements ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Virtual Currency
On June 16, the U.S. Department of Commerce published a final rule, to be effective July 17, implementing the Protecting Americans’ Sensitive Data From Foreign Adversaries and amending the Securing the Information and...more
7/11/2023
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Evasion ,
Foreign Adversaries ,
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) ,
Iran ,
North Korea ,
Russia ,
Supply Chain ,
Technology ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems ,
Whistleblower Awards
1. Reverse CFIUS Expected To Be Narrow and Only Forward-Looking Laura Black, a former Treasury Department official, recently discussed how companies should prepare for any potential U.S. outbound investment review process....more
2/20/2023
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Foreign Investment ,
NDAA ,
Section 301 ,
Supply Chain ,
U.S. Treasury ,
USTR ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
On September 15, President Biden issued the first ever executive order (E.O.) regarding the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). While the E.O. does not change the law or regulations related to CFIUS...more
10/6/2022
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
CFIUS ,
China ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Executive Orders ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Federal Contractors ,
Forced Labor ,
Foreign Investment ,
Imports ,
Investigations ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
On Aug. 8, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash for allegedly helping launder more than $7 billion worth of cryptocurrency over three years.1...more
9/29/2022
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Declaratory Relief ,
Economic Sanctions ,
FinCEN ,
Investors ,
Money Laundering ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Statutory Authority ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Voluntary Disclosure
In late December 2021, President Joe Biden signed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA). The new law creates a rebuttable presumption that any goods created in whole or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous...more
5/11/2022
/ Belarus ,
Bitcoin Mining ,
China ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Cyber Attacks ,
False Statements ,
FBI ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Forced Labor ,
Joe Biden ,
Made in the USA ,
North Korea ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
Section 301 ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Relations ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
1. Updates to Russia Sanctions and Export Controls-
In response to the ongoing attack on Ukraine, the U.S. government continues on a weekly basis to increase economic sanctions and export controls on Russia.
...more
4/11/2022
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
CFIUS ,
China ,
Court of International Trade ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
FCC ,
International Trade ,
National Security ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Russia ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
U.S. Treasury
1. Treasury Mandates Reporting of Foreign Securities Holdings of $200M or More-
All U.S. persons (custodians and end investors) who manage $200 million or more in foreign securities for themselves or others must file a...more
2/2/2022
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Biotechnology ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Burma ,
CFIUS ,
Cybersecurity ,
Export Controls ,
Forced Labor ,
Foreign Securities ,
Hong Kong ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Popular ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
SDN List ,
Supply Chain ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Ukraine
1. New Import Ban on All Products From China’s Xinjiang Region-
In late December 2021, President Biden signed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act into law. The new legislation creates a rebuttable presumption that any...more
1/5/2022
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Arms Embargo ,
China ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
ECCNs ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Controls ,
Forced Labor ,
Human Rights ,
Imports ,
ITAR ,
Joe Biden ,
NIST ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
Sovereign Debt ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury
1. U.S. Emerging Tech Companies Can’t Work With These Chinese Entities
On November 26, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security added 27 foreign organizations and individuals, including eight technology...more
12/7/2021
/ China ,
Court of International Trade ,
Emerging Technologies ,
Emerging Technology Companies ,
Entity List ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Exports ,
FCC ,
MOFCOM ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
SaaS ,
Sanctions ,
Technology Sector ,
U.S. Treasury ,
USTR ,
ZTE
1. New Cybersecurity Export Controls From BIS Go Into Effect in January -
The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has released an interim final rule establishing new export controls on certain cybersecurity items and...more
11/3/2021
/ Anti-Dumping Duty ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Espionage ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Financial Crimes ,
FinCEN ,
National Security ,
NCSC ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
Section 301 ,
Supply Chain ,
Technology ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury ,
US Trade Policies ,
USTR ,
Virtual Currency
As global trade policy affects supply chains and importing and exporting, companies often have interests on both sides of global trade issues. They want lower costs and efficient labor sources and want to sell their goods and...more
11/2/2021
/ Audits ,
Buy American Act ,
China ,
Exports ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Global Market ,
Imports ,
Joe Biden ,
Sanctions ,
Section 301 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Relations ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury ,
US Trade Policies
We are continuing to see strong interest in basic facts about CFIUS. One reason is increased CFIUS enforcement of its authorities. Another is news coverage of Chinese investment in U.S. critical technology and companies...more
8/18/2021
/ CFIUS ,
China ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Mandatory Declarations ,
National Security ,
Target Company ,
Technology Sector ,
U.S. Treasury
1. Biden Administration Trade Posture-
The Biden administration is slowly and steadily reviewing the decisions of the Trump administration. So far, the administration has struck a deal with the EU to end the 17-year-old...more
8/9/2021
/ Airbus ,
Biden Administration ,
Boeing ,
CFIUS ,
China ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Investment ,
Foreign Policy ,
Interagency Guidance ,
National Security ,
OECD ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanctions ,
Section 301 ,
Supply Chain ,
Trump Administration ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
WTO
1. Chinese Trade Tensions Ramp Up-
On June 3, President Joe Biden signed Executive Order 14032, replacing and superseding previous EOs that banned U.S. persons from purchasing and selling public securities of Chinese...more
7/8/2021
/ Anti-Corruption ,
China ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Entrepreneurs ,
Executive Orders ,
Forced Labor ,
Imports ,
Joe Biden ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
Sanctions ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Withhold Release Orders (WROs)
1. Recent Enforcement: Even Companies That Invest in Compliance Pay Penalties-
Since our April enforcement roundup, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) in the Department...more
6/3/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Compliance ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
ENERGY STAR Program ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Geo-Blocking ,
Honeywell International ,
ITAR ,
Moneygram ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Sanctions ,
SDN List ,
Software ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury