As we pass the midpoint of a year marked by assertive enforcement of dual use laws, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published an updated version of its Don’t Let This Happen to You! Guide....more
7/16/2024
/ Antiboycott Requirements ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Entity List ,
Export Controls ,
Huawei ,
Licensing Rules ,
Self-Disclosure Requirements ,
Semiconductors ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
Voluntary Disclosure
On June 27, 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry & Security (BIS) announced its first update to the boycott requester list. The list contains entities that have been reported by a U.S. person as having...more
The U.S. State Department has proposed amendments to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) to increase the fees required for Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) registration. The ITAR requires persons...more
Last year, we published an update on BIS’s foray into prohibiting EAR99 items for export to Russia and Belarus. We noted (somewhat in jest) that kitchen sinks may one day be added. Well, that day has come. Stainless steel...more
6/21/2024
/ Belarus ,
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
General Licenses ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Russia ,
Software ,
Technology Sector
The solar industry is starting to get whiplash. Over the past year in particular, the industry has experienced a whirlwind of regulatory changes making solar tariffs some of the most complex tariffs in all of U.S. importing...more
6/19/2024
/ Anti-Dumping Duty ,
Batteries ,
Cambodia ,
China ,
Countervailing Duties ,
Energy Sector ,
Imports ,
Malaysia ,
Manufacturers ,
Popular ,
Section 201 ,
Solar Energy ,
Solar Panels ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Thailand ,
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) ,
Vietnam
On May 10, 2024, The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has released a new proposed rule which would make significant changes to OFAC’s standard reporting, record-keeping, and license applications under U.S. sanction...more
Author and futurist Peter Zeihan recently asserted that President Joe Biden has presided over “the most protectionist administration the United States has had in at least a century.” And Donald Trump reportedly plans to...more
4/5/2024
/ Anti-Dumping Duty ,
Countervailing Duties ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Donald Trump ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
Imports ,
Investment ,
Joe Biden ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Relations
On December 22, 2023, President Biden signed a new Executive Order (E.O. 14114) containing the latest round of sanctions against the Russian Federation. Shortly thereafter, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated that the...more
On Tuesday, October 17, 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) released a package of three rules (the 2023 Rules) targeting the Chinese semiconductor industry. The rules update the substantial semiconductor...more
10/23/2023
/ China ,
Commerce Control List ,
ECCNs ,
Entity List ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Semiconductors ,
Software ,
Technology ,
Trade Restrictions
On August 9, 2023, President Biden issued an Executive Order (E.O.) ordering the issuance of outbound investment restrictions. This E.O. comes after nearly a year of anticipation (as we have documented on several occasions...more
8/14/2023
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Biden Administration ,
CFIUS ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreign Direct Investment ,
Foreign Investment ,
Investment ,
National Security ,
Outbound Transactions ,
Semiconductors ,
Supply Chain ,
Technology Sector ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
U.S. Treasury
On May 16, 2023, President Joseph Biden vetoed the Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution that would have nullified the temporary moratorium on the collection of antidumping and countervailing (AD/CVD) duties on imports of...more
5/19/2023
/ Anti-Dumping Duty ,
Biden Administration ,
Cambodia ,
Countervailing Duties ,
Imports ,
Malaysia ,
Presidential Veto ,
Solar Energy ,
Solar Panels ,
Tariffs ,
Thailand ,
Vietnam
When can an employer use the “national security exception” under U.S. anti-discrimination law to make a hiring decision based on the national origin of the candidate? An often overlooked area of compliance is how to comply...more
4/27/2023
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Defense Sector ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Discrimination ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Nationals ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Immigration ,
Immigration Procedures ,
ITAR ,
Required Documentation
In response to Russia’s ongoing aggression in Ukraine, both the United States and the European Union have imposed additional sanctions and further restricted exports to Russia and Iran. These new controls span many...more
2/28/2023
/ Economic Sanctions ,
Entity List ,
EU ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Russia ,
SDN List ,
Trade Restrictions ,
UK ,
Ukraine
Good morning, and welcome back. This is the eighth edition of OIG Shorts, a publication of Sheppard Mullin’s Organizational Integrity Group. In this series, we discuss practical approaches to creating a more effective Ethics...more
As you may have heard here (and here and here), in October 2022, the United States issued sweeping measures aimed at the semiconductor industry in China. The new regulations restrict the export of semiconductors and related...more
12/21/2022
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Japan ,
Microchip Technology ,
Netherlands ,
New Regulations ,
Semiconductors ,
Supply Chain ,
WTO
As we close out a wild year for international trade regulation, after hearing much talk about outbound investment review mechanisms, we may see a final dramatic change before the ball drops...more
12/21/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
CFIUS ,
China ,
Executive Orders ,
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) ,
International Relations ,
International Trade ,
Investment ,
Investors ,
National Security ,
NDAA ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Technology ,
U.S. Treasury
Key Takeaways Background Since October 7, 2022, when the Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) dropped 140 pages of regulations on the semiconductor industry, U.S. passport and green card holders working at Chinese chip...more
On November 15, 2022, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) opened its docket (USTR-2022-0014) seeking public comments in its review of Lists 1 and 2 of the Trump-era tariffs on Chinese imports. The tariffs were...more
11/18/2022
/ China ,
Modification ,
Public Comment ,
Questionnaires ,
Small Business ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Act of 1974 ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices ,
USTR ,
Wages
The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has announced the next steps in its review of Lists 1 and 2 of the Trump-era tariffs on Chinese imports. Today, on October 17, 2022, USTR published the official request for...more
The Announcement On Friday, October 7, 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) released for public inspection (available ...) one hundred forty pages of regulations (which we’ll call “the Regulation” here) that...more
10/11/2022
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
China ,
Depositions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
Exports ,
Microchip Technology ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Semiconductors ,
Technology
In response to Russia’s illegal declaration of annexations of Ukrainian territory, the United States and the European Union have imposed additional sanctions on Russia. U.S. Response On October 4, 2022, the U.S. government...more
On September 16, 2022, the U.S. Commerce Department released its final rule regarding antidumping and countervailing duty (AD/CVD) circumvention inquiries on solar cells and modules from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and...more
The U.S. Governmental Accountability Office (GAO) thinks the FBI and other agencies are not doing enough to address the espionage threat on U.S. university campuses. It issued a report, “Enforcement Agencies Should Better...more
8/10/2022
/ Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) ,
Colleges ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Export Administration Regulations (EAR) ,
Export Controls ,
FBI ,
GAO ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Management ,
Sanctions ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
Universities
Today, the United States Trade Representative issued a notice informing the importing community about a new Section 301 exclusion process and seeking comments from affected importers. The comment period begins on October 12,...more
If your company is like many, your board of directors may be demanding that you put more effort into environmental, social, and governance issues, which have become known by the now-ubiquitous acronym “ESG.” Those demands...more
10/11/2021
/ Board of Directors ,
Customs ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Ethical Standards ,
Exports ,
Forced Labor ,
Imports ,
International Trade ,
Sanctions ,
Supply Chain ,
Trade Policy