{"id":438,"date":"2021-01-13T18:32:16","date_gmt":"2021-01-13T23:32:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/exportcompliancesolutions.com\/blog\/?p=438"},"modified":"2021-01-13T18:43:15","modified_gmt":"2021-01-13T23:43:15","slug":"recent-updates-commerce-country-policies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/exportcompliancesolutions.com\/blog\/2021\/01\/13\/recent-updates-commerce-country-policies\/","title":{"rendered":"Recent Updates to Commerce Country Policies"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a flurry of activity in December, the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), updated licensing policies for countries near and far.\u00a0 The updates will have notable impacts on license exemption availability as described below.<\/p>\n

Hong Kong no Longer a Separate Destination<\/strong><\/p>\n

On December 23, 2020, BIS issued a final rule (85 FR 83765<\/a>) removing Hong Kong as a separate destination under the Export Administration Regulations (EAR).\u00a0 This follows the July suspension<\/a> \u201call License Exceptions for Hong Kong that provide differential treatment as compared to those available to the People\u2019s Republic of China (PRC).\u201d\u00a0 The PRC imposed a new \u201cnational security law\u201d in 2020 which reduced Hong Kong\u2019s preexisting autonomy and increased the risk of diversion U.S. technology and hardware.<\/p>\n

Changes to Country Groups for Ukraine-Removes an Exception
\nMexico, and Cyprus Adds STA as an Exception but Cyprus still a D:5 Country<\/strong><\/p>\n

On December 28, 2020, BIS issued a final rule (85 FR 84211<\/a>) which moves Ukraine from Country Group D to Country Group B and adds Mexico and Cyprus to Country Group A:6.<\/p>\n

No changes were made to license requirements in the Commerce Country Chart<\/a>.\u00a0 Under the EAR, Country Groups<\/a> are used to determine eligibility for many license exceptions.<\/p>\n

Ukraine\u2019s addition to Country Group A:6 is unique, as it specifically excludes eligibility for License Exception GBS<\/u> (\u00a7740.4 Shipments to Group B Countries) and License Exception TSR (\u00a7740.6 Technology and Software under Restriction), but other license exceptions available to Group B countries do become available.\u00a0 Under this change, General Prohibition Three (the Foreign-Produced Direct Product Rule) no longer applies to Ukraine.\u00a0 EAR \u00a7746.6<\/a> continues to restrict exports to the Crimea Region of Ukraine.<\/p>\n

The addition of Mexico and Cyprus to Country Group A:6 authorizes the use of License Exception Strategic Trade Authorization (STA) \u00a7740.20(c)(2) (controls of lesser sensitivity).<\/p>\n

Cyprus remains an ITAR \u00a7126.1 country (with a recently updated licensing policy<\/a>) and is still included in Country Group D:5.\u00a0 Under EAR \u00a7740.2(a)(12) and (13), license exceptions are limited for 9×515 and 600 series items for Cyprus (and other D:5 countries)<\/p>\n

These updates are based on: \u201c(1) The Government of Ukraine’s continuing engagement with regional and international export control authorities; (2) Mexico’s multilateral export control regime memberships and national security approaches and interests compatible with the United States; and (3) Cyprus’ European Union membership and like-minded export controls.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sudan<\/strong><\/p>\n

On December 18, 2020, the Department of State published a notice rescinding Sudan\u2019s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.\u00a0 This change was previously announced<\/a> in October, subject to a 45-day Congressional notification window.\u00a0 Sudan is currently the only country designated as requiring export licenses for Anti-Terrorism (AT) purposes on the Commerce Country Chart<\/a> that is not subject to comprehensive restrictions.\u00a0 This requirement has not yet been removed.<\/p>\n

After the re-designation of Cuba as a State Sponsor of Terrorism<\/a>, the list now includes Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and Syria.\u00a0 All four are already subject to comprehensive export restrictions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a flurry of activity in December, the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), updated licensing policies for countries near and far.\u00a0 The updates will have notable impacts on license exemption availability as described below. Hong Kong no Longer a Separate Destination On December 23, 2020, BIS issued a final rule (85 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-438","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-all","category-ear-licensing"],"yoast_head":"\nRecent Updates to Commerce Country Policies - Export Compliance Solutions<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"New Year, New EAR Country Policies: EAR updates affect Hong Kong, Cyprus, Mexico, and Ukraine.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/exportcompliancesolutions.com\/blog\/2021\/01\/13\/recent-updates-commerce-country-policies\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Recent Updates to Commerce Country Policies - 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