UK Guidance Covers Compliance Rules for Certain General Export Licenses
The U.K. issued updated guidance last week on how exporters can use Assimilated General Export Authorizations (GEA), the general export licenses that were "assimilated" into U.K. law after the country’s exit from the EU.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Export Compliance Daily combines U.S. export control news, foreign border import regulation and policy developments into a single daily information service that reliably informs its trade professional readers about important current issues affecting their operations.
The country’s Department for International Trade stressed that companies must register with the U.K.'s Export Control Joint Unit (ECJU) before using the licenses, which cover certain dual-use items, telecommunication goods, chemicals and other products. They can be used only for exports from England, Scotland and Wales, the government said, and companies can apply for a Standard Individual Export License or an Open Individual Export License “if an assimilated GEA does not meet your exporting requirements.”
The guidance also says users of Assimilated GEAs are subject to ECJU compliance audits, and they must keep records of their exports. “It is your responsibility when exporting controlled items that you take all reasonable steps to ensure that you use the correct authorisation,” the U.K. said, adding that users “must … read and understand this guidance,” use the U.K. “Checker Tool” to help understand if an export is covered under a GEA, and “seek external legal advice where required.”
Exporters that are found to have used the wrong authorization “may receive a warning letter or be prohibited from using an authorisation,” the U.K. said.