The Bureau of Industry and Security on Dec. 11 will add eight companies to the Entity List for “enabling human rights violations,” including by supplying sensitive technology or military items to foreign governments that are subject to strict license requirements. The entities are located in Myanmar, China and Russia, the agency said in a final rule released Dec. 10. They will be subject to license requirements for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and licenses will be reviewed under a presumption of denial.

The Bureau of Industry and Security added more than 100 entities to the Entity List and released a new set of semiconductor-related export controls on Dec. 2, introducing new license requirements for both U.S.-origin and foreign-produced chip tools and publishing new red flag guidance on how companies should be vetting Chinese chip factories.

The new chip restrictions, many of which take effect Dec. 31, include controls on 24 types of semiconductor manufacturing equipment and three types of chip software tools; new controls on both U.S.-origin and certain foreign produced high-bandwidth memory; and two new foreign product rules to cover certain foreign-made chip tools that contain “any amount” of U.S.-origin integrated circuits, except for certain shipments from a list of countries that have implemented controls similar to those put in place by the U.S., such as the Netherlands and Japan. The rule also introduces new software and technology controls and clarifies existing controls on software keys.

BIS also added 140 entities to the Entity List -- including Chinese semiconductor fabs, tool companies and investment companies -- for helping the Chinese government make advanced chips for its military. The additions include entities based in China, Japan, South Korea and Singapore, and they will be subject to a license requirement for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, with most facing a presumption of denial. The additions are effective Dec. 2.

The Bureau of Industry and Security will add more than 40 entries to the Entity List for shipping sensitive items to Russia or for other activities that support Russia’s military, and it will tighten restrictions on nearly 50 entities already on the list that BIS said are procuring U.S.-branded microelectronics for Russia, the agency said in a final rule released Oct. 30. BIS also plans to introduce new chemical weapons-related controls for certain chemical precursors that Russia has used in chemical weapons against Ukraine, it said in a separate final rule.

Both rules take effect Nov. 1. The parties and addresses added to the Entity List are located in China, India, Malaysia, Russia, Singapore and Turkey. The modified Entity List entries, located in China, Estonia, Finland, India, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the U.K., will be subject to the BIS Russia/Belarus-Military End User and Procurement Foreign Direct Product rule. All the entities will be subject to license requirements for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and licenses will be reviewed either under a presumption of denial or a policy of denial, with certain exceptions for food and medicine designated as EAR99, which will be reviewed case by case.

The Treasury Department issued a pre-publication version of the final regulations for its outbound investment program, which will set new prohibitions and notification requirements to limit certain U.S. business activities in the semiconductor, artificial intelligence and quantum sectors of mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau beginning Jan. 2. The final rule, released Oct. 28, adopts many of the regulations proposed by the agency earlier this year along with a host of notable tweaks, clarifications and refinements, including a more detailed description for the rules’ AI investment threshold, insight into the agency’s due diligence expectations for U.S. companies and updates to the scope of exempt transactions.

The Bureau of Industry and Security on Oct. 23 will add 26 companies and people to the Entity List for trying to buy controlled U.S. items for China’s military, evade sanctions against Russia, supply sensitive goods to Iran or Pakistan, or for evading U.S. end-use checks, the agency said in a final rule released Oct. 21. BIS will also remove two entities from the list and update the address information for another entity.

The parties added to the Entity List are located in China, Egypt, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, and they will be subject to license requirements for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations. Licenses will be reviewed under a presumption of denial.

The U.S. will soon reduce licensing requirements for exports of certain space-related items to a range of countries and may transfer export control jurisdiction over other space-related defense items from the State Department to the Commerce Department, according to four rules released by the agencies Oct. 17. The rulemakings are designed to “modernize” U.S. export controls on space technologies, a senior Commerce official told reporters, including by easing restrictions on exports of less sensitive space technologies, certain spacecraft-related items and more.

One final rule issued by the Bureau of Industry and Security will remove controls for certain spacecraft and related items for exports and reexports to Australia, Canada and the U.K., including spacecraft that “involve remote sensing or space-based logistics, assembly, or servicing.” Another BIS interim final rule will reduce license requirements on certain less sensitive space-related items to more than 40 countries, the Commerce official said, and broaden certain license exceptions that support NASA programs. Both rules are effective Oct. 23, though BIS is accepting public comments on the second rule through Nov. 22.

A proposed BIS rule, published alongside a complementary rule from the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, would transfer the jurisdiction of certain space-related defense items from DDTC’s U.S. Munitions List to the BIS Commerce Control List because they no longer “provide a critical military or intelligence advantage,” the Commerce official said, including spacecraft that refuel other spacecraft and spacecraft capable of “autonomous collision avoidance.” The BIS rule also proposes new License Exception CSA (Commercial Space Activities), which would “mirror” existing International Traffic in Arms Regulations exemptions for some of those items.

The proposed DDTC rule would add and remove items from the USML and introduce three new license exemptions to the ITAR related to “civil space activity,” among other updates. The rule outlines possible changes and clarifications to a range of items listed in USML Categories IV and XV, including for exports of certain man-portable air defense systems, anti-tank missiles, propulsion systems and more.

Comments on both BIS and DDTC proposed rules are due Nov. 22.

The Bureau of Industry and Security will add eight companies in China, Germany, Pakistan and Turkey to its Unverified List, it said in a final rule released Oct. 15 and effective Oct. 16. It will also remove one company in China and one in Saudi Arabia. All export license exceptions involving the parties added to the list will be suspended, and exporters must file certain Electronic Export Information and obtain a statement from any party listed on the UVL before proceeding with certain exports.

The State Department fined U.S. defense firm RTX Corp. $200 million to settle alleged violations of the Arms Export Control Act and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, one of the largest standalone export penalties ever issued by the agency. The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls said the 750 violations, most of which involved the “historical systemic failures” of an aerospace systems company acquired by RTX, stemmed from export control classification issues, the illegal “hand-carry” of defense items to another country and violations of the terms of DDTC licenses. RTX voluntarily disclosed the violations, which included exports of prohibited items to Lebanon, Iran, Russia and China.

As part of a consent agreement released Aug. 30, RTX must pay $34 million to DDTC within 10 days, $33 million within one year and another $33 million within two years. The company must use the remaining $100 million to make specific improvements to its compliance procedures.

The Bureau of Industry and Security will add 123 entities to the Entity List, expand the scope of its Russia/Belarus-Military End User Foreign-Direct Product rule, add export controls on certain computer numerical control (CNC) machine tools-related software, and makes corrections to the agency’s Russia and Belarus controls, the agency said in two rules released Aug. 23. The Entity List and FDP rule updates take effect Aug. 27, and the new CNC controls and other corrections take effect Sept. 16.

BIS will add entities to the Entity List for their ties to Russia’s defense industrial base, for helping to send controlled items to Russia, for supplying controlled items to Iran, for doing business with parties sanctioned by the U.S., or for other activities that are “contrary” to U.S. national security.

The revised FDP rule will now also apply to a set of Russian and Belarusian “procurement entities” described on the Entity List, BIS said, while the new CNC controls will place license requirements on certain software to ensure that CNC machine tools in Russia and Belarus that are already subject to controls can’t receive software updates.

The Bureau of Industry and Security will add six entities to the Entity List and update its Unverified List to include 13 new parties and remove eight others, the agency said in a pair of rules released July 2 and effective July 3.

BIS added the six companies to its Entity List for either helping to train China’s military, evading U.S. government end-use checks or for shipping sensitive items to Russia, while the 13 companies were added to the UVL because BIS was unable to verify their reliability in receiving export-controlled items. The Entity List additions include companies in China, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates and the U.K, and the UVL additions include businesses in China, Cyprus, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey and the UAE.

The companies added to the Entity List will be subject to license requirements for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and licenses will be reviewed under a presumption of denial.

The Bureau of Industry and Security on June 24 will add three companies associated with Russian cybersecurity company Kaspersky to the Entity List, the agency said in a notice released June 20. The companies, two located in Russia and one located in the U.K., work with Russian military and intelligence authorities, BIS said. They will be subject to license requirements for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and licenses will be reviewed under a presumption of denial.

The Biden administration announced June 12 it's taking additional measures to degrade Russia’s war machine, sanctioning more than 300 entities and people and imposing several significant export restrictions, including the addition of five entities and eight addresses to the Entity List. The sanctions target Chinese companies that provide dual-use goods to Russia's defense industrial base, and foreign financial institutions that aid Russia's military. The export restrictions include a crackdown on diversion through shell companies.

The Bureau of Industry and Security added 37 Chinese entities to the Entity List for trying to acquire export controlled items for China’s military or quantum technology efforts, helping to ship controlled items to Russia, or for supporting China’s “High Altitude Balloon” program. The additions, outlined in a final rule that was released and took effect May 9, include technology companies, manufacturing firms, research institutions and others. They will be subject to license requirements for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and licenses will be reviewed under a presumption of denial.

The State Department on April 30 released proposed regulations to implement an exemption from International Traffic in Arms Regulations licensing requirements for Australia and the U.K. under the Australia-U.K.-U.S. (AUKUS) Enhanced Trilateral Security Partnership.

The proposed rule, issued “in the interest of preparing” for a potential determination under the National Defense Authorization Act of 2024 that Australia and the U.K. have comparable export control systems to the U.S., includes a preliminary list of defense articles and services excluded from eligibility for the new exemption.

It also adds to the scope of the exemption for “intra-company, intra-organization, and intragovernmental transfers to allow for the transfer of classified defense articles to certain dual nationals who are authorized users or regular employees of an authorized user within the United Kingdom and Australia,” and would set new expedited license review procedures for Australia, the U.K. and Canada. Comments are due May 31.

The Bureau Industry and Security on May 30 will begin revoking some export licenses for firearms, and shortening the lengths of others, in line with changes to export controls for firearms made in an interim final rule released April 26.

Scheduled for publication in the April 30 Federal Register, the interim final rule reduces the validity period for most export licenses for firearms from four years to one. It also adopts a license policy of denial for nongovernment end users in 36 “high-risk” destinations for firearms controlled under the Crime Control 2 reason for control, which will now apply to most firearms. Both changes will apply to existing licenses, and BIS will modify and revoke licenses to implement them.

BIS is also adding new ECCNs for semi-automatic firearms, and setting new documentation requirements. The interim final rule will require license applicants to submit import certificates for all countries where one is required by the importing government, as well as a purchase order for all license applications to non-Country Group A:1 destinations.

The U.S. announced new export controls and sanctions against Iran, as well as new export controls against Russia intended to address Iran’s support for Russia’s drone program, in response to Iran’s attack on Israel on April 13.

The Bureau of Industry and Security released a final rule that takes effect April 18 and adds the 39 remaining Harmonized System codes for goods from the Common High Priority List of low-level technologies that could be used in military goods to the Export Administration Regulations. Now all 50 6-digit subheadings in the list are included in the EAR.

The addition of the additional six-digit subheadings expands “the scope of items that require a license for export and reexport to Iran,” as well as the scope of foreign direct product rules on Iran, Russia, Belarus and the occupied Crimea region of Ukraine. A savings clause says goods on the water as of April 18 may still proceed to their destinations without a license.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control concurrently designated 16 individuals and two entities that are involved in “enabling Iran’s UAV production, including engine types that power Iran’s Shahed variant UAVs, which were used in the April 13 attack.” OFAC also sanctioned “three subsidiaries of Iranian automaker Bahman Group,” as well as the Bahman Group itself, for material support for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and “other entities designated pursuant to counterterrorism authorities.”

“Concurrent with this action, the United Kingdom is imposing sanctions targeting several Iranian military organizations, individuals and entities involved in Iran’s UAV and ballistic missile industries,” OFAC said.

The Bureau of Industry and Security on April 18 issued an interim final rule that removes some Export Administration Regulations licensing requirements for Australia and the U.K. to facilitate cooperation under the Australia, United Kingdom, United States (AUKUS) Trilateral Security Partnership, among other things. Under the rule, “Australia and the UK will have nearly the same licensing treatment under the EAR as Canada,” BIS said. The changes take effect April 19. Comments on the interim final rule are due June 3.

The Bureau of Industry and Security will add 11 parties to the Entity List for trying to ship or procure export-controlled items for Russia, Iran or to support China’s military modernization efforts, the agency said April 10. The additions include technology companies, logistics firms and one person based in either China, Russia or the United Arab Emirates. Effective April 11, the companies are subject to license requirements for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and licenses will be reviewed either under a presumption of denial or policy of denial, except for certain food or medicine.

The Bureau of Industry and Security on March 29 released an interim final rule to update, correct and clarify its October 2023 chip controls that placed new restrictions on exports of advanced semiconductors and semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China. The 186-page rule takes effect April 4 and seeks public comments on the changes by April 29.

The document will make a range of updates and technical corrections to the October rules, including changes related to new License Exception Notified Advanced Computing; revisions to controls on the activities of U.S. persons; new language for electronic items controlled under Export Control Classification Number 3A001; and corrections to certain chip making tools under ECCNs 3B001 and d 3B991. BIS also used the rule to respond to public comments the agency has received during the past year, including on topics related to due diligence and end-user certifications.

The State Department fined Boeing $51 million after the company allegedly violated a range of U.S. export controls, in the largest stand-alone civil fine by the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls in years. The violations, which mostly occurred before 2020, included illegal exports to foreign employees and contractors working in more than 15 countries; a trade compliance specialist fabricating an export license to illegally ship defense items abroad; and violations of the terms and conditions of other export licenses. Boeing voluntarily disclosed the violations between 2017 and 2022.

As part of a consent agreement released Feb. 29, Boeing must pay $27 million to DDTC within two years and use the remaining $24 million to make specific improvements to its compliance procedures. The company must also hire a DDTC-approved special compliance officer to oversee its compliance with the International Traffic in Arms Regulations.

The Bureau of Industry and Security added two entities to the Entity List for trying to illegally acquire U.S. items or for being involved in other activities that are “contrary” to U.S. national security and foreign policy, the agency said Feb. 26. The entities are China-based Chengdu Beizhan Electronics and Sandvine Incorporated, which has locations in multiple countries. Effective Feb. 27, the companies are subject to license requirements for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and licenses will be reviewed under a presumption of denial.

BIS also removed one UAE-based Jazirah Aviation Club from the list and modified entries for two existing entities in China to add alias and address information.

The Federal Maritime Commission issued its final rule for new demurrage and detention billing requirements, describing the information carriers and marine terminal operators must include in their invoices, clarifying which parties can be billed and under what time frames, outlining the processes for disputing charges, and more.

The rule, released Feb. 23 and effective May 28, says that invoices can be issued to only the consignee or “the person for whose account the billing party provided ocean transportation or storage” of the cargo and who contracted with the billing party for cargo transportation or storage. The rule will also require ocean carriers and MTOs to issue detention and demurrage invoices within 30 calendar days from when the charges were last incurred, while non-vessel-operating carriers need to issue those invoices within 30 days from the “issuance date” of the invoice they received. Billed parties will have 30 days to request a refund or waiver, and the billing party must try to resolve the issue within 30 days.

The FMC said it hopes the rule leads to “supply chain fluidity” by clarifying the responsibilities and requirements of each party when picking up or returning cargo and equipment. “Failing to include any of the required information in a detention or demurrage invoice eliminates any obligation of the billed party to pay the applicable charge,” the commission said. “The new rule will provide relief to parties who should never have received a bill for detention or demurrage.”

The U.S. announced a new set of sweeping Russia-related export controls and sanctions this week to mark the two-year anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and to respond to Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny's death in prison. The measures include nearly 100 additions to the Commerce Department’s Entity List and more than 500 sanctions designations by the Treasury and State departments in what the U.S. said is its largest single tranche of designations since Russia began the war in 2022.

The Entity List additions, effective Feb. 23, target entities in Russia, China, India, Kyrgyzstan, South Korea, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates for supporting Russia’s defense industrial base, including by illegally shipping U.S. goods to Russia. The Bureau of Industry and Security designated more than 50 of the entities as Russian-Belarusian military end users, and the new entities will be subject to a license requirement for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations. Licenses will be reviewed either under a policy of denial or presumption of denial, with some exceptions for food and medicine.

The new financial sanctions target Russian government officials responsible for Navalny’s death; more than two dozen sanctions evaders in Europe, East Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East; hundreds of companies with ties to Russia’s military-industrial base; parties helping Russia earn revenue from energy sales, and more. The Office of Foreign Assets Control also issued several new general licenses and released new sanctions guidance.

Along with the new restrictions, the U.S., the EU, the U.K. and Japan expanded its list of common high-priority items Russia is seeking to import to now include several new goods, including certain “computer numerically controlled” machine tools. The U.S. also issued a new business advisory to warn companies about Russia-related compliance risks.