Last fall, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) paused its issuance of new export licenses involving certain firearms, related “parts,” “components,” and ammunition. On April 30, BIS will publish an interim final rule tightening controls of exports of these items. The interim final rule will take effect on May 30.

The interim final rule

On October 15, 2023, OFAC issued General License 44, which temporarily authorized transactions related to oil and gas sector operations, including transactions involving PdVSA.
Continue Reading OFAC issues wind-down license for Venezuelan oil

To expand the reach of U.S. sanctions, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) amended the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) on March 21 to require a license for the export, reexport, or transfer (in-country) of all items “subject to the EAR” when a party to the transaction is blocked under one of 14 U.S. sanctions

On 18 December, the EU announced their 12th round of sanctions targeting Russia. This comes against the backdrop of a flurry of Russia sanctions related activity and a number of designations of third country actors believed to be engaged in price-cap circumvention.
Continue Reading Christmas comes early for G7 operators – EU adopts 12th package of sanctions against Russia, changes to the Price Cap Model

At the forefront of addressing the global challenge of climate change is the effort to reduce carbon.

In their latest podcast, Pittsburgh’s energy transactional partner, Ryan Haddad and Brussels’ international trade and customs partner, Yves Melin explore how Carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration (CCUS) and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) could interact in the

As a follow-on to last week’s quint-seal guidance, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published best practice guidance to help prevent high-priority items from being diverted to Russia. The latest guidance focuses on exports of the following high-priority items to counterparties in countries outside the Global Export Controls Coalition (GECC):[1]

HS Code

On Tuesday, the U.S., UK, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand—known as the “Export Enforcement Five” or “E5”—issued joint guidance to industry and academia on how best to identify Russian export control evasion tactics. The E5 coordinates with other members of the Global Export Control Coalition (GECC) on export controls specific to Russia. In addition to

In October, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) strengthened its antiboycott enforcement strategy. Last week, BIS made two additional enhancements to its enforcement strategy:

  • New Boycott Request Reporting Form. U.S. persons who receive boycott requests will now be required to identify the requesting party in addition to the country from which the

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) published their second Tri-Seal Compliance Note on July 26 summarizing their voluntary self-disclosure procedures for export control and sanctions violations. The Note highlights the potential benefits of self-disclosure, including significant mitigation of civil and criminal liability.

In coordination with the G7 and other international partners, the U.S. implemented new Russia-related sanctions and export controls on May 19, 2023. The U.S. also released an additional select list of potential export control evasion “red flags.”

Restrictive economic measures

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC):

  • Sanctioned 22 individuals and 104 entities in more