On June 1, 2021, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) published the Burma Sanctions Regulations at 31 C.F.R. Part 525 (the “BSR”) to implement Executive Order 14014, “Blocking Property With Respect to the Situation in Burma” (“EO 14014”). EO 14014 imposed sanctions on certain Burmese parties in response to the Burmese military’s coup against the democratically elected civilian government.
The BSR do not expand upon the sanctions previously imposed under EO 14014, but do introduce new general licenses authorizing:
- the provision of certain legal services to Specially Designated Nationals (“SDNs”) designated pursuant to EO 14014, and payment for such services from certain funds originating outside the United States;
- the provision and receipt of nonscheduled emergency medical services;
- deductions from blocked accounts of certain service charges owed to US financial institutions; and
- transfers of funds or credits between blocked accounts held by US financial institutions in their branches and offices, provided that no transfers are made from accounts held within the United States to accounts held outside the United States, and also provided that a transfer from a blocked account may be made only to another blocked account held in the same name.
OFAC also indicated that the BSR is being published in abbreviated form, and that it intends to provide more comprehensive regulations at a later date. Please see our prior blog posts on the sanctions imposed under EO 14014 here, and on two military-affiliated Burmese conglomerates here.
The authors acknowledge the assistance of Alexandra Pasch in the preparation of this blog post.
Author
Kerry B. Contini
Ms. Contini focuses her practice on export controls, trade sanctions, and anti-boycott laws. This includes advising US and multinational companies on trade compliance programs, risk assessments, licensing, review of proposed transactions and enforcement matters. Ms. Contini works regularly with companies across a wide range of industries, including the pharmaceutical/medical device, oil and gas, and nuclear sectors.
Author
Alexandre (Alex) Lamy
Alex advises clients on compliance with US export controls, trade and economic sanctions, export controls (Export Administration Regulations (EAR); International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR)) and antiboycott controls. He counsels on and prepares filings to submit to the US Government's Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) with respect to the acquisition of US enterprises by non-US interests. Moreover, Alex advises US and non-US companies in the context of licensing, enforcement actions, internal investigations, compliance audits, mergers and acquisitions and other cross-border transactions, and the design, implementation, and administration of compliance programs. He has negotiated enforcement settlements related to both US sanctions and the EAR.
Author
Daniel Andreeff
Daniel’s practice focuses on US economic and trade sanctions, including those targeting Iran, Russia, Cuba, Syria, and North Korea, export controls, and anti-boycott laws. He represents clients in national security reviews before the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), and has experience in federal court litigation and congressional investigations. His pro bono practice includes providing sanctions and export control advice to a global humanitarian NGO.
