In a new rule announced on January 23, 2024, the US Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) has (i) expanded the scope of the Russian and Belarusian Industry Sector Sanctions under the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”); (ii) revised restrictions aimed at preventing Iran from supplying unmanned aerial vehicles (“UAVs”) (i.e., drones) to Russia; (iii) expanding the scope of items for which there is no de minimis level of certain US-origin items incorporated into non-US made items when destined for Russia or Belarus; and (iv) made various corrections and clarifications to existing export controls on Russia and Belarus.

Overall, these changes expand upon previous controls and bring the EAR into greater alignment with EU, UK, and other allied countries’ controls while also bringing more internal consistency to EAR controls related to Russia and Belarus.

Expansion of Russian and Belarusian Industry Sector Sanctions

The new rule adds 94 new Harmonized Tariff Schedule (“HTS”)-6 codes to the list of items subject to the Russian and Belarusian Industry Sector Sanctions in § 746.5(a)(1)(ii) of the EAR and listed in Supplement No. 4 to Part 746. These controls impose licensing requirements on certain EAR99 items destined to Russia or Belarus that ordinarily would not require a license for export, reexport, or in-country transfer to civilian end users there, with the aim of undermining Russian and Belarusian industrial capabilities.

Notably, BIS has added the following categories of items:

  • All HTS-6 codes under HTS chapter 88 (aerospace, spacecraft, and parts related thereto);
  • Certain types of mineral fuels (coal) and petroleum products (including petroleum jelly) under HTS chapter 27;
  • Dozens of additional chemicals (including chemical elements such as arsenic, chlorine, hydrogen, nitrogen, and sodium) under HTS chapter 28;
  • Certain types of vulcanized rubber under HTS chapter 40;
  • Certain textile products for industrial use under HTS chapter 59;
  • Gallium and other base metals under HTS chapter 81; and
  • Certain tools under HTS chapter 82.

Revised restrictions on UAV-related items

In a further effort to prevent Iran, Russia, and Belarus from obtaining parts used in UAVs, BIS added HTS-6 code 852910 (antennas and antenna reflectors and parts thereof) to the list of items that require a license for export or reexport to Iran under EAR § 746.7 and to Russia and Belarus under § 746.8. Our blog posts on the February 2023 rule imposing these restrictions and the May 2023 rule revising the restrictions are available here and here.

Changes to the de minimis rule

The new rule also expands the scope of the de minimis rule to make non-US-made items automatically subject to the EAR when they incorporate the lowest-level military- and spacecraft-related items of US-origin (i.e., .y items from the 9×515 or “600 series”) when destined for Russia or Belarus. Previously, there was no de minimis level only when the destination country was China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, or Syria.

Various corrections and clarifications to export controls on Russia and Belarus

BIS also introduced several corrections and clarifications to improve the internal consistency of different sections of EAR controls on exports, reexports, and in-country transfers to or within Russia and Belarus, the most notable of which include:

  • Exclusion from license requirements for deployments by the Armed Forces of Ukraine to or within Crimea or the covered regions of Ukraine;
  • Clarification that US-origin content controlled under Section 746.10 (the “luxury goods” controls) is excluded from the de minimis calculation when the non-US-made item will be exported from a country listed in Supplement No. 3 to Part 746;
  • Clarification which section takes precedence for items identified in supplements no. 2, 4, or 5 to Part 746 that are also classified in an ECCN;
  • Harmonization of which License Exceptions are available under various controls in EAR Part 746 related to Russia and Belarus;
  • Clarification that items that meet the definition of “medicine” in the EAR are excluded from Supplement No. 6 controls; and
  • Extension of the case-by-case license application review policy to applications related to safety of flight.
Author

Terry Gilroy is a partner in the New York office of Baker McKenzie and a member of the Investigations Compliance and Ethics Practice Group. Prior to joining the Firm in 2018, Terry served as Americas Head of the Financial Crime Legal function at Barclays. Terry advises businesses and individuals on white collar and financial crime issues and has significant experience conducting investigations relating to compliance with the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and related bribery and corruption statutes, economic sanctions regulations as administered by the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), and the Bank Secrecy Act and related anti-money laundering (AML) regulations and statutes. Terry spent six years on active duty in the United States Army as a Field Artillery officer.

Author

Ms. Test advices clients on issues relating to licensing, regulatory interpretations, enforcement actions, internal investigations and compliance audits, as well as the design, implementation and administration of compliance programs. She also advises clients on the extra-territorial application of trade compliance-related regulations in cross-border transactions.

Author

Michael Amberg is a US-qualified senior associate in the International Commercial & Trade Practice Group in Baker McKenzie’s London office. Michael helps clients navigate and comply with sanctions, export controls and national security controls on foreign investment (CFIUS). He also has experience in complex litigation and international commercial arbitration and has assisted clients with internal investigations and compliance related to trade, anti-money laundering, and anti-corruption matters. Previously located in Silicon Valley, he has advised clients in numerous sectors, including technology (hardware and software), energy, banking and finance, private equity, construction, transportation, biotech and medical devices, and consumer goods and retail.