On Friday, January 12, 2018, President Trump agreed for the third time to waive the application of certain nuclear-related sanctions on Iran, pursuant to the United States’ commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Pursuant to the JCPOA, the U.S. President is required to regularly “waive” the application of certain U.S. sanctions on Iran. Failing to issue the waivers would cause these sanctions to be re-imposed, which arguably would constitute a violation by the United States of its commitments under the JCPOA. (In contrast to President Trump’s failure to certify Iran’s compliance with the JCPOA to the U.S. Congress in October, which was a requirement of U.S. law but had no direct effect on the JCPOA.)

However, President Trump stated that this would be the last time he would issue these waivers unless the European signatories to the deal (Germany, France, and the United Kingdom) agree to rewrite the nuclear deal within the next 120 days.

The 120-day deadline reflects the date on which the next waiver is due. As shown in the chart below, the United States must waive portions of four laws on staggered timelines to meet its commitments under the JCPOA. The next deadline is a waiver of sections of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2012, which would need to be renewed on or before May 13, 2018.

U.S. Sanctions Relief under the JCPOA

Law Must be Renewed Every Last Decision Update Current Decision Expiration Date
National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2012 120 days January 13, 2018 May 13, 2018
Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act of 2012 (IFCA) 180 days Mid-Jan 2018 Mid-July 2018
Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) 180 days Mid-Jan 2018 Mid-July 2018
Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 (ITRA) 180 days Mid-Jan 2018 Mid-July 2018

 

President Trump’s ultimatum has already met strong resistance in both Europe and Iran. It is unknown how successful U.S. diplomacy will be in building support to renegotiate the JCPOA. There is also the impact of the recent populist uprising in Iran to consider.

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Photo of Carlton Greene Carlton Greene

Carlton Greene is a partner in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm’s International Trade and White Collar & Regulatory Enforcement groups. He provides strategic advice to clients on U.S. economic sanctions, Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering…

Carlton Greene is a partner in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm’s International Trade and White Collar & Regulatory Enforcement groups. He provides strategic advice to clients on U.S. economic sanctions, Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering (AML) laws and regulations, export controls, and anti-corruption/anti-bribery laws and regulations. Carlton is the former chief counsel at FinCEN (the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network), the U.S. AML regulator responsible for administering the Bank Secrecy Act.

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Photo of Dj Wolff Dj Wolff

David (Dj) Wolff is the co-chair of Crowell & Moring’s International Trade Group and a director with Crowell Global Advisors, the firm’s trade policy affiliate.

At Crowell & Moring, he serves on the steering committee for the International Trade Group, where his practice

…

David (Dj) Wolff is the co-chair of Crowell & Moring’s International Trade Group and a director with Crowell Global Advisors, the firm’s trade policy affiliate.

At Crowell & Moring, he serves on the steering committee for the International Trade Group, where his practice focuses on all aspects of compliance with U.S. economic sanctions, including day-to-day compliance guidance, developing compliance programs, responding to government inquiries, conducting internal investigations, and representation during civil and criminal enforcement proceedings. Dj works regularly with non-U.S. clients, both in Europe and Asia, to evaluate the jurisdictional reach of U.S. sanction authorities to their global operations, identify and manage the potential conflict of laws that can result from that reach, as well as to support client’s design, implementation, and evaluation of a corresponding risk-based sanctions compliance program. Dj also regularly leads teams in diligence efforts on trade and related regulatory areas on behalf of his U.S. and non-U.S. clients in the M&A arena, having successfully closed more than 30 deals with an aggregate valuation of several billion dollars over the last 18 months.

Dj is ranked by Chambers USA in International Trade: Export Controls & Economic Sanctions. He has previously been recognized by Law360 as a Rising Star in International Trade (2020), by The National Law Journal as a “DC Rising Star” (2019), by Who’s Who Legal: Investigations as a “Future Leader” (2018 and 2019), Acritas Star as an Acritas Stars Independently Rated Lawyers (2019), by Global Investigations Review as one of the “40 under 40” in Investigations internationally (2017), and WorldECR as one of the five finalists for the WorldECR Young Practitioner of the Year award (2016).

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Photo of Erik Woodhouse Erik Woodhouse

Erik Woodhouse is a partner in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm’s International Trade and Financial Services groups, where he provides in-depth experience and practical solutions on sensitive economic sanctions and anti-money laundering matters, informed by his

…

Erik Woodhouse is a partner in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm’s International Trade and Financial Services groups, where he provides in-depth experience and practical solutions on sensitive economic sanctions and anti-money laundering matters, informed by his experience in private practice and in government at the Department of the Treasury and the Department of State.

Erik works with U.S. and foreign clients operating across borders on all aspects of these regimes, including developing and assessing compliance programs, advising on complex statutory and regulatory requirements, and leading companies through internal and government investigations. He has worked with major manufacturing and tech companies with global operations, multinational banks, investment funds and other financial services firms, and digital assets and virtual currency companies, collaborating with Crowell’s cross-disciplinary team that comprises former senior regulators, federal prosecutors, and in-house counsel.

Prior to joining Crowell, Erik served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Counter Threat Finance and Sanctions at the Department of State, where he played a key role in the Department’s policy development and implementation related to all U.S. country-based sanctions programs and a range of global programs. Erik worked with counterparts across the executive branch to establish and implement new sanctions programs, coordinated U.S. sanctions policy with foreign governments, and engaged with private sector stakeholders on a range of U.S. sanctions priorities. Erik’s prior government experience also includes service at the Department of the Treasury’s Office of International Affairs.

Earlier in his career, Erik worked as a project finance attorney and litigator, as a law clerk for the Honorable M. Margaret McKeown of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and as a research fellow at Stanford University’s Program on Energy & Sustainable Development.

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