On Wednesday, May 1, 2024, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced that it issued new sanctions on nearly 200 entities and individuals for supporting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, intensifying U.S. efforts to thwart Russia’s attempts to circumvent Western sanctions. The list includes more than a dozen of companies
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)
OFAC issues Russia-related General License 83A
On February 20, 2024, the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued Russia-related General License (GL) 83A, “Authorizing Certain Transactions Related to Imports of Certain Categories of Fish, Seafood, and Preparations Thereof Prohibited by Executive Order 14068.”
On March 11, 2022, President Biden issued EO 14068 to prohibit, among other…
OFAC Re-Adds Yemen’s Houthis to SDN List
On January 17, 2024, the US Department of the Treasury (“Treasury”) Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) announced the re-addition of Ansarallah, better known as the Houthis, to the List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (“SDN List”) as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, just shy of three years after delisting the group to…
OFAC Updates Civil Monetary Penalties
Last week, OFAC announced it is increasing its maximum amount of the civil monetary penalties (CMP) that may be assessed under relevant OFAC regulations by implementing the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 for 2024. These increases adjust for inflation and have occurred nine times since 2015. The changes to the CMPs are…
Treasury’s OFAC Announces Magnitsky Designations for Two Former Afghan Government Officials
On December 11, the U.S. Department of Treasury (“Treasury”)’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) announced sanctions against two former Afghan government officials, Mir Rahman Rahmani and his son, Ajmal Rahmani (collectively, “the Rahmanis”), as well as 44 associated entities. These individuals and entities were designated pursuant to Executive Order 13818, which builds upon and…
DOJ, OFAC, and BIS Issue “Tri-Seal Compliance Note” Focusing on Voluntary Self-Disclosures
- Key takeaway #1 Companies should be mindful that the U.S. agencies responsible for civil and criminal export controls and sanctions compliance maintain separate VSD policies. This announcement highlights key aspects of each VSD policy.
- Key takeaway #2 Failure to initiate an internal investigation promptly after discovering a potential export controls or sanctions
Joint Agency Guidance to Exporters on Iran’s UAV Activities
Last Friday, the U.S. Departments of Commerce, Justice, State, and the Treasury issued a joint guidance sheet on Iran’s unmanned aerial vehicles (“UAVs”) program (the “Iran UAV Guidance”). The Iran UAV Guidance highlighted (I) the threat Iran’s UAV program poses; (II) the key items that Iran relies on to expand its UAV program; (III) the…
Pressure Mounting: United States and United Kingdom Impose New Sanctions and Export Controls on Russia
Following a meeting of the G7 Summit Leaders, on May 19, 2023, the United States and the United Kingdom announced a new round of sanctions and export controls against the Government of the Russian Federation (“Russia”) to continue their efforts against key sectors of Russia’s military-industrial base.
The United States Imposes New Sanctions and Export Controls Targeting Russia and Belarus, Issues Joint Compliance Guidance, and Announces Corporate Compliance with Sanctions and Export Controls as an Enforcement Priority
On February 24, 2023, the United States and other G7 nations announced a number of new sanctions and export control measures coinciding with the one-year mark of Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine. Shortly after these expansive sanctions and export controls were announced, the Departments of Justice (“DOJ”), the Treasury (“Treasury”), and Commerce (“Commerce”) issued their…
You’re Invited: Tuesdays with Trade Webinar Series
This March please join Crowell’s International Trade team for two webinar events. These 1-hour, CLE virtual events will cover the Russian invasion of Ukraine and what that means for companies, one year later, and discuss the current state of human rights and forced labor regulations in the U.S. and EU. More information about…