On February 1, 2022, the U.S. Department of Commerce published a notice that it is automatically initiating five-year Sunset Reviews for antidumping duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) orders from:
Opportunity to Request Administrative Review
On February 8, 2022, the Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) announced in the Federal Register the opportunity to request an annual administrative review for products that are currently subject to antidumping and countervailing duties. The products and countries that have been listed in the Federal Register notice are the following:
AES Now Requires Consistency with EAR Destination-Based Controls; Census Will Not Remove Domestic EEI Requirement for Puerto Rico & U.S. Virgin Islands Shipments
Effective January 13, 2022, the U.S. Census Bureau’s (“Census”) Automated Export System (“AES”) began issuing a response code 66Q notifying Electronic Export Information (“EEI”) filers whenever they enter an export control classification number (“ECCN”) and destination combination that is prohibited under the Export Administration Regulations’ (“EAR”) destination-based controls. For now, such mismatches in filings will
U.S. Government Signals that Increased Sanctions and Export Controls Will Likely Follow if Russia Invades Ukraine
Russia has amassed more than 100,000 troops at the Ukrainian border, leading the White House to issue a warning on January 25 that the U.S. is “prepared to implement sanctions with massive consequences that were not considered in 2014 [when Russia invaded and annexed the Crimea region of Ukraine]” if Russia “further invades Ukraine”. President
January 2022 Trade Law Update
In Husch Blackwell’s January 2022 Trade Law Newsletter, you’ll learn about the following updates in international trade and supply chain law:
- Ongoing efforts to inform implementation of the Uyghur Forced Labor Act that was signed in December
- The first dispute settlement under the USMCA
- An update on U.S. Department of Commerce decisions
- U.S. International
DHS Requests Comments to Inform Implementation of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act
Today, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) issued a request for comments to assist the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (“FLETF”) with implementation of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”). The UFLPA, signed by President Biden on December 23, 2021, creates a rebuttable presumption that goods manufactured wholly or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (“Xinjiang”) or produced by an entity on a number of lists to be produced, will be denied entry into the U.S. under section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307). The UFLPA was passed in response to the alleged use of forced labor of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Tibetans, and other persecuted groups in China. Readers can learn more about the UFLPA and the rebuttable presumption, which goes into effect on June 21, 2022, in our previous post following the UFLPA’s enactment.
OFAC Sanctions Four Ukrainian Officials for Acting on Russia’s Behalf; Additional Russia Sanctions Could Follow
As tensions run high between Washington and Moscow over a possibly imminent Russian invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) designated today four (4) current and former Ukrainian officials under Executive Order (“EO”) 14024 dated April 15, 2021. In a press release issued earlier today, OFAC asserted the Russian Federal Security Service (“FSB”) “recruit[s] Ukrainian citizens in key positions to gain access to sensitive information, threaten the sovereignty of Ukraine, and then leverage these Ukrainian officials to create instability in advance of a potential Russian invasion.” OFAC also noted that Russian agents have sought to influence U.S. elections since at least 2016.
BIS Delays Implementation of New Cybersecurity Items Interim Final Rule
In an October 21, 2021 interim final rule (“IFR”), the Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) published long-awaited “cybersecurity items” controls in Categories 4 (Computers) and 5, Pt. 1 (Telecommunications) of the Commerce Control List (“CCL”) and followed the IFR up on November 12, 2021 with relevant FAQs. The IFR will impose new export controls on certain “cybersecurity items” that relate to “intrusion software” or “IP network communications surveillance.” The IFR, originally scheduled to become effective on January 19, 2022, will now become effective on March 7, 2022. In the January 12, 2022 notice announcing the delay, BIS stated it “may consider some modifications for the final rule” and indicated it would “provide the public with additional guidance.” Below we describe the IFR as it currently stands. We will update readers when BIS implements any additional edits to the IFR and/or updates its guidance.
Petition Summary: Barium Chloride from India
On January 12, 2022, Chemical Products Corporation (“CPC” or “Petitioner”), filed a petition for the imposition of antidumping and countervailing duties on imports of barium chloride from India.
USMCA Panel Announces Win for US in Dairy TRQ Dispute with Canada
Last week a decision was released in a dispute between the US and Canada related to Canada’s dairy tariff-rate quotas (TRQ) under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The dispute settlement panel found that certain Canadian restrictions on use of the TRQs are in violations of its obligations under the free trade agreement. Specifically, the Panel found that Canada has breached its USMCA Article 3.A.2.11(b) commitments by “reserving TRQ pools exclusively for the use of processors.”