Countries Archives | Customs & International Trade Law Blog

Doing Business With Cuba: What You Need to Know

Cuba is home to 11 million consumers and a growing private sector. Its proximity to the United States (the Port of Havana is only 198 nautical miles from the Port of Miami) makes the country a natural trade partner. While changes in policy over the last several years have unlocked new business opportunities in Cuba, there are still regulatory barriers that individuals and companies should be aware of.

U.S. Embargo

The United States imposed a comprehensive economic embargo on Cuba in the 1960’s which restricts most trade between the two countries. It also includes restrictions on travel and investment.

Although the U.S. faced pressure to end the embargo, the state of affairs remained largely unchanged until 2014.

In December 2014, President Obama made a historic announcement: “Today, the United States is taking historic steps to chart a new course in our relations with Cuba and to further engage and empower the Cuban people.” By January 16, 2015, both the U.S. Treasury Department and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) amended its Cuban Assets Control Regulations, and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) amended the Export Administration Regulations with a “Support for the Cuban People” license exception. The license exception was most significant for travel, telecom, building materials and agricultural equipment, financial services, and personal importations.

OFAC and BIS issued additional new rules on January 16, 2015, September 21, 2015, January 27, 2016, March 15, 2016, October 14, 2016, November 9, […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2023-07-18T08:29:16-04:00July 18, 2023|Countries, Cuba|Comments Off

DHS Adds Ninestar Co. And Xinjiang Zhongtai Chemical Co. to the UFLPA Entity List

The interagency Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF), led by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), added the following two People’s Republic of China (PRC)-based companies to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) Entity List: Ninestar Co. and Xinjiang Zhongtai Chemical Co. DHS found that the companies engaged in business practices that target members of persecuted groups, including Uyghur minorities. Goods produced by the companies will be restricted from entering the United States.

UFLPA Background

On December 23, 2021, President Biden signed into law H.R. 6256, as part of the United States’ commitment and deterrence efforts to secure U.S. supply chains from goods produced by forced labor. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) (H.R. 6256) requires CBP to apply a rebuttable presumption that all imports of goods, wares, articles, and merchandise manufactured wholly or in part from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous region of the People’s Republic of China, or by entities identified by the U.S. government on the UFLPA Entity List, are presumed to be produced with forced labor and are prohibited from entry into the United States.

This presumption applies to all goods made in, or shipped through, other countries that include parts made in Xinjiang. However, this presumption is rebuttable. To rebut this presumption, the importer of record will need to provide to CBP clear and convincing evidence that the goods were NOT produced using forced labor.

DHS Making Progress, Some Say Not Enough

While the announcement was applauded by some, other groups expressed concern that DHS is […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2023-06-30T11:11:22-04:00June 30, 2023|China, Countries, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS)|Comments Off

Summary of CBP’s March 2023 Forced Labor Technical Expo

Summary of CBP’s March 2023 Forced Labor Technical Expo

CBP held a Forced Labor Technical Expo from March 14-15, comprised of experts and service providers highlighting tools to utilize for supply chain transparency to comply with The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) and the general “reasonable care” obligations of U.S. importers. UFLPA was signed into law December 31, 2021, and seeks to prohibit imports of certain goods from China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, where it has been reported that the Chinese government is using forced labor of Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic and religious minorities in detention camps and factories. For more information about the UFLPA, please see our previous blog articles here and here.

CBP Data Dashboard

CBP launched a UFLPA data dashboard where the trade community can now monitor forced labor enforcement by origin, commodity, CBP Center of Excellence and Expertise, and more. See the screenshot of the new dashboard below and note that the countries of export most targeted are NOT China, contrary to popular belief. This is partly due to the fact that most UFLPA enforcement to date has been on solar panels, which may include Chinese-origin raw materials but are generally further manufactured outside of China. Notably, CBP is actively tracking many different types of products across many different industries with raw materials that originate in China and that are further manufactured in other countries for forced labor enforcement. […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2023-03-29T12:06:53-04:00March 29, 2023|China, Forced Labor, International Trade, Reasonable Care, Supply Chain, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)|Comments Off

CBP Publishes Additional Guidance On Responding to Cargo Detentions Made Under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act

Background

The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”) went into effect on June 21, 2022. The law creates a rebuttable presumption that imports of all goods mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China (“Xinjiang”), or by entities identified on the UFLPA Entity List, were made using forced labor and are prohibited from entry into the U.S. under 19 U.S.C. § 1307. For more information about the UFLPA, please see our previous blog articles here and here. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) has been vigorously enforcing this law, detaining hundreds of attempted import shipments every month under both the UFLPA and Withhold Release Orders for suspected forced labor violations.

Importers that have a shipment detained under the UFLPA can seek to have the shipment released under one of two paths. They can either:

show that in spite of the fact that the goods were produced wholly or partially in Xinjiang or by an entity on the UFLPA Entity List, they were not in fact made using forced labor; or
show that neither the goods nor the inputs used to make the goods were produced wholly or partially in Xinjiang and have no connection to entities on the UFLPA Entity List (i.e., that the goods fall outside the scope of the UFLPA).

Taking the second path means requesting an “admissibility review.”

Last year, pursuant to the UFLPA, the Department of Homeland Security published a Strategy to Prevent the Importation of Goods Mined, […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2023-03-09T20:19:21-05:00March 9, 2023|China, Forced Labor, Import, International Trade, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Uncategorized|Comments Off

Customs and Trade Law Weekly Snapshot

Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade law news:

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By Jennifer Diaz|2022-12-25T23:19:52-05:00November 18, 2022|China, IRAN, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC), U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)|Comments Off

Significant Updates to BIS Enforcement Policies in 2022

Diaz Trade Law’s President, Jennifer Diaz, Associate Attorney Sharath Patil, are enthusiastic to announce Bloomberg Law published another one of our articles, “Significant Updates to BIS Enforcement Policies in 2022“! Below is the article reproduced with permission for your reading pleasure. You can read the article here (where you’ll have the ability to access all of the great hyperlinks). Please note you cannot click on the hyperlinks below.

We’d love to hear your feedback!

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