The U.K. is reverting to 20 working days as the time exporters are allowed to respond to requests for information, the Department for International Trade announced Jan. 5. The administrative change shifts the policy back to pre-COVID-19 standards. The U.K. gave exporters 40 working days to respond to requests for information during the pandemic.
Germany's new Supply Chain Law, which took effect Jan. 1, will allow the country to fine companies if they fail to ensure that their suppliers don't engage in human rights violations and harmful economic practices Bloomberg reported Jan. 5. The law applies to companies with at least 3,000 employees, though that number will be lowered to 1,000 in 2024. The law requires firms to implement a strict risk management and analysis and documentation system to ensure minimum standards in human and environmental rights at both the domestic and international level.
The U.K. updated its guidance on its Russian sanctions regime Jan. 5, the Export Control Joint Unit said. The guidance was changed to "clarify the application of prohibitions on the provision of technical assistance relating to, and making available or transferral of, aviation and space goods and technology or critical-industry goods and technology."
Russia extended until the end of 2023 its "simplified procedure" for importing electronic devices and equipment, the Russian government announced Jan. 4, according to an unofficial translation. The streamlined procedure can be used for goods that support cryptographic capabilities, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, computers and walkie-talkies. The procedure eliminates the requirement to give customs authorities certain information involving the imports if the devices are components for the industrial production of equipment in Russia, the government said.
The U.K. Dec. 30 revoked 26 open general licenses, all of which were originally made to be used in parallel with licenses that had been "locked against further registration," the Department for International Trade announced. The original licenses were unlocked Sept. 30, making the parallel licenses redundant. The parallel licenses covered a range of goods, including chemicals, military items, energy products and dual-use goods.
The U.K.'s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation on Dec. 28 listed one individual under its new Haiti sanctions regime, which officially came into force the same day (see 2212090011). The individual, Jimmy Cherizier, is one of Haiti's most "influential" gang leaders, OFSI said, and leads an alliance of Haitian gangs known as the "G9 Family and Allies."
A group of European countries not in the EU aligned with a recent EU decision to amend the list of individuals and entities subject to restrictions on Tunisia, the European Council announced. The countries of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Ukraine, Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway aligned with the decision, ensuring that their national laws conform to the action.
Crowell attorneys in Brussels note that the new EU regulation that prohibits both export and import of certain commodities if they come from land that was recently deforested (see 2212070039) will affect more than high-risk countries such as Indonesia, Brazil or Ivory Coast.
The U.K. on Dec. 28 amended one entry and corrected another under its Russia sanctions regime. The entry for Oje Parvaz Mado Nafar, an Iran-based manufacturer that produces unmanned aerial vehicles that are being shipped to Russia for the war in Ukraine, was amended to correct the spelling of its address. The entry for Said Mikhailovich Gutseriev was corrected to add Russian as his second nationality; he is also a British national.
The European Council removed the listing for the Libyan Arab African Investment Co. from its Libya sanctions regime after a ruling from the EU General Court annulling the listing. LAAICO was initially listed in 2016 and was upheld on the sanctions list in July. The General Court found the sanctions listing was not properly made.