In the context of the tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration on imported goods, a prevalent misconception has arisen that foreign suppliers automatically bear the cost of these tariffs. The reality, however, is more complex. The actual payment of tariffs is significantly influenced by the specific contractual agreements between U.S. buyers and their foreign suppliers.
Continue Reading Understanding the Allocation of Tariff Payments

On April 2, President Trump issued an Executive Order (EO) imposing global reciprocal tariffs (White House Fact Sheet). The EO drew enough parallels to the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act that Trump mentioned it in his Rose Garden announcement. The EO imposes a 10% baseline tariff on all imports to the United States beginning April 3, 2025.
Continue Reading Blockading the Ports: U.S. Imposes 10% Global Tariff; Higher Reciprocal Tariff Rates by Country

UPDATE: On February 5, 2025, the Trump administration issued an executive order delaying the cancellation of de minimis until “adequate systems are in place to fully and expediently process and collect tariff revenue applicable”. Imports from China below the value of $800 will generally not be subject to the 10% tariff or Section 301 duties.
Continue Reading The First Wave: U.S. Imposes Tariffs on Canada (or not?), Mexico (or not?), and China (well, yeah, probably so)

Tariffs remain the focus of the incoming Trump Administration. Over the past several months, the announcements from president-elect Trump and his transition team have been dynamic. We expect the Trump trade policy team to use creative methods to deliver aggressive new tariff policies this year.
Continue Reading Trump Tariffs Survival Guide: 10 Strategies for U.S. Importers

On December 2, 2024, the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issued a new set of regulations targeting semiconductors manufacturing equipment (SME) and high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips. The updates are a part of BIS’s ongoing efforts to target semiconductors in attempt to slow down China’s advancement of AI. In the race to artificial general intelligence, advanced-node semiconductors play an outsized role in a country or company’s ability to progress.
Continue Reading The Persistence of (High Bandwidth) Memory: Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment and Korean Semiconductor Manufactures Face Harsher Restrictions Under New HBM Rules

You have always dreamed of going to space. All of us have at some point or another. And the only thing standing between you and that dream were overly-restrictive commodity and technology export licensing requirements on certain space items to specified countries! (well, that, and gravity, and the fact that you are not a billionaire[1], and maybe a few other things).
Continue Reading Ticket to Ride – The Commercial Space Activity Exception and Space Tourism: Reduced Export Controls Ease Cross-Border Collaborations (Part IV of IV)

In two recent rules, the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has begun to take significant steps to monitor, and potentially control access to, U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) technology. AI continues to pose a unique challenge for regulators due to its rapid expansion as a consumer product and potential defense applications.
Continue Reading Commerce Takes on AI: Recent Developments from BIS on AI

On October 28, 2024, the U.S. Department of Treasury released a pre-publication version of its final rule containing the outbound investment regulations.
Continue Reading At Long Last, Final Rule for Outbound Investment Regulations Published

You know who your friends are. You’ve known them for a long time, you understand one another, and, importantly, you trust each other.
Continue Reading The Benefits of Friends: Removing Space Export Controls for Allies (Part III of IV)

In 2021, the EU adopted an updated version of the EU Dual-Use Regulation, which establishes common standards for the control of dual-use item exports by EU member states. Among its new provisions, Regulation (EU) 2021/821 introduced, in its Article 5, a “catch-all control” for cyber-surveillance items.
Continue Reading EU’s New Export Due Diligence Guidelines: Keeping Tabs on Cyber-Surveillance Technology

In a land before time (technologically speaking . . . so, like, the mid-nineties), the most basic software encryption functions were controlled under the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations. The then-current version of Netscape or Lotus Notes (the hot tech of the era) were controlled under the same regulatory regime as missiles and fighter jets. Then, in 1996, an executive order moved encryption to commercial export controls and freed up the software industry to flourish into its current, omnipresent state.
Continue Reading The Commercial Industry Gets More Space: Reduced Export Controls Ease Cross-Border Collaborations (Part II of IV)

We may imagine that a space company begins with only a few screws and some sheet metal in a garage.[1] But regardless of its origins, not long after that early phase, that same company is likely to have a global reach. Commercial space companies inherently involve elements such as international supply chains, foreign customers, and design and engineering talent from around the world.
Continue Reading Space Rules, or . . . Space Rules!: Reduced Export Controls Ease Cross-Border Collaborations (Part I of IV)

“Every export—every single one—has a related financial transaction”…
Continue Reading Banks Do Export, Too: New BIS Guidance Tags Financial Firms with Export Compliance Responsibilities