U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Archives - Page 22 of 24

TOP Questions and Answers on Obama’s Cuba Announcement

Top Questions and Answers in regards to the December 17, 2014 announcement by President Obama stating the U.S. will lay out “a new course in our relations with Cuba.”

Q: Will Cuban cigars be readily available for U.S. consumers? A: No.

Q: Will the Sanctions imposed by the Cuban Assets Control Regulations end? A: No, that would require Congressional approval.

Q: Will the changes take effect immediately? A: No, OFAC made it clear, changes will not be effective immediately. The changes may take place, but, the overall Cuba Sanctions will still stand. In order for the changes to take place OFAC has to amend its Cuban Assets Control Regulations and the Department of Commerce has to change its Export Administration Regulations. None of the changes will take effect until the new regulations are issued. OFAC advised it “expects to issue its regulatory amendments in the coming weeks”.

Q: Will any U.S. person be able to travel to Cuba for any reason? A: No, there are 12 specific “authorized traveler” categories, only those will be authorized to travel to Cuba. Q: What are the 12 specific “authorized traveler” categories? A: Family visits; official business of the U.S. government, foreign governments, and certain intergovernmental organizations; journalism; professional research and professional meetings; educational; religious; public performances, clinics, workshops, athletic and other competitions, and exhibitions; support for the Cuban people; humanitarian projects; activities of private foundations or research or educational institutes; exportation, importation, or transmission of information or information materials; and certain export transactions that may be considered for authorization under existing regulations and guidelines.

Q: Will any of […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2022-07-08T17:00:08-04:00December 19, 2014|Cuba, Export, Import, International Trade, U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)|1 Comment

Congressional Response to President Obama’s Announcement on Future Relations with Cuba

In a Miami Herald article published today, Congressional opposition to President Obama’s announcement that the U.S. will lay out “a new course in our relations with Cuba” was discussed.
My blog post yesterday highlights the key changes President Obama announced that effect travel, trade and commerce. Today, Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen issued a statement in regards to the proposed changes:

“The liberalization policies aimed at easing trade and remittances to Cuba … is quite possible that this unilateral action by the President without Congressional consultation is in violation of the following U.S. laws: Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 [Helms-Burton Act], Cuban Democracy Act of 1992, and the Trading with the Enemy Act. The White House attempts to normalize relationships with Cuba without the approval of Congress may be in direct violation of Helms-Burton that specifically states that all political prisoners must be released and free and fair elections must be held before establishing a diplomatic relationship.”

Each of the three acts mentioned may be found here:

Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 [Helms-Burton Act]
Cuban Democracy Act of 1992
Trading with the Enemy Act

What remains unclear is how the President will receive funding for the proposed course of action with Cuba, as Congress must approve the budget.

According to the Herald article, Senator Marco Rubio stated he would use his role as the incoming chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s Western Hemisphere subcommittee to block the reforms, calling them a “a […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2022-07-08T17:01:19-04:00December 19, 2014|Cuba, U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)|1 Comment

Business with Cuba – What’s Legal and What’s Not?

By now, you’ve likely seen the many news stories about the BIG announcement made today by our President. The news release starts by stating… “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.” Whatever your personal and/or political beliefs are, this is big news and potentially big opportunity for those who heed it. The legality of importing Cuban cigars is one of the many changes discussed below. Read on for the full details.

PRESIDENTS ANNOUNCEMENT – Summarized from the White House Fact Sheet found here: The key changes President Obama discussed relating to TRADE are (read the full fact sheet for all other changes):

General licenses will be made available for all authorized travelers in the following existing categories: (1) family visits; (2) official business of the U.S. government, foreign governments, and certain intergovernmental organizations; (3) journalistic activity; (4) professional research and professional meetings; (5) educational activities; (6) religious activities; (7) public performances, clinics, workshops, athletic and other competitions, and exhibitions; (8) support for the Cuban people; (9) humanitarian projects; (10) activities of private foundations or research or educational institutes; (11) exportation, importation, or transmission of information or information materials; and (12) certain export transactions that may be considered for authorization under existing regulations and guidelines.
Authorizing expanded commercial sales/exports from the United States of certain goods and services-
- Items that will be authorized for export include certain building […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2022-07-08T17:02:14-04:00December 17, 2014|Cuba, Export, Import, U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)|1 Comment

Export Regulations and Cloud Computing…Beware!

Co Authored by Perry Sofferman

Forrester Research predicts that the global market for cloud computing services will have increased from $40.7 billion dollars in 2011 to approximately $241 billion dollars by 2020. You can see the ZDNet article here. This figure includes the Platforms as a Service, Infrastructure as a Service and Business Process as a Service delivery models. What this information reveals is that while cloud computing is already a significant part of operational strategy for many businesses (as well as governmental agencies), we should expect it to not only grow as a market but to become even more intertwined with the way we conduct business and store data on a daily basis. Consequently, businesses in general and export compliance officers in particular need to be vigilant and make sure that their use of this important technology is consistent with US export regulations.

When using cloud services, the user is uploading data to available servers in the cloud provider’s server facility(ies). The type of data uploaded and the location of the server where that data is stored can potentially trigger export compliance issues for the user. In fact, the ultimate location of the particular server used to hold the user’s data may be unknown to either the user or the cloud provider. Data can be redirected to various servers in different countries in order to properly allocate server space based on fluctuations of usage in different time zones. It should be noted that this is […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2013-05-28T15:31:00-04:00May 28, 2013|Export, Intellectual Property Rights, U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), U.S. Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)|0 Comments

Ready to Travel to Cuba? OFAC Simplifies Process

On April 18, 2013, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) announced its effort to streamline license processing procedures by accepting requests for licenses, license amendments, and interpretive guidance electronically. This will not only simplify the process for those that wish to travel to Cuba, this new electronic application program can also be used for applications to request the release of blocked funds and much more.

For those that are more “old school” – you still have the opportunity to submit applications by snail mail pursuant to 31 C.F.R. § 501.801.

The new electronic OFAC License Application Page will allow users to apply:

to travel to Cuba (for many, though not all, categories of travel to Cuba);
to export agricultural commodities, medicine, or medical devices to Sudan or Iran pursuant to the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000;
for the release of a wire transfer blocked at a U.S. financial institution; and
for a license or interpretive guidance in all other circumstances (referred to generally as Transactional).

For those wishing to travel to Cuba in a jiffy, you must first consult an expert to review and assure you understand the Comprehensive Guidelines for License Applications to Engage in Travel-Related Transactions Involving Cuba. Once you know that you can apply to OFAC for your specific category of travel – the next step is reviewing the online application page.

Thus far, the electronic form may be used to apply for licenses to travel to Cuba in the following categories […]

By Jennifer Diaz|2022-07-07T09:53:07-04:00April 29, 2013|Best Practices, Export, International Travel, U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)|0 Comments

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