BIS to Officially Add 33 Entries to Entity List

The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security will officially add 33 companies and government agencies to the Entity List on June 5 for their roles in aiding proliferation activities and human rights abuses in China’s Xinjiang province, BIS said in two Federal Register notices. The notices formalize the additions, which were announced in May (see 2005220058).

The first notice adds 24 Chinese, Hong Kong and United Kingdom entities to the Entity List and modifies three existing entries under the destination of China. The second notice adds nine Chinese entities to the Entity List and amends three additional entries under the destination of China.

BIS added the entities because they aid China’s “campaign of repression” against the country’s Uighur population and procure technologies for military end-use in China, including purchases of U.S.-origin items for China’s People’s Liberation Army, the agency said. BIS singled out several entities, including China-based Harbin Institute of Technology and Shanghai Nova Instruments Co., for buying U.S. technology for use in Chinese missile programs.

BIS announced a license policy of presumption of denial for the 24 entities referenced in the first notice. The agency added that it will not issue license exceptions for shipments to the entities.

For the nine entities referenced in the second notice, BIS will impose a license requirement for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations and a case-by-case license review policy for certain Export Control Classification Numbers. BIS will also impose a case-by-case review policy for certain EAR-99 items -- “specifically, items for protection against chemical or biological agents that are consumer goods, packaged for retail sale or personal use, or medical products,” the notice said.

BIS will impose a license review policy of presumption of denial for “all other items” subject to the EAR and said “no license exceptions are available” for shipments to the nine entities. The agency also clarified that the new license requirements for the nine entities apply to transactions in which items are “exported, reexported, or transferred” to the entities or when the entities “act as purchaser, intermediate consignee, ultimate consignee, or end user.”

All exports and reexports of shipments that now require a license as a result of this rule that were aboard a carrier to a port as of June 5 may proceed to their destinations under the previous eligibility, BIS said in a savings clause. For the 24 entities referenced in the first notice, BIS specified that the savings clause also applies to in-country transfers and that all items exported “under the authority of a BIS-issued license” may proceed to their destination under that license's authorization as long as they were aboard a carrier by June 5.

BIS also modified several Entity List entries and changed a license review policy for one entry. The agency said it will change its review policy from case-by-case to a presumption of denial for the Chinese Academy of Engineering Physics. The notice also added three additional addresses for the academy and changed an existing address to correct a ZIP code.

BIS removed an address for the existing entry for China Electronics Technology Group Corporation 38th Research Institute. The agency also identified a “third subordinate institution” -- called NEDITEK -- under the entry for China Electronics Technology Group Corporation 55th Research Institute and added an additional address for the entry.

BIS said it will modify the entry for Hikvision by identifying “Hikvision” as an alias and including an additional name: “Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co., Ltd.” The agency will also add the name “Beijing Sensetime Technology Development Co., Ltd.” to the entry for Sensetime, and add the alias “Beijing Shangtang Technology Development Co., Ltd.” BIS will also revise the entry for Kezilesu Kyrgyz Autonomous Prefecture Public Security Bureau by correcting the spelling of the existing alias to: “Kizilsu Autonomous Prefecture Public Security Bureau.”