BIS Working to Educate Industry on New China Controls, Will Issue FAQs

The Bureau of Industry and Security is "undertaking a vigorous outreach effort" to educate companies on the broad China-related export controls announced last week (see 2210070049) and plans to issue guidance soon, a Commerce Department spokesperson said Oct. 12. That guidance will likely take the form of frequently asked questions, the spokesperson said. The agency is also hoping its Oct. 13 public briefing helps answer some industry questions.

The agency's comments came the same day Reuters reported that the U.S. is "scrambling" to address unintended consequences from the new controls, including by issuing export authorizations to several major ship companies. In a statement, South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix said it received an "official letter" from BIS saying the company "is still authorized to engage in activities necessary to maintain current production of integrated circuits in China for one year without further licensing requirements."

“Our discussions with the Department of Commerce led to an approval to supply equipment and items needed for development and production of DRAM semiconductors in Chinese facilities without additional licensing requirements,” an SK Hynix spokesperson said in an Oct. 12 email. "Along with the Korean government, we will continue our consultations with the Department of Commerce and make our utmost efforts to operate our plants in China in a stable way, while continuing compliance with applicable laws and regulations.”

A Commerce spokesperson declined to comment on "company-specific actions," but said exporters may seek case-by-case authorizations for certain exports captured by the new controls and can also make use of the six-month temporary general license outlined in the rule. The spokesperson said the TGL is "intended to mitigate supply chain concerns without undermining national security and foreign policy interests."