The United Kingdom’s Department for International Trade updated its COVID-19 guidance for U.K. traders with a new section on the export control process for personal protective equipment, according to an April 21 notice. The update provides a link to a guidance for PPE export controls issued by the Department of Health and Social Care.

An extension of the Brexit transition period beyond the end of 2020 looks “increasingly likely,” despite United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s promises to the contrary, the British International Freight Association said in an April 22 press release. “We believe that refusing to even consider extending the transition period is very risky and together with a growing chorus of Brexit commentators, think an extension to the transition period remains likely, and it is really only a question of ‘when,’” director general Robert Keen said.

Vietnam’s 400,000 ton rice export quota for April was filled in three hours, leading to “chaotic developments” and “disappointed” rice exporters, according to an April 20 report from CustomsNews, the mouthpiece for Vietnam Customs. The quickly filled quota, introduced by Vietnam to maintain domestic supplies of rice during the COVID-19 pandemic (see 2004140029), left rice shipments stuck at ports as exporters were unable to file any more declarations with the government, the report said. Vietnamese rice exporters complained that the government did not give “prior notice” before opening up its customs system for rice export declarations, which was opened at midnight on April 11, according to an April 14 report from Viet Nam News. Industry is “collecting opinions” to deliver to Vietnam’s trade and customs agencies, saying the system rollout “in the middle of the night was extremely unfair,” the report said.

A South Korean bank will pay $86 million after admitting violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, which included processing transactions for sanctioned parties and violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, the Justice Department said April 20. The Industrial Bank of Korea did not maintain an adequate anti-money laundering program and processed more than $1 billion worth of transactions for sanctioned Iranian entities, the Justice Department said. This was partly due to the bank’s lack of an automated screening program and its poorly trained compliance staff, which fell “months behind” their manual review of transactions. Despite self-disclosing some violations, the bank failed to inform the Treasury Department of at least $990 million worth of illegal transactions, the Justice Department said.

The Fish and Wildlife Service is issuing a final rule reclassifying the golden conure (Gauruba guarouba), a psittacine bird (parrots, parakeets, macaws, cockatoos, and others) endemic to the south Amazon Basin in Brazil, as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The species had been listed as endangered. Though the agency recently ended blanket import-export restrictions for threatened species, FWS is including a 4(d) rule that prohibits imports and exports without a permit, unless the export is authorized under Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and the import is authorized under CITES and the Wild Bird Conservation Act. New import and export restrictions set by the agency’s final rule take effect May 26.

The Environmental Protection Agency issued a final rule setting new significant new use rules (SNURs) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for eight chemical substances that were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMNs). As a result of the SNURs, persons planning to manufacture, import or process any of the chemicals for an activity that is designated as a significant new use by this rule are required to notify EPA at least 90 days in advance. Importers of chemicals subject to these SNURs will need to certify their compliance with the SNUR requirements, and exporters of these chemicals will now become subject to export notification requirements. The final rule takes effect June 22.

The United Nations Security Council and the United Kingdom’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation sanctioned the leader of an anti-government militia in the Central African Republic, according to notices published this week. Martin Koumtamadji, president and commander-in-chief of the Front Démocratique du Peuple Centrafricain, is now subject to an asset freeze.

The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control renewed a general license that authorizes transactions between certain companies and Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A., OFAC said April 21. General License No. 8F, which replaces No. 8E, authorizes transactions between PdVSA and Chevron Corp., Haliburton, Schlumberger, Baker Hughes and Weatherford International, with certain restrictions, through 12:01 a.m. Dec. 1, 2020. The license was scheduled to expire April 22.

The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control removed sanctions from 12 narcotics-related entries on its Specially Designated Nationals List, according to an April 22 notice. The entries include people and entities based in Guatemala, Colombia, Honduras, the British Virgin Islands and Florida. OFAC also amended six entries under its Libya designations to include more identifying information.

The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control has been quickly addressing humanitarian licensing issues from industry but could be doing more to encourage the flow of aid to Iran, a former OFAC official and a sanctions lawyer said. OFAC has been rightly criticized for not doing enough to eliminate industry fears of sanctions, said Brian O’Toole, a former senior adviser to the OFAC director, adding that the government should rethink restrictions surrounding humanitarian trade. And although OFAC issued a guidance (see 2004160039) encouraging banks to process humanitarian-related transactions involving Iran, banks continue to seek more assurances, lawyer Kerry Contini said.