The U.K. saw an uptick in voluntary disclosures and penalties for export violations last year along with a rise in the percentage of first-time exporters that weren’t fully compliant with export control regulations, it said in its strategic export controls annual report released this month. The country also said it’s hoping to improve its export licensing process to reduce wait times.

The Senate Appropriations Committee’s newly released report on the FY 2026 Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations bill (see 2507170053 and 2507100053) calls for the Bureau of Industry and Security to take several actions to inform lawmakers, including writing a report on international efforts to harmonize export controls on items that could aid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested the White House may be in favor of a bill that would authorize new sanctions and tariffs against Russia’s supporters, and he urged the EU to put in place similar measures.

The European Commission on July 18 began accepting public comments on future safeguard measures covering the steel sector with the goal of locating an "effective replacement for the current EU safeguard on steel," which is set to expire on June 30, 2026. Stakeholders have until Aug. 18 to comment on the potential safegaurd measures, the commission said. Following the consultation period, the commission will issue a "Staff Working Document" to accompany the commission's legislative proposal, which will include an "economic model that analyses different scenarios and their effects on the EU steel supply chain."

The Council of the EU on July 18 formally adopted new valued-added tax rules that will make foreign suppliers liable for VAT paid on imports. "The directive will improve collection of VAT on imported goods by ensuring suppliers are always liable for VAT paid on imports, rather than the EU consumer as is currently usual practice," the council said. "This should encourage suppliers outside the EU to use the bloc's "VAT import one-stop-shop," which is the EU's point of contact for importers of goods from third countries into the EU. The directive will be published in the Official Journal of the EU and will enter into force 20 days later. The rules will apply starting July 1, 2028.

The U.K.'s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation last week launched new online forms for submitting license applications and reporting suspected violations or frozen assets. The agency said the new forms will help modernize and streamline OFSI's services and "make it easier for you to provide the information we need and to help us respond more quickly and efficiently."

The latest EU sanctions package against Russia, adopted last week, lowers the price cap on Russian oil, introduces more import and export restrictions and designates a range of vessels and companies helping Russia move energy products and evade sanctions.

Beijing last week said it’s seeing the U.S. approve exports of Nvidia H20 chips to China and urged the Trump administration to roll back other restrictions against the country.

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., introduced a bill July 14 aimed at improving the tracking of foreign purchases of U.S. farmland.

Four Democratic members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s arms sales task force introduced a bill July 17 that would create a State Department program to determine whether U.S. defense exports are used to commit war crimes or harm civilians.