The Canadian Food Inspection Agency will revise its requirements for importing koi from the U.S. starting April 15, the agency said in a March 22 notice to industry. All imports of live Koi carp from the U.S. for aquarium and outdoor holding unit end uses will require a valid CFIA import permit and a U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service export certificate, the CFIA said. "Koi carp can no longer be included on the same import permit as other aquatic ornamental species and will require a separate permit," the agency said. Also starting on April 15 "import documentation for live Koi carp imported from the U.S. for aquarium or outdoor holding unit end uses must be reviewed by the National Import Service Centre (NISC)," it said. "Prior to arrival at the first port of entry, all relevant documentation must be submitted to the NISC."

Michael Stashchyshyn, who owned a freight forwarder company in Parsippany, New Jersey, pleaded guilty March 20 to one charge of "conspiracy to violate the Arms Export Control Act," the Justice Department said in a March 21 news release. "In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that Stashchyshyn conspired with others to export night sighting equipment, firearm parts, and ammunition to Ukraine without the requisite license issued by the State Department," said the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The items were bought in the U.S. and sent to Stashchyshyn, who "then shipped the items to an individual in Ukraine in violation of U.S. law and regulations. The items shipped are contained on the Federal Munitions List and are controlled by the International Traffic in Arms (ITAR) regulations. They are illegal to ship without a license from the State Department, which the defendant and his co-conspirators did not have."

The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control updated its Specially Designated Nationals List with several Iran-related designations and non-proliferation designations, OFAC said in a March 22 notice. The additions include 14 individuals and 17 entities, according to the notice, all of which have connections to Iran.

President Donald Trump said he has lifted sanctions on North Korea, with that announcement coming one day after the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control announced new sanctions involving the country's attempts at evading sanctions. The president's move, announced March 22 on his Twitter account, did not specify which U.S.-imposed sanctions on North Korea would be lifted. “It was announced today by the U.S. Treasury that additional large scale Sanctions would be added to those already existing Sanctions on North Korea,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “I have today ordered the withdrawal of those additional Sanctions!” According to the Associated Press, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a March 22 statement that Trump “likes Chairman Kim and he doesn’t think these sanctions will be necessary.”

China’s reduction in value-added-tax rates will cover a broad scope of Chinese imports and will officially take effect April 1, according to a March 22 press release from China’s State Council. Taxpayers that are subject to the 16 percent VAT rate will see a drop to 13 percent, according to the release, while those subject to the 10 percent VAT rate will see a drop to 9 percent. In addition, the VAT rate for agricultural products will drop from 10 percent to 9 percent. The VAT changes also include an “extension in the scale of goods and services eligible for input tax deductions,” the release said.

Exports of urea and ammonium nitrate from the U.S. to the European Union could eventually face antidumping and countervailing duty requirements as of March 22, after the EU published a notice the previous day directing member state customs authorities to “register” any of their imports of the product. In a procedure similar to “critical circumstances” in the U.S., EU authorities determined that U.S. exporters had been increasing exports after AD/CV duty investigations on urea and ammonium nitrate were launched in August 2018, in an effort to get in as much product as possible before duties take effect. As a result of the registration requirement, should the EU apply AD and CV duties in its final determination, any duties will be retroactive to the date the registration requirements began, i.e., March 22, 2019. The registration requirements also apply to Russia and Trinidad and Tobago.

Once importers and exporters in the United Kingdom get a U.K. Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) number, it can take 48 hours before it can be used to make declarations in the Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) system, HM Revenue & Customs said in an update to its guidance on obtaining a UK EORI number. All importers and exporters in the UK will be required to have a U.K. EORI number assigned by HMRC to import or export into or out of the U.K. if the country leaves the EU without a transition deal in place, including for imports and exports with the EU, HMRC has said.

In the March 21 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:

The European Union issued a new guidance document detailing documentation that may be used as proof of legal acquisition or importation for protected wildlife. The proof may be required when a live animal listed on the EU’s list of protected species is being exported or re-exported, or otherwise sold or used for commercial purposes. For imported live animals listed in Annex B of the EU’s protected wildlife list (i.e., generally species listed in Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species Appendix II), minimum documentation includes a copy of the import permit with customs endorsement or, if the applicable party is not the importer, either an original copy of the permit handed over by the importer or, if not available, information including the species, details on import permits and the animal’s origin, a detailed description of the animal and an original signature and stamp of the last seller, among other things, the guidance said.

The European Union is implementing new criteria for screening foreign investment in the EU that includes effects on critical technologies and dual-use items defined in EU export control regulations, it said in a notice issued March 21. The regulation mirrors U.S. Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) requirements currently being implemented that relate to “emerging technologies” as defined in Bureau of Industry and Security export control regulations. Specific technologies named in the new EU regulation include artificial intelligence, robotics, semiconductors, cybersecurity, aerospace, defence, energy storage, quantum and nuclear technologies as well as nanotechnologies and biotechnologies.