II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 249 

To lift the trade embargo on Cuba, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 4, 2021 

Mr. WYDEN (for himself, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. DURBIN, and Mr. LEAHY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To lift the trade embargo on Cuba, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘United States-Cuba 

5 Trade Act of 2021’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REMOVAL OF PROVISIONS RESTRICTING TRADE 

7 AND OTHER RELATIONS WITH CUBA. 

8 (a) AUTHORITY FOR EMBARGO AND SUGAR

9 QUOTA.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 620(a) of the For2 eign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2370(a)) is 

3 repealed. 

4 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

5 1610(f)(1)(A) of title 28, United States Code, is 

6 amended by striking ‘‘section 620(a) of the Foreign 

7 Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2370(a)),’’. 

8 (b) TRADING WITH THE ENEMY ACT.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The authorities conferred 

10 upon the President by section 5(b) of the Trading 

11 With the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. 4305(b)), which 

12 were being exercised with respect to Cuba on July 

13 1, 1977, as a result of a national emergency de14 clared by the President before that date, and are 

15 being exercised on the day before the effective date 

16 of this Act, may not be exercised on or after such 

17 effective date with respect to Cuba. 

18 (2) REGULATIONS.—Any regulation in effect on 

19 the day before the effective date of this Act pursuant 

20 to the exercise of authorities described in paragraph 

21 (1) shall cease to be effective on such effective date. 

22 (c) EXERCISE OF AUTHORITIES UNDER OTHER PRO23 VISIONS OF LAW.— 

24 (1) REMOVAL OF PROHIBITIONS.—Any prohibi25 tion on exports to Cuba that is in effect on the day 


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1 before the effective date of this Act under the Ex2 port Administration Act of 1979 (Public Law 96– 

3 72; 93 Stat. 503) or the Export Control Reform Act 

4 of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 4801 et seq.) shall cease to be 

5 effective on such effective date. 

6 (2) AUTHORITY FOR NEW RESTRICTIONS.—The 

7 President may, on and after the effective date of this 

8 Act— 

9 (A) impose export controls with respect to 

10 Cuba under the Export Control Reform Act of 

11 2018 (50 U.S.C. 4801 et seq.); and 

12 (B) exercise the authorities the President 

13 has under the International Emergency Eco14 nomic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) 

15 with respect to Cuba pursuant to a declaration 

16 of national emergency required by that Act that 

17 is made on account of an unusual and extraor18 dinary threat to the national security, foreign 

19 policy, or economy of the United States, that 

20 did not exist before the date of the enactment 

21 of this Act. 

22 (d) REPEAL OF CUBAN DEMOCRACY ACT OF 1992.— 

23 The Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 6001 et 

24 seq.) is repealed. 


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1 (e) REPEAL OF CUBAN LIBERTY AND DEMOCRATIC

2 SOLIDARITY (LIBERTAD) ACT OF 1996.— 

3 (1) REPEAL.—The Cuban Liberty and Demo4 cratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 (22 

5 U.S.C. 6021 et seq.) is repealed. 

6 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

7 (A) VISA REVOCATION.—Section 428(c)(2) 

8 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 

9 U.S.C. 236(c)(2)) is amended— 

10 (i) by striking subparagraph (K); and 

11 (ii) by redesignating subparagraphs 

12 (L) through (P) as subparagraphs (K) 

13 through (O), respectively. 

14 (B) EFFECT OF DETERMINATION.—Sec15 tion 606 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and 

16 Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (Public 

17 Law 104–208; 8 U.S.C. 1255 note) is repealed. 

18 (C) PROPERTY IMMUNE FROM ATTACH19 MENT.—Section 1611 of title 28, United States 

20 Code, is amended by striking subsection (c). 

21 (D) INTERNATIONAL CLAIMS.—Sections 

22 514 and 515 of the International Claims Settle23 ment Act of 1949 (22 U.S.C. 1643l and 

24 1643m) are repealed. 


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1 (f) REPEAL OF PROVISIONS IMPOSING CERTAIN RE2 STRICTIONS ON ASSISTANCE TO FORMER SOVIET COUN3 TRIES.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 498A of the Foreign 

5 Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2295a) is amend6 ed— 

7 (A) in subsection (a)(11), by striking ‘‘and 

8 intelligence facilities, including the military and 

9 intelligence facilities at Lourdes and Cien10 fuegos,’’ and inserting ‘‘facilities,’’; 

11 (B) in subsection (b)— 

12 (i) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘or’’ 

13 after the semicolon; 

14 (ii) by striking paragraph (5); and 

15 (iii) by redesignating paragraph (6) as 

16 paragraph (5); and 

17 (C) by striking subsection (d). 

18 (2) DEFINITIONS.—Section 498B(k) of the 

19 Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 

20 2295b(k)) is amended by striking paragraphs (3) 

21 and (4). 

22 (g) TRADE SANCTIONS REFORM AND EXPORT EN23 HANCEMENT ACT OF 2000.—The Trade Sanctions Re24 form and Export Enhancement Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 

25 7201 et seq.) is amended— 


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1 (1) in section 906(a)(1) (22 U.S.C. 

2 7205(a)(1)), by striking ‘‘Cuba,’’; 

3 (2) in section 908 (22 U.S.C. 7207)— 

4 (A) by striking subsection (b); 

5 (B) in subsection (a)— 

6 (i) by striking ‘‘PROHIBITION’’ and all 

7 that follows through ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

8 Notwithstanding’’ and inserting ‘‘IN GEN9 ERAL.—Notwithstanding’’; 

10 (ii) by striking ‘‘for exports to Cuba 

11 or’’; 

12 (iii) by striking paragraph (2); and 

13 (iv) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 

14 subsection (b) and by moving such sub15 section, as so redesignated, 2 ems to the 

16 left; and 

17 (C) in subsection (b), as redesignated by 

18 subparagraph (B)(iv), by striking ‘‘paragraph 

19 (1)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)’’; 

20 (3) by striking section 909 (22 U.S.C. 7208); 

21 (4) by striking section 910 (22 U.S.C. 7209); 

22 and 

23 (5) by redesignating section 911 (Public Law 

24 106–387; 114 Stat. 1549A–72) as section 909. 


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1 (h) REPEAL OF PROHIBITION ON TRANSACTIONS OR

2 PAYMENTS WITH RESPECT TO CERTAIN UNITED STATES

3 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY.—Section 211 of the Depart4 ment of Commerce and Related Agencies Appropriations 

5 Act, 1999 (as contained in section 101(b) of division A 

6 of Public Law 105–277; 112 Stat. 2681–88) is repealed. 

7 (i) SUGAR QUOTA PROHIBITION UNDER FOOD SECU8 RITY ACT OF 1985.—Subsection (c) of section 902 of the 

9 Food Security Act of 1985 (Public Law 99–198; 99 Stat. 

10 1444) is repealed. 

11 SEC. 3. TELECOMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT AND FACILI12 TIES. 

13 Any common carrier, as defined in section 3 of the 

14 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153), is author15 ized to install, maintain, and repair telecommunications 

16 equipment and facilities in Cuba, and otherwise provide 

17 telecommunications services between the United States 

18 and Cuba. The authority of this section includes the au19 thority to upgrade facilities and equipment. 

20 SEC. 4. TRAVEL. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Travel to and from Cuba by indi22 viduals who are citizens or residents of the United States, 

23 and any transactions ordinarily incident to such travel, 

24 may not be regulated or prohibited if that travel would 

25 be lawful in the United States. 


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1 (b) TRANSACTIONS INCIDENT TO TRAVEL.—Trans2 actions ordinarily incident to travel that may not be regu3 lated or prohibited under subsection (a) include the fol4 lowing: 

5 (1) Transactions ordinarily incident to travel or 

6 maintenance in Cuba. 

7 (2) Normal banking transactions involving for8 eign currency drafts, traveler’s checks, or other ne9 gotiable instruments incident to that travel. 

10 SEC. 5. NEGOTIATIONS WITH CUBA. 

11 (a) NEGOTIATIONS.—The President should take all 

12 necessary steps to advance negotiations with the Govern13 ment of Cuba— 

14 (1) for the purpose of settling claims of nation15 als of the United States against the Government of 

16 Cuba for the taking of property by such government; 

17 and 

18 (2) for the purpose of securing the protection of 

19 internationally recognized human rights. 

20 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘na21 tional of the United States’’ and ‘‘property’’ have the 

22 meanings given those terms in section 502 of the Inter23 national Claims Settlement Act of 1949 (22 U.S.C. 

24 1643a). 


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1 SEC. 6. EXTENSION OF NONDISCRIMINATORY TRADE 

2 TREATMENT. 

3 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—It is the sense of the Con5 gress that— 

6 (A) the United States should promote 

7 democratic change and economic reform by nor8 malizing trade relations with Cuba; and 

9 (B) upon the enactment of this Act, it will 

10 no longer be necessary for the United States to 

11 continue to use article XXI of the GATT 1994 

12 with respect to Cuba, understanding that the 

13 President retains full authority to invoke article 

14 XXI of the GATT 1994 and comparable provi15 sions in other Uruguay Round Agreements in 

16 the future in all appropriate circumstances. 

17 (2) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms 

18 ‘‘GATT 1994’’ and ‘‘Uruguay Round Agreements’’ 

19 have the meanings given those terms in section 2 of 

20 the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (19 U.S.C. 

21 3501). 

22 (b) EXTENSION OF NONDISCRIMINATORY TREAT23 MENT TO THE PRODUCTS OF CUBA.— 

24 (1) HARMONIZED TARIFF SCHEDULE AMEND25 MENTS.—Subdivision (b) of general note 3 of the 


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1 Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States is 

2 amended— 

3 (A) by striking ‘‘to section 401 of the Tar4 iff Classification Act of 1962,’’; and 

5 (B) by striking ‘‘Cuba’’. 

6 (2) REPEAL OF SECTION 401 OF THE TARIFF

7 CLASSIFICATION ACT OF 1962.—Section 401 of the 

8 Tariff Classification Act of 1962 (Public Law 87– 

9 456; 76 Stat. 78) is repealed. 

10 (3) TERMINATION OF APPLICATION OF TITLE IV

11 OF THE TRADE ACT OF 1974 TO CUBA.— 

12 (A) EXTENSION OF NONDISCRIMINATORY

13 TREATMENT.—Nondiscriminatory treatment 

14 (normal trade relations treatment) shall apply 

15 to the products of Cuba. 

16 (B) TERMINATION OF APPLICATION OF

17 TITLE IV.—Title IV of the Trade Act of 1974 

18 (19 U.S.C. 2431 et seq.) shall cease to apply to 

19 Cuba. 

20 (4) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section, and the 

21 amendments made by this section, shall apply with 

22 respect to goods entered, or withdrawn from ware23 house for consumption, on or after the 15th day 

24 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The President shall 

2 submit to Congress, not later than 18 months after the 

3 date of the enactment of this Act, a report on trade rela4 tions between the United States and Cuba. 

5 SEC. 7. PROHIBITION ON LIMITING ANNUAL REMITTANCES. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

7 (b), the Secretary of the Treasury may not limit the 

8 amount of remittances to Cuba that may be made by any 

9 person who is subject to the jurisdiction of the United 

10 States, and the Secretary shall rescind all regulations in 

11 effect on the date of the enactment of this Act that so 

12 limit the amount of those remittances. 

13 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in sub14 section (a) may be construed to prohibit the prosecution 

15 or conviction of any person committing an offense de16 scribed in section 1956 of title 18, United States Code 

17 (relating to the laundering of monetary instruments), or 

18 section 1957 of such title (relating to engaging in mone19 tary transactions in property derived from specific unlaw20 ful activity). 

21 SEC. 8. REQUIREMENT TO REPORT TO CONGRESS PRIOR 

22 TO DENIAL OF FOREIGN TAX CREDIT WITH 

23 RESPECT TO CERTAIN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subclause (II) of section 

25 901(j)(2)(B)(i) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 


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1 amended by striking ‘‘such country becomes’’ and insert2 ing ‘‘the date on which the President reports to Congress 

3 that such country has been determined to be’’. 

4 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

6 the amendment made by this section shall apply to 

7 any determination regarding whether a foreign coun8 try is described in subparagraph (A) of section 

9 901(j)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

10 which is made after the date of the enactment of 

11 this Act. 

12 (2) NON-APPLICATION TO COUNTRIES SUBJECT

13 TO DENIAL OF FOREIGN TAX CREDIT.—Nothing in 

14 this section, or the amendment made by this section, 

15 shall be construed to alter, amend, or otherwise af16 fect the application of subsection (j) of section 901 

17 of such Code to any country which has been deter18 mined to be a country described in paragraph (2)(A) 

19 of such subsection on or before the date of the en20 actment of this Act. 

21 SEC. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

22 Except as provided in sections 6 and 8, this Act and 

23 the amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the 


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1 date that is 60 days after the date of the enactment of 

2 this Act. 

Æ 


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