Document ID: BIS-2022-0012-0001
Agency: bis
Document Type: Rule
Title: Export Administration Regulations: Addition to the List of Countries Excluded from Certain License Requirements
Posted Date: 2022-03-10T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 47 (Thursday, March 10, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 13627-13628]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-05025]

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 Rules and Regulations
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  Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 47 / Thursday, March 10, 2022 / Rules 
and Regulations  

[[Page 13627]]

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Bureau of Industry and Security

15 CFR Part 746

[Docket No. 220304-0069]
RIN 0694-AI77

Addition to the List of Countries Excluded From Certain License 
Requirements Under the Export Administration Regulations (EAR)

AGENCY: Bureau of Industry and Security, Department of Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: In response to the Russian Federation's (Russia's) further 
invasion of Ukraine, and to protect U.S. national security and foreign 
policy interests, the Department of Commerce has added new and highly 
restrictive license requirements and policies for certain transactions 
involving Russia and Belarus under the Export Administration 
Regulations (EAR). In order to recognize partner countries that have 
committed to implementing substantially similar new export controls on 
Russia and Belarus in their domestic laws, the Department of Commerce 
has published a list of countries excluded from portions of these new 
U.S. export controls. These exclusions apply specifically to certain 
requirements under the EAR related to foreign-produced items. In this 
rule, the Department of Commerce adds the Republic of Korea (South 
Korea) to the list of excluded countries.

DATES: This rule is effective March 4, 2022.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions on this final rule, 
contact Eileen Albanese, Director, Office of National Security and 
Technology Transfer Controls, Bureau of Industry and Security, 
Department of Commerce, Phone: (202) 482-0092, Fax: (202) 482-482-3355, 
Email: [email protected]. For emails, include ``Russia'' in the subject 
line.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Effective February 24, 2022, in response to Russia's further 
invasion of Ukraine, the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry 
and Security (BIS) added new Russia license requirements and policies 
to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to protect U.S. national 
security and foreign policy interests. See 87 FR 12226 (March 3, 2022) 
(Russia Sanctions rule). These new Russia license requirements included 
new Commerce Control List (CCL)-based license requirements involving 
exports, reexports, and transfer (in-country) transactions and two new 
foreign ``direct product'' rules (FDP rules) specific to Russia and to 
Russian `military end users.' A subsequent rule, effective March 2, 
2022, extended these license requirements to export, reexport, and 
transfer (in-country) transactions involving Belarus, as a result of 
Belarus's substantial enabling of Russia's invasion of Ukraine (Belarus 
Sanctions rule).\1\ Both of these rules included a savings clause 
specific to items controlled by the two FDP rules, stating that such 
items en route aboard a carrier to a port of export, reexport, or 
transfer (in-country), on or before March 26, 2022, pursuant to actual 
orders for reexport, or transfer (in-country) to or within a foreign 
destination, may proceed to such foreign destination under an 
applicable authorization that was available prior to the new license 
requirements, or with no license required, if no license requirements 
had previously applied to such transactions.
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    \1\ Imposition of Sanctions Against Belarus Under the Export 
Administration Regulations (EAR), FR 2022-04819, scheduled to 
publish March 8, 2022.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The new Belarus and Russia restrictions set forth in Sec.  746.8 of 
the EAR refer to a list of countries that have committed to 
implementing substantially similar export controls on Belarus and 
Russia under their domestic laws. Pursuant to Sec.  746.8(a)(5), 
countries that have made such a commitment receive full or partial 
exclusions, as appropriate, from the FDP rules' license requirements 
set forth under Sec.  746.8(a)(2) and (3) of the EAR. Similarly, the 
license requirements in Sec.  746.8(a)(1) are not used to determine 
controlled U.S.-content under the EAR's de minimis rules, as set forth 
in supplement no. 2 to part 734 of the EAR, provided the criteria in 
Sec.  746.8(a)(5)(i) and (ii) are met. Countries excluded from these 
requirements are listed in supplement no. 3 to part 746 (Russia and 
Belarus Exclusions List). As a result of South Korea's commitment to 
implement substantially similar export controls on Russia and Belarus 
under its domestic laws, the Department of Commerce adds South Korea to 
supplement no. 3 to part 746 in this rule with the designation of 
``full.''

Export Control Reform Act of 2018

    On August 13, 2018, the President signed into law the John S. 
McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, which 
included the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (ECRA) (codified, as 
amended, at 50 U.S.C. 4801-4852). ECRA provides the legal basis for 
BIS's principal authorities and serves as the authority under which BIS 
issues this rule.

Rulemaking Requirements

    1. This final rule is not a ``significant regulatory action'' 
because it ``pertain[s]'' to a ``military or foreign affairs function 
of the United States'' under sec. 3(d)(2) of Executive Order 12866.
    2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person is 
required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty 
for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the 
requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et 
seq.) (PRA), unless that collection of information displays a currently 
valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number. This rule 
involves the following OMB-approved collections of information subject 
to the PRA: 0694-0088, ``Multi-Purpose Application,'' which carries a 
burden hour estimate of 29.6 minutes for a manual or electronic 
submission; 0694-0096 ``Five Year Records Retention Period,'' which 
carries a burden hour estimate of less than 1 minute; and 0607-0152 
``Automated Export System (AES) Program,'' which carries a burden hour 
estimate of 3 minutes per electronic submission. BIS anticipates this 
rule will result in a slight decrease in the number of estimated 
license applications because this rule provides

[[Page 13628]]

relief from the burden of the new Russia Sanctions rule and Belarus 
Sanctions rule requirements that would otherwise pertain to items 
produced in, exported or reexported from South Korea, or transferred 
(in-country). Thus, this rule does not create a substantive change to 
OMB Control Numbers 0694-0088, 0694-0096, or 0607-0152.
    3. This rule does not contain policies with federalism implications 
as that term is defined in Executive Order 13132.
    4. Pursuant to section 1762 of the Export Control Reform Act of 
2018 (50 U.S.C. 4821) (ECRA), this action is exempt from the 
Administrative Procedure Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. 553) requirements for 
notice of proposed rulemaking, opportunity for public participation, 
and delay in effective date. While section 1762 of ECRA provides 
sufficient authority for such an exemption, this action is also 
independently exempt from these APA requirements because it involves a 
military or foreign affairs function of the United States (5 U.S.C. 
553(a)(1)).
    5. Because a notice of proposed rulemaking and an opportunity for 
public comment are not required to be given for this rule by 5 U.S.C. 
553, or by any other law, the analytical requirements of the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601, et seq., are not applicable. 
Accordingly, no regulatory flexibility analysis is required, and none 
has been prepared.

List of Subjects in 15 CFR Part 746

    Exports, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, part 746 of the Export 
Administration Regulations (15 CFR parts 730 through 774) is amended as 
follows:

PART 746--EMBARGOES AND OTHER SPECIAL CONTROLS

0
1. The authority citation for 15 CFR part 746 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority:  50 U.S.C. 4801-4852; 50 U.S.C. 4601 et seq.; 50 
U.S.C. 1701 et seq.; 22 U.S.C. 287c; Sec. 1503, Pub. L. 108-11, 117 
Stat. 559; 22 U.S.C. 2151 note; 22 U.S.C. 6004; 22 U.S.C. 7201 et 
seq.; 22 U.S.C. 7210; E.O. 12854, 58 FR 36587, 3 CFR, 1993 Comp., p. 
614; E.O. 12918, 59 FR 28205, 3 CFR, 1994 Comp., p. 899; E.O. 13222, 
66 FR 44025, 3 CFR, 2001 Comp., p. 783; E.O. 13338, 69 FR 26751, 3 
CFR, 2004 Comp., p 168; Presidential Determination 2003-23, 68 FR 
26459, 3 CFR, 2004 Comp., p. 320; Presidential Determination 2007-7, 
72 FR 1899, 3 CFR, 2006 Comp., p. 325; Notice of May 6, 2021, 86 FR 
26793 (May 10, 2021).

0
2. Supplement no. 3 to part 746 is amended by adding an entry for 
``South Korea'' in alphabetical order to read as follows:

Supplement No. 3 to Part 746--Countries Excluded From Certain License 
Requirements of Sec.  746.8

* * * * *

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                       Federal Register
             Country                     Scope             citation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                              * * * * * * *
South Korea.....................  Full..............  87 FR [INSERT FR
                                                       PAGE NUMBER] 3/10/
                                                       2022.
 
                              * * * * * * *
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Thea D. Rozman Kendler,
Assistant Secretary for Export Administration.
[FR Doc. 2022-05025 Filed 3-4-22; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3510-33-P