Industrial Policy & Trade Monitor· 2662 actions· ✨ 89 recent

Published August 29, 2023, this correction amends the Commerce Country Chart table (15 CFR Part 738, Supplement No. 1) to restore entries for the People's Republic of China and Macau under the Nuclear Nonproliferation (NP) column 2 that were erroneously omitted or mis-rendered in the August 21, 2023 correction notice (FR Doc 2023-18047). The correction is technically procedural but operationally significant: it formally establishes the NP2 "X" markings for China and Macau that trigger BIS licensing requirements for items in ECCNs 1A290, 1C298, 2A290, 2A291, 2D290, 2E001, 2E002, and 2E290. Prior to the underlying August 14, 2023 final rule, neither China nor Macau was subject to NP2 controls in the EAR.

Published August 21, 2023, BIS issued this correction to its August 14, 2023 final rule (FR Doc 2023-17243, 88 FR 55021) that expanded Nuclear Nonproliferation (NP2) licensing requirements for exports to the People's Republic of China and Macau. The correction addressed a typographical error in the Commerce Country Chart table (15 CFR Part 738, Supplement No. 1) as it appeared in the original Federal Register publication. The corrected tabular presentation introduced a secondary error that was subsequently fixed by a second correction notice (C1-2023-18047) published August 29, 2023; the substantive policy — NP2 licensing requirements for ECCNs 1A290, 1C298, 2A290, 2A291, 2D290, 2E001, 2E002, and 2E290 destined for China and Macau — was established by the original August 14 rule and remained unchanged throughout the erratum chain.

Effective August 11, 2023, BIS amended 15 CFR Parts 738 and 742 to add the People's Republic of China and Macau to Nuclear Nonproliferation (NP2) licensing requirements under the Export Administration Regulations. The rule inserts NP2 "X" column markings for China and Macau in the Commerce Country Chart, subjecting exports of eight ECCN families (1A290, 1C298, 2A290, 2A291, 2D290, 2E001, 2E002, 2E290) to a BIS licence requirement. The measure was motivated by China's military modernisation, military-civil fusion strategy, and nuclear force expansion; prior to this rule, neither China nor Macau was subject to NP2 controls in the EAR.

At the Executive Branch's request, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued an order suspending the general license authority in 10 CFR 110.21-110.24 for exports of source material, special nuclear material, byproduct material, and deuterium for nuclear end use to the Russian Federation, effective immediately on issuance (May 12, 2022) and published in the Federal Register on May 17, 2022. Exporters must now apply for a specific license under 10 CFR 110.31 for any such export to Russia, which the NRC evaluates case by case. The order followed the Executive Branch's determination that continued general-license exports to Russia were inimical to US common defense and security in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine.