New BIS guidance to help freight forwarders remain compliant with export controls
Amid mounting concerns around increasing sanctions evasion activities by Russia, China, Iran and North Korea, the US Bureau of Industry and Security (‘BIS’) has published a guidance and best practices document to help freight forwarders – and exporters who use their services – to remain compliant with US export controls and regulatory requirements.
‘The freight forwarding community has a key role and obligation in securing the global supply chain stemming the flow of illegal exports, which helps to prevent the proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), destabilizing military activities, enabling human rights abuses, or other activities contrary to U.S. national security or foreign policy interests,’ explains the guidance, published 28 March.
It includes an overview of the role, responsibilities and best practices for freight forwarders and exporters – also known as a US Principal Party of Interest (‘USPPI’) – and strongly advises those who are not familiar with the Export Administration Regulations (‘EAR’) to visit the training section of the BIS website.
The information in the guidance includes:
- Freight Forwarder Roles and Responsibilities
- Roles and Responsibilities for Non-Routed and Routed Exports
- Freight Forwarder Expectations of Exporters/USPPIs
- Selecting a Freight Forwarder
- Antiboycott guidance
- Freight Forwarder and Exporter/USPPI Red Flags
Last February, New York-based freight shipper Cargosave was suspended from export privileges for two years and agreed to compliance training for employees as part of a settlement with the US Department of Commerce for illegally shipping computer servers and accessories to Iran.
