On January 18, 2023, the U.S. Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published in the Federal Register an Interim Final Rule, 88 Fed. Reg. 2821, amending the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) (15 CFR Parts 730-774) by adding Macau to the recent controls implemented on certain advanced computing and semiconductor manufacturing items destined for China. This interim final rule is effective as of January 17, 2023. Parties wishing to submit comments to BIS on this interim final rule must do so no later than January 31, 2023.

Background

On October 13, 2022, BIS published an Interim Final Rule amending the EAR to implement certain controls on advanced computing integrated circuits (ICs), computer commodities that contain such ICs, and certain semiconductor manufacturing items and to make other changes to the EAR to ensure that appropriate controls are in place for these items, including specific activities of US Persons. See our prior alert on that rule here. This new interim final rule adds Macau to the same controls implemented on China in the October 13, 2022 rule. 

New Macau Controls

Specifically, this new rule adds Macau to the scope of the Regional Stability (RS) control paragraph in the following seven Export Control Classification Numbers (ECCNs): 3A090, 3B090, 3D001, 3E001, 4A090, 4D090, and 4E001.  This rule also adds Macau to the general restrictions on the use of license exceptions for these RS-controlled ECCNs in § 740.2(a)(9) and adds Macau to § 742.6(a)(6 and (b)(10), as part of the RS control structure implemented in the October 13, 2022 rule.

This rule also adds Macau to the destination scope of the Advanced computing Foreign Direct Product (FDP) Rule and the Supercomputer FDP Rule in § 734.9. Similarly, this rule adds Macau as an additional destination in the end-use controls under §§ 744.6 (Restrictions on Specific Activities of US Persons) and 744.23 (Supercomputer and Semiconductor Manufacturing End Use).

Finally, this rule revises General Order No. 4 in supplement no. 1 to part 736 to add Macau to the scope of the temporary general license (TGL), which authorizes, from October 21, 2022, through April 7, 2023, exports, reexports, in-country transfers, and exports from abroad destined to or within China or Macau by companies not headquartered in Country Groups D:1 or D:5 or E (see supplement no. 1 to part 740) to continue or engage in integration, assembly (mounting), inspection, testing, quality assurance, and distribution of items covered by ECCN 3A090, 4A090, and associated software and technology in ECCN 3D001, 3E001, 4D090, or 4E001; or any item that is a computer, integrated circuit, electronic assembly or component and associated software and technology, specified elsewhere on the Commerce Control List (supplement no. 1 to part 774), which meets or exceeds the performance parameters of ECCN 3A090 or 4A090.