On March 16, 2016, ahead of President's Obama's visit to Cuba, OFAC and the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) implemented amendments to the CACR and Export Administration Regulations (EAR) that further ease the U.S. sanctions and export controls targeting Cuba, particularly related to financial transactions, travel and certain trade-related activities.
The latest relaxation of sanctions provides greater opportunities for certain U.S. businesses to engage with Cuba. U.S. exporters of authorized or exempt goods, entities providing mail or parcel transmission services or cargo transportation services, and providers of carrier and travel services are now able to establish a business presence, such as a joint venture, in Cuba to facilitate authorized transactions. The changes also ease restrictions on cargo shipping by allowing cargo vessels from the United States to transit through Cuban territory en route to other countries without obtaining a specific license. In addition, the changes expand Cuban access to U.S. financial institutions by authorizing U.S. banks to process "U-turn" payments and U.S. dollar monetary instruments for transactions involving Cuban persons.
Finally, U.S. persons may now travel to Cuba independently pursuant to a general license for authorized "people-to-people" educational trips that are intended to enhance contact with the Cuban people.
For additional information, see the BIS and OFAC press releases and Akin Gump's Trade Alert. For information on the previous easing of Cuba sanctions in the last year, see Red Notice issues for January 2015, September 2015 and January 2016.
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