Category Archives: compliance

CBP seizes 4.6 million disposable gloves due to forced labor finding.

May 23, 2021 By in compliance, forced labor, trade compliance, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Tags: , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment


crop unrecognizable person in rubber gloves raising arms
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According to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) media release, officers in Missouri seized over 4.68 million latex gloves from a subsidiary of Malaysia based Top Glove Corporation Bhd. The seizure valued at $690,000 was due to information provided to CBP the gloves were manufactured using forced labor – a form of modern slavery.

Specifically, CBP issued a forced labor finding – in which they suspect Top Glove’s production process to include debt bondage, excessive overtime, abusive working conditions, abusive living conditions and the retention of identity documents.

Unfortunately for Top Glove, CBP will continue seizing their goods until Top Glove can prove future glove shipments were not produced using forced labor. In general, forced labor also includes indentured labor, use of convict labor, and child labor.

CBP issued a forced labor finding on March 29 based on evidence of multiple forced labor indicators in Top Glove’s production process, including debt bondage, excessive overtime, abusive working and living conditions, and retention of identity documents.

If your company is suspected of using forced labor. contact David Hsu anytime by phone/text at 832-896-6288 or by email at attorney.dave@yahoo.com. Forced labor compliance is the new, hot enforcement area for Customs and Border Protection.

If you are an importer, and are concerned about forced labor accusations, contact us also to create your forced labor compliance program.

Bill introduced to ban government employees from using Huawei, ZTE products.

May 2, 2020 By in compliance, Export, Export Administration Regulations, Huawei, Import Export Attorney, trade compliance, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

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Senators Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley will introduce a bill banning US officials from using projects from Chinese companies that have been deemed to be national security threats. In the past, Chinese companies such as Huawei and ZTE have been deemed to be national security threats.

The proposed legislation is named the “Countering Chinese Attempts at Snooping Act” and would prohibit federal employees from conducting official business through technology from companies deemed by the State Department to be under the control of the Chinese government.

If passed, the bill would also require the State Department to create a list of companies supported by the Chinese company that could pose a threat and be used to conduct espionage.

This proposed legislation comes one month after President Trump signed into law legislation that barred the use of federal funds to purchase equipment from Huawei and ZTE.

If you have any questions about export compliance or think it’s time to revisit your compliance program, contact experienced compliance attorney David Hsu for a no-cost consultation by/phone or text at 832-896-6288 or by email at attorney.dave@yahoo.com.

Huawei received approximately $75 billion in support from…

December 26, 2019 By in Attorney, compliance, entity list, Huawei, Import Export Attorney, trade compliance, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , Leave a comment

black huawei android smartphone

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According to a Wall Street Journal article published on Christmas day, Huawei reportedly had “access to as much as $75 billion in state support”. The $75 million figure was a result of the WSJ accounting of public records of Huawei and includes $46 billion in loans and $25 billion in tax cuts.
This recent article from the WSJ may bolster the US government’s case for barring mobile hardware made by Huawei to be used by government agencies. The US government may also cite this argument in it’s appeal to other countries to avoid using Huawei telecommunications equipment when municipalities choose a 5G equipment provider.
Huawei has denied any ties to the Chinese government and Huawei is still subject to a ban on using US origin hardware and software.
If you have any questions on how the Huawei band will impact your business, or if you have concerns about your export compliance with the current ban on Huawei – contact experienced trade and compliance attorney David Hsu by phone/text at 832-896-6288 or by email at attorney.dave@yahoo.com, dh@gjatradelaw.com.

Huawei 5G technology coming to the US?

October 20, 2019 By in compliance, Export, Huawei, Import Export Attorney, trade compliance, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

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As Huawei is on the US Commerce Department’s Entity List, Huawei is prevented from doing business with US companies without permission (ie without a license from BIS).
However, media outlets report that Huawei is discussing licensing of their 5G technology to unnamed American companies who have shown interest in long term and one-time transfers. Even a license to an American company may be a violation even if no goods exchange hands.
The Huawei inclusion on the entity list is part of an effort to prevent suspected Chinese government surveillance onto their communications equipment.
If you or your company is interested in doing any business with Huawei – contact experienced BIS/trade compliance attorney David Hsu by text/phone at 832-896-6288 or by email at attorney.dave@yahoo.com, dh@gjatradelaw.com.

Huawei admits they are impacted by US blacklist.

October 20, 2019 By in blacklist, compliance, Huawei, Import Export Attorney, trade compliance, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

black huawei android smartphone

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According to a recent Forbes article, Huawei has confirmed the U.S. blacklist in place since May is impacting their ability to offer Google software onto their mobile phones. The Forbes article also says Huawei has not finished their in house operating system.
The black list that took effect in May restricts Huawei from access to the US supply chain for software and hardware. While Huawei has been able to source non US goods for the hardware, they have not been able to replace Google’s Android software.
While our blog earlier indicated Huawei would be launching their own in-house operating system, it is not yet ready for smart phones. Huawei has launched their Harmony OS, but that software is limited to smart TVs.
While not mentioned in the article, without Google’s Play Store, Huawei users will likely have to download APK files from online if they want to install their aps onto a new Huawei phone.
Things for Huawei will also get worse next month – this November marks the expiration of a temporary exemption on certain suppliers.
If you  have any questions how your company may be impacted by the trade restrictions with Huawei, contact experienced export compliance attorney David Hsu by text/phone at 832-896-6288 or by email at attorney.dave@yahoo.com, dh@gjatradelaw.com.

China General Nuclear Power Group added to BIS entity list.

August 16, 2019 By in compliance, entity list, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

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This past Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Commerce added China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) to the BIS entity list. As a result, American companies are now prevented from selling any products to China’s largest state-owned nuclear company. If any American company or person does business with CGN (or any other listed entity), they would be violating the law and subject to persecution.

The U.S. Department of Commerce claims CGN its subsidiaries engaged in activity to acquire advanced U.S. nuclear technology and material for use in the Chinese military.

China claims the real goal of placing CGN on the entity list is to limit China’s growth under China’s “Made in China 2025” initiative. Made in China 2025 is an effort by the Chinese government to increase the high tech capability and manufacturing of China. If successful, the “Made in China 2025” efforts will make China the a superpower in high technology in Asia.

If you have any questions about your company’s operations and want to ensure compliance with the new entity list addition, contact experienced export compliance attorney David Hsu at 832-896-6288 or by email at dh@gjatradelaw.com, attorney.dave@yahoo.com.

U.S. may ban cocoa imports from Ivory Coast due to potential use of child labor.

August 11, 2019 By in child labor, cocoa, compliance, forced labor, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , 1 Comment

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Last week, Ivory Coast’s First Lady and US officials met to discuss a proposed US ban on Ivory Coast cocoa. Ivory coast is the world’s largest supplier of cooca (supplying 1/3 of all the world’s cocoa supply) and the Ivory Coast government is fighting every effort to block Ivorian cocoa from entering US ports.

The use of forced child labor to harvest cocoa has been an issue many chocolate wholesalers such as Mars, Nestle and Hershey have tried to eliminate, mostly through efforts such as monitoring supply chains and certification by third-party monitors. However, the recent report by two US Senators includes evidence of continued use of forced labor and the Washington Post reported earlier in June that 2 million children work in West African cocoa farms.

The Senators believe a new ban would further increase pressure on cocoa farmers and Customs officials are authorized to ban all products from entering the US if evidence indicates the products are or reasonably indicate they are produced with forced or indentured labor.

Will post more if the ban goes through, and if you want to avoid your company facing a ban due to any future customs issues, contact experienced trade and compliance attorney David Hsu, we can audit the supply chain process prior to importation to ensure compliance, call 832-896-6288 or by email at attorney.dave@yahoo.com, dh@gjatradelaw.com.

CBP seizes toys without proper labels – won’t somebody think of the children?

August 2, 2019 By in compliance, Uncategorized Tags: , , , Leave a comment

ElfHatchingEggs

Image of the seized toys. Source: cbp.gov

According to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) media release, CBP officers at the Champlain Port of Entry seized a shipment of toys valued at $28,747 due to a lack of a required tracking label and lack of a General Certificate of Conformity as required by the Consumer Product Safety Act.

What is a General Certificate of Conformity (GCC)?

  1. A GCC is required for products made overseas or by a US manufacturer of a domestically produced good.
  2. The certificate reflects the results of a test of each product.
  3. An extensive list of all non-children’s products requiring a test can be found here.
  4. The GCC is accompanied with a shipment and manufacturers/importers must provide GCC to a distributor or retailer.
  5. If a manufacturer or importer sells direct to consumers, then no GCC is necessary.
  6. If you would like a Sample GCC form, please email me.
  7. A GCC does not need to be filed with the Government.
  8. Electronic certificates are okay, with some manufacturers and importers posting their certificates online.
  9. A GCC is required for EACH shipment.
  10. A GCC does not need to be signed.
  11. Failure to provide a GCC could lead to civil and criminal penalties.

If you have any questions or want to be in compliance with the GCC requirements, contact David Hsu at 832-896-6288 or by email at dh@gjatradelaw.com, attorney.dave@yahoo.com.

GitHub blocks developers in countries facing US trade sanctions.

July 28, 2019 By in compliance, ITAR, Uncategorized Tags: , , , Leave a comment

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GitHub (owned by Microsoft) is the world’s largest software development platform that provides hosting for software development version control using Git. It was acquired by Microsoft in 2018 for $7.5 billion and has recently started blocking developers in countries facing US trade sanctions.

For example, last week Github restricted the account of Anatoliy Kashkin, a 21-year-old Russian citizen who lives in Crimea. He was told his GitHub account had been restricted “due to US trade controls”.

The correspondence from GitHub advised Kashkin of GitHub’s US trade control policy – listing Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and Syria as countries facing US sanctions. In addition to his website now showing a 404 error, Kashkin also can’t access his previous work.

GitHub’s website does advise that “Users are responsible for ensuring that the content they develop and share on GitHub.com complies with the U.S. export control laws, including the EAR (Export Administration Regulations) and the US International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR)” and that “The cloud-hosted service offering available at Github.com has not been designed to host data subject to the ITAR and does not currently offer the ability to restrict repository access by country. If you are looking to collaborate on ITAR- or other export-controlled data, we recommend you consider GitHub Enterprise Server, GitHub’s on-premises offering.”

Besides banning accounts for individuals in Crimea, GitHub has also restricted developers in Iran.

If you want to ensure your company is in compliance with the Export Administration Regulations and the US International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), contact experienced compliance attorney David Hsu at 832-896-6288 or by email at dh@gjatradelaw.com, attorney.dave@yahoo.com.

“Ignorantia juris non excusat” and the need for export compliance in the wake of the Huawei ban.

July 2, 2019 By in compliance, Export, Huawei, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , Leave a comment

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Huawei’s surprise placement on the BIS Entity List highlights the crucial need for your company to have a compliance program in place.

Many people believe export compliance programs only apply to the big guys – however, even the smallest business that sends their products to customers outside of the country are subject to the various export regulations and the steep penalties for export violations. as the saying goes, Ignorantia juris non excusat or ignorantia legis neminem excusat (Latin for “ignorance of the law excuses not” and “ignorance of law excuses no one” respectively).

Small and medium sized company personnel may not know of these requirements until it is too late – fines for export violations can reach up to $1 million per violation in criminal cases and administrative cases can result in penalties amount to the greater of $250,000 or twice the value of the transaction. Criminal violators may even face up to 20 years in jail time and punishment for administrative cases can include denial of export privileges – it’s a risk you can’t afford to take.

Here are a few quick tips to protect your company –

  1. Be sure your exported items do not require an export license.
  2. Determine if the destination country requires an export license.
  3. Know your customers – screen who is buying your goods and be sure a restricted party does not receive your goods.
  4. Red flags – does the destination country of your product meet a need for your product?
  5. Be sure you have a copy of all the required documentation – it is not enough to hire a freight forwarder to handle the export.

For more information and a no obligation consultation on creating an export compliance program – contact experienced compliance attorney David Hsu at 832-896-6288 or by email at dh@gjatradelaw.com or attorney.dave@yahoo.com.