The European Commission this week updated its Russia-related sanctions frequently asked questions, including guidance on the restrictions that apply to people and companies providing services to Russia. The updated FAQs cover how sanctions apply in the context of aggregate ownership (page 25); firewalls, which stop a sanctioned person from exercising control over a non-sanctioned EU company, allowing that company to continue normal business operations (page 39); and how sanctions apply to services provided as an employee of an EU mother company to a Russian subsidiary (page 349).

The U.K.’s trade agency this week released a list of products that companies are asking the government to make subject to new import duty suspensions. The list describes more than 180 duty suspension applications that the government has received for a range of products, including parts used for batteries, various metals and agricultural and food products. The U.K. said “the previous government invited stakeholders to apply for new suspensions” from May to July, and it plans to “confirm the outcome of all applications received in due course.”

An upcoming digital service being prepared by the U.K. government is expected to modernize and simplify duty payments for alcohol trade, according to the Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade, a U.K. trade association.

Traders may be encountering electronic export licensing issues due to “temporary” problems affecting data flows between the country’s Custom Declaration Service and the Department for Business and Trade’s electronic licensing systems, including SPIRE and LITE, the U.K. said in an Aug. 23 guidance notice.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank's "Trade Guys" podcast said that the EU's tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles (see 408200020) "is sort of a preview of coming attractions."

Risk advisory firm Kharon said it has recently identified “numerous cases” of European companies directly and indirectly sending dual-use items to Russia, including through logistics firms based in the Baltic region and the United Arab Emirates.

The European Commission is cutting planned countervailing duties on Tesla vehicles imported from China by more than 10% and slightly lowering CVD on other EVs made by Chinese companies, it announced in draft definitive findings released Aug. 20.

The U.K. recently updated its export control guidance for academic research, adding new language to clarify how controls apply to research meant for publication or that benefit from “public domain exemptions.” The guidance specifies that research isn’t considered in the public domain until it’s “published and accessible to the public,” so sending “controlled” research overseas for peer review would require a license. “Once published the requirement of the licence will lapse as it is now in the public domain,” the U.K. said.

The U.K. last week expanded the criteria under which an individual or entity can be sanctioned under the nation's Russia sanctions regime. The changes entered into force July 31. The U.K. may now sanction an individual who directly or indirectly "owns or controls" or is "working as a director (whether executive or non-executive), trustee, or other manager or equivalent of," a sanctioned individual or entity. An individual also can be sanctioned for providing financial services to a sanctioned party. The sanctions amendment also altered the "ship specification criteria" to "specify additional activities" for which a ship may be affected.

The U.K. on Aug. 5 amended a Russia sanctions license allowing designated parties to make certain payments to British billing authorities. The update added a permission to the list of permitted payments, allowing for the payment of fees "owed by or due from UK" sanctioned parties to the billing authorities for "Business Improvement District levies."