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ARTICLE · 18 JUNE 2026

‘Enforcement Pause’ Has Limits: BIS Clarifies Ongoing License Requirement for Advanced Computing Items to China-Linked Entities

Greenberg Traurig
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The U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security has issued new guidance clarifying export license requirements for advanced computing items destined for entities with ties to China and Macau. This clarification addresses widespread industry confusion following the non-enforcement announcement of the AI Diffusion Rule and reinforces licensing obligations that have been in place since November 2023.

United StatesInternational Law

On May 31, 2026, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issued guidance (May 2026 Guidance) clarifying that a BIS export license is required to export advanced computing items to entities headquartered in Country Group D:5 (which includes China) or Macau, or whose ultimate parent company is headquartered in Country Group D:5 or Macau, even if the entity receiving the items is physically located outside those jurisdictions. This BIS export license requirement was first established in November 2023 and remains fully in force, notwithstanding BIS’s May 2025 announcement that it would not enforce certain new compliance requirements introduced by the January 2025 “Framework for Artificial Intelligence Diffusion” rule (AI Diffusion Rule).

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