On October 16, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) announced that exporters can request six-month extensions of export licenses that are set to expire on or before December 31, 2020. According to BIS, this is being done to “cut[] red tape and mak[e] it easier for exporters to drive our Nation’s economic recovery in the wake of the pandemic.”
Exporters can request the extension by emailing LicenseExtensionRequest@bis.doc.gov. The original license will be reviewed and an extension will be granted in most cases. BIS estimates a turn-around period of 2-3 business days for a majority of license extension requests. BIS issued this press release announcing this licensing policy.
The author acknowledges the assistance of Ryan Orange on this blog post.