The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued two new general licenses on last week to allow for the importation of certain Russian diamonds into the United States. These licenses come in response to the sanctions imposed on Russia in February 2024 due to its invasion of Ukraine.
General Licence No. 103 authorises the importation of diamond jewellery that was physically located outside of Russia before 1st March 2024. This licence aims to mitigate the impact of sanctions on legitimate businesses that had existing inventory of Russian diamond jewellery.
General Licence No. 104 authorises the importation of certain categories of diamonds, including non-industrial diamonds with a weight of 1.0 carat or greater (before 1st March 2024) and those with a weight of 0.5 carats or greater (before 1st September 2024).
These licences are intended to provide some flexibility while maintaining the overall sanctions regime against Russia. The Treasury Department has noted that these licenses do not authorise any transactions that are otherwise prohibited under U.S. law.