On Friday, October 7, 2016, President Obama delivered on a promise that he had made in September by signing an executive order terminating the economic and financial sanctions program on the country of Burma (Myanmar). The administration had signaled that sanctions would be lifted during the President’s meeting with state counselor Aung San Suu Kyi last month, in response to the democratic reforms that have been implemented in the country in recent years.
These actions serve to loosen most of the remaining restrictions on doing business with individuals or entities in Burma, and will further boost trade relations with a country that has been transitioning from decades of military rule. Still, those seeking business opportunities in Burma, including within the aviation industry, should continue to be mindful of their obligations to comply with other US export control laws and sanction programs that may continue to apply to Burmese entities.
The United States had gradually been loosening restrictions on doing business with individuals and entities in Burma since the middle of 2012. When it was first established in 1997, the Burma Sanctions Program had a relatively broad “country-wide” application. The sanctions generally prohibited any new investment by US persons or entities in the country, and included a country-wide importation ban. Burma also was found in 2003 to be a country of “primary money laundering concern” by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), which led to restrictions on US financial institutions maintaining correspondent accounts for Burmese banks.
