As announced earlier this month the United States Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has updated the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) to include some changes involving travel restrictions, remittances, telecommunications, agricultural and medical products, and gifts/humanitarian donations. Last week I posted on the changes to the travel restrictions. Today I would like to shed a little light on the effect the changes have for telecommunications.

There are four major changes in which the update significantly impacts telecommunications and Cuba. These changes are:

1. Telecommunications providers’ personnel are now authorized to travel to Cuba for multiple business purposes;

2. Specific licenses will now be issued to facilitate the communction between the Cuba and the U.S. through telecommunication links between third countries and Cuba;

3. The update now makes establishing telecommunications links between the U.S. and Cuba easier by provides a general license for transactions required to establish such links;

4. U.S. telecom providers can now enter into roaming agreements with providers in Cuba and make payments in relation to those agreements.

The general licenses which are part of the update, while vastly easing the restrictions on telecommunications in relation to Cuba, still require certain reporting. These reporting requirements include the need for filing notifications regarding the establishment or termination of service, and annual reporting on all activity. Moreover, exportation of telecommunications equipment to Cuba still requires an export license from the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security.

Undoubtedly the easing of the sanctions will have a dramatic effect on U.S.-Cuba relations, particularly from a business standpoint. However, while the sanctions have been relaxed and it looks likely that more changes will be forthcoming, there are still a number of concerns a U.S. person or entity should have when dealing with Cuba. Given the complex nature of U.S. sanctions law in regards to Cuba, seeking out an attorney well versed in this area is your best bet.