QUESTION – RETURN OF GOODS: I was managing repairs for a Russian air carrier and I still have aircraft articles from Russia in my inventory. Can I just return them to Russia?
There are new requirements that apply to this sort of transaction. Even though these requirements have not yet been published in the Federal Register, they are effective as of February 24. The new BIS requirements can be found online.
A license will typically be required for the return to Russia of anything in CCL Categories 3 through 9. Most aircraft articles fall into an ECCN in CCL categories 3 through 9 (for example, many aircraft articles are identified in ECCN 9A991, which is in CCL Category 9). Such articles are subject to the new licensing requirements. So this means that you typically cannot return the articles to a Russian airline unless you obtain a license.
There is currently a presumption of denial on Russia licenses under the new BIS rules, so you will need a compelling reason to be able to obtain a license.
Only certain special license exceptions can be used to overcome this licensing provision. 15 C.F.R. § 746.8(c). For the aviation industry, the most useful of these is typically AVS, which is for aircraft parts. SPOILER ALERT: You can’t use AVS to overcome the new Russia sanctions and send something to a Russian airline for use on their planes.
The new regulations permit reliance on the first two subsections of the AVS license exception (15 C.F.R. § 740.15(a) and (b)). AVS permits the export of aircraft parts for permanent use on an aircraft, when those parts are necessary for the proper operation of the aircraft (such as parts included on the type design). Typically, to use this AVS exception you need to know the destination aircraft. This license exception does not apply to an aircraft registered in, owned or controlled by, or under charter or lease to a country included in Country Group D:1, Cuba, or a national of any of these countries. Russia is found in country group D:1, so you cannot use AVS for a Russian-owned/controlled aircraft but you could potentially use it to support a non-Russian aircraft.
The licensing obligation also generally applies to Russia-destined re-exports (such as things that started in the US, and are now contemplated to be exported from a non-US country to Russia). Your actual fact pattern can complicate things so if this is a potential issue for you, then you should be asking a lawyer for advice on your specific facts.