US is further tightening Huawei chip restrictions by blocking deals with third parties

The US government has tightened rules that should make it more difficult for Huawei to get chips made on the basis of American technology. The tightening is intended to block circumvention of previous rules via third companies.

The tightened rules are according to US Secretary of State Wilbur Ross intended to prevent Huawei from still gaining access to American technology. According to the US Department, there was a loophole in the rules that were implemented in May, whereby Huawei could still obtain chips made or developed with American software or technology through third parties. Transactions in which Huawei, in any capacity, attempts to obtain chip technology based on US software or technology are prohibited.

In addition, the US has added 38 new Huawei companies from 21 countries to the Entity List. This is an economic blacklist that now has 152 different companies on it because of this recent addition. US companies are not allowed to trade with these companies. According to the US, there is a risk that Huawei may be involved in activities that go against the country’s national security or foreign policy.

The Temporary General License has now also come to an end, which has been valid for a period of ninety days since 20 May. This has not been and will not be extended. This arrangement was an exception to the trade ban with Huawei, which meant, among other things, that services could continue to function normally on Huawei smartphones. Now that this exclusion period is over, Google and other developers are no longer allowed to make updates to Huawei phones, such as new Android versions.