The U.S. government has announced significant increases to the maximum civil penalties for U.S. export controls and sanctions violations. The increases are required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (the FCPIA Act). Details of the penalty increases are described below and available in the Federal Register, Vol. 81, No. 109, 110, and 127. Additionally, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has…

Between December 2009 and June 2010, a Chinese national and H-1B visa holder working at Microwave Engineering Corporation, a U.S. company located in Massachusetts, (Microwave) was provided with technical data which otherwise would have required a license from the U.S. State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC).  Specifically, the technical data to which the Chinese national employee was provided access is a defense article that is controlled for export from the United States under…

The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) enforces the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. § 1324b, which prohibits the following employment-related conduct: (1) Discrimination in hiring, firing or recruiting based on someone’s real or perceived national origin, citizenship or immigration status; (2) “Document abuse” during the Form I-9 and E-Verify processes of employment eligibility verification, which includes requesting more or different documents based…