Telework, Pandemic Delay BIS' Huawei Licensing Decisions

The Commerce Department Bureau of Industry and Security is experiencing significant delays to its Huawei licensing decisions due to telework amid the pandemic, BIS' Eileen Albanese said. Communication between agencies has been hampered, leading to lengthy license adjudications and a backlog of applications, Albanese, director of the Office of National Security and Technology Transfer Controls, told a Friday Massachusetts Export Center event. “COVID-19 really did have a significant impact on Huawei licenses, more so than any other group of licenses.” Kevin Wolf, an export controls lawyer with Akin Gump, said his clients have applications that have been “pending for months and months and months,” some to 2019. He said clients got a “flurry” of Huawei license denials. “It seemed as if the floodgates opened up" Thursday, he said. A BIS spokesperson said the agency is continuing to work through the applications. Huawei didn't comment Tuesday.