There will be “minimum disruption” to the export licensing process for exporters in the United Kingdom, which expects to continue processing license applications amid the coronavirus pandemic response, according to a March 20 notice from the U.K.’s Export Control Joint Unit. Processing “strategic” export license applications has been “identified as a business-critical operation” by the Department for International Trade, the ECJU said, adding that it recognizes authorizations for dual-use and military exports are “essential.” In addition, as more of the industry works from home, the ECJU clarified that there are “no export license compliance issues” with industry accessing U.K. “export control regulated data” from home using a company computer. Users will continue to receive communications and license decisions from SPIRE, the U.K.’s online export licensing system, in the “normal way,” the notice said.

The European Union published its common military list, detailing rules governing exports of military technology and equipment, according to a March 13 EU Journal notice. The list updates the previous version adopted by the EU in 2019. Among the changes are new controls over software “designed or modified for the conduct of military offensive cyber operations,” according to a March 20 Baker McKenzie blog post.

A bill introduced in the United Kingdom Parliament would outline its independent trade policy after Brexit, according to a March 19 notice from the U.K.’s Department for International Trade. The bill provides information on government procurement, the implementation methods of its trade continuity agreements, its trade remedies -- including the establishment of a new independent U.K. body, the Trade Remedies Authority -- and trade data collection and sharing. The U.K. clarified that the trade bill will not take authority away from any U.K. agencies in charge of trade, and can only be used to “implement non-tariff elements of transitionally adopted trade agreements.”

The European Commission published a draft legal text for a future agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom, detailing a range of trade issues including rules of origin, sanitary issues, technical barriers, customs facilitation and more, the commission said in a March 18 notice. Although negotiations scheduled in London this week were canceled due to the coronavirus response measures, both sides are “exploring alternative ways to continue discussions,” including video conferences, the commission said. It added that “substantive work on the legal texts” will continue in the coming weeks.

The United Kingdom’s Department for International Trade updated its trade and investment core statistics book with new information on U.K. exports, imports, the trade balance, foreign direct investment and more, according to a March 18 notice. The statistics provide the “most up to date snapshot of the UK’s trade and investment position,” the notice said.

Denmark will postpone payment deadlines for certain value-added tax payments for companies impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a March 17 KPMG post. The measure, which was passed March 17, will allow companies to defer a combined $24 billion worth of payments of taxes and VATs, KPMG said. Denmark postponed the VAT payment deadline for “monthly settlement” companies for 30 days for March, April and May, KPMG said, but VAT for the “whole of 2020 must be stated by” March 1, 2021.

The United Kingdom’s exports grew by multiple percentage points in 2019 as global demand for U.K. goods is increasingly coming from countries outside the European Union, according to new statistics released March 17 by the U.K. Revenue and Customs department. The U.K. Department for International Trade said exports from England grew 2%, exports from Scotland grew nearly 4.5%, exports from Wales grew 3%, and exports from Northern Ireland grew about 2%, according to a March 17 notice.

Germany updated its recent export ban on medical protective equipment used to prevent “infectious diseases,” the country said in a March 12 notice, according to an unofficial translation. The export ban applies to goods such as “protective goggles, respiratory masks, protective coats, protective suits and gloves” in an effort to ensure the country has adequate supplies during the coronavirus outbreak. Export exceptions are only available “under strict conditions,” the country said.

European Union Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan, who was scheduled to give a speech in Washington next week, canceled his trip because of the coronavirus pandemic, a spokesman said. The groups that had invited him to speak canceled the events. The cancelation was made before Trump announced that non-citizens and non-green card holders would not be allowed to fly between the EU countries that have open borders and the U.S. That ban does not cover Ireland, Hogan's home country, but does cover Belgium, where the EU has its headquarters.

Italy will transfer responsibilities for dual-use export license requests and export control policies from its Ministry of Economic Development to its Ministry of Foreign Affairs Munitions Licensing Unit (UAMA) after June 30, according to a March 9 post from the European Union Sanctions blog. Beginning July 1, export control responsibilities will “be divided between the ministries” or “transfer entirely to UAMA,” the post said.