The 2020 Chinese export control law: a new compliance nightmare on the foreign trade law horizon?

Abstract

On 1 December 2020, the Export Control Law of the People’s Republic of China entered into force. The PRC’s first comprehensive piece of legislation on export control had been passed by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on 17 October 2020 after a three-year legislative process. Regarded as one of the PRC’s key responses in the engulfing China-United States trade dispute, the law has attracted wide public attention. It has been described as “a new flashpoint in EU-China relations” posing “substantial challenges for European companies”. The compliance costs of European companies who have a direct or indirect trade relationship with China will likely increase as a consequence of the ECL and so does the legal uncertainty involved in doing business in and with China. The essay will examine the ECL’s background (1) as well as its legislative approach and key provisions (2). It will then attempt to gauge the ECL’s immediate impacts and project its potential future developments (3).