The US government has announced new rules allowing the import of certain diamond jewelry and loose diamonds from Russian sources, but only if these items were purchased before this year’s sanctions took effect.
On Friday, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued two licenses clarifying the rules for “grandfathered” goods. This includes rough or polished diamonds of Russian or unknown origin bought before the sanctions were imposed on March 1.
The previous regulations only addressed diamonds purchased after March 1 and did not cover items already en route to the US, such as those sent to India for cutting and polishing.
General License No. 103 permits the import of diamond jewelry that was physically outside Russia before March 1, 2024. However, this does not exempt importers from existing reporting requirements.
General License No. 104 applies to nonindustrial loose diamonds. Diamonds of 1 carat or more, located outside Russia before March 1, are allowed. For diamonds between 0.50 and 1 carat, the cutoff date is September 1.
The government did not specify if proof of the goods’ locations on the relevant dates would be required.
These updated guidelines address some ambiguities in the initial sanctions from March 1. Currently, US sanctions bar the import of Russian-origin diamonds of 1 carat or more, including those substantially transformed in other countries. The rules will expand on September 1 to cover diamonds of 0.50 carats and above.
