If you are in aviation - commercial or private - there are potential new business opportunities in Cuba. The American government and the Republic of Cuba last sat at the negotiation table to discuss Air Transportation agreements in
1957, as parties to the Convention on International Civil Aviation. Nearly sixty years later, on February 16, 2016, the United States government and Cuba entered into an aviation agreement, the U.S.-Cuba Memorandum of Understanding of February 16, 2016, and intend to apply the basis of comity and reciprocity of the agreement.
Immediately after, Anthony Foxx, U.S. Transportation Secretary, Charles Rivkin, Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs, Adel Yzquierdo Rodriguez, Cuban Minister of Transportation and Colonel Alfredo Cordero Puig, President of the Cuban Civil Aviation Institute (IACC), Ministry of Transportation signed the agreement, the
U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) encouraged U.S. air carriers to apply for licensing and authorization to offer flights to Cuba.
While
there have been no scheduled flights between the United States and Cuba for over half a century, this agreement grants permission to American and Cuban airlines, cargo and passenger aircrafts, to perform scheduled and charter services between American and Cuban ports for the purposes of international air transportation.
At the outset, countries are able to operate flights to and from the other country (one-way or round-trip flights); combine different flight numbers; make layovers outside of the U.S. or Cuba or within either country, amongst other permissions.
Interestingly enough, this agreement offers flexibility to the airline companies with regard to regulation compliance. The agreement states that an airline should have the option to comply with the rules of its homeland or of the other country. But if an airline should opt for its homeland regulations, the other country must subject the airline to the least restrictive criterion it has in place. The clock is now ticking for international airlines to apply for route licenses and and flight frequencies from the U.S. to Cuba and vice-versa.
What does this agreement mean for commercial flights to Cuba?
Once the international airline company is permitted to travel to Cuba, they may offer up to twenty (20) daily scheduled round-trip flights to and from Havana. Scheduled services to the nine (9) other Cuban destinations are limited up to ten (10) daily round-trip flights, for a total of 110 daily roundtrip flights.
What does this mean for private or charter aviation companies?
Charter Services to any Cuban destination are not limited in the amount of round-trip flights to the island, so long as Cuban regulations permit such charters to land on its territory.
The time to apply is now!
Applications are due March 2, 2016. If you are interested in submitting an application, Diaz Trade Law can assure compliance with the application requirements. Contact us at info@diaztradelaw.com to help you through the process.
BIG news for cigar and rum lovers… As of Monday, October 17, 2016, persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction are now able to return home from Cuba (or any other country where Cuban rum and cigars can legally be purchased) with an unlimited amount of rum and cigars. However, the number of cigars and amount rum must be for personal use and such merchandise must be imported as accompanied baggage and are subject to the normal limits on duty and tax exemptions. This is a huge step forward from OFAC’s initial limit of $400 or less (with no more than $100 of such merchandise consisting of alcohol or tobacco products). (Section 515.560(c)(3)).
If you have been following our Cuba updates, you'll note we've been busy. A full listing of all of our posts to get you caught up are all the way at the bottom. Here's the Cliff Notes version:
If you are in aviation - commercial or private - there are potential new business opportunities in Cuba. The American government and the Republic of Cuba last sat at the negotiation table to discuss Air Transportation agreements in 1957, as parties to the Convention on International Civil Aviation. Nearly sixty years later, on February 16, 2016, the United States government and Cuba entered into an aviation agreement, the U.S.-Cuba Memorandum of Understanding of February 16, 2016, and intend to apply the basis of comity and reciprocity of the agreement.
Today, a final rule, opening U.S. trade with Cuba, was published in the Federal Register by the U.S. Treasury Department, Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). Through this Federal Register notice, OFAC has amended its Cuban Assets Control Regulations and the BIS has amended the Export Administration Regulations with a “Support for the Cuban People” license exception. This final rule is effective today, with proposed rulemaking, opportunity for public participation, and delay in effective date deemed inapplicable because this regulation involves a foreign affairs function of the U.S.
International travelers often contact me with the same distraught face as the man pictured to my left, after their money is confiscated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as a result of not properly declaring currency on hand. Declaration Form 6059B will look familiar to all international travelers as you fill it out when entering the U.S. Many times, the rationale for seizure is that parties traveling together split their currency, and even though together they have over the $10,000 minimum, the travelers advise they are each carrying less then the $10,000 minimum requirement for reporting (in question 13 of Form 6059B), resulting in ALL of the currency on hand being seized. Recently, CBP seized $82,000 of currency, and arrested the female driver, after discovering three packages of bulk currency hidden within a vehicle as a female driver attempted to exit the U.S. and enter Mexico. During this holiday season, this post will tell you what you need to know to assure it's NOT YOU that has their currency seized when traveling internationally! 
