President Biden Signs Executive Order Banning Imports of Russian Oil and Gas into the US | Practical Law

President Biden Signs Executive Order Banning Imports of Russian Oil and Gas into the US | Practical Law

On March 8, 2022, President Biden signed an Executive Order (EO) prohibiting the importation of Russian oil and gas into the US.

President Biden Signs Executive Order Banning Imports of Russian Oil and Gas into the US

by Practical Law Commercial Transactions
Published on 08 Mar 2022 • USA (National/Federal)
On March 8, 2022, President Biden signed an Executive Order (EO) prohibiting the importation of Russian oil and gas into the US.
On March 8, 2022, President Biden signed an Executive Order (EO) prohibiting the importation of the following Russian-origin products into the US:
  • Crude oil.
  • Petroleum.
  • Petroleum fuels, oils, and products of their distillation.
  • Liquified natural gas.
  • Coal.
  • Coal products.
The Executive Order also prohibits US persons (wherever located) from:
  • Making new investments in Russia’s energy sector.
  • Approving, financing, or guaranteeing transactions by foreign persons where such transaction would be prohibited by the Executive Order if performed by a US person or within the US.
In connection with the Executive Order, the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued a General License authorizing (until April 22, 2022) transactions that are ordinarily incident and necessary to the importation of these Russian-origin products into the US under written agreements entered into before March 8, 2022. OFAC also issued new and updated Frequently Asked Questions related to the Executive Order (see OFAC: Issuance of new Russia-related Executive Order and related General License 16; Publication of new and amended Frequently Asked Questions).
The Executive Order, which is based on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) (50 U.S.C. § 1701) and other legal authorities, essentially cuts off US imports of oil and petroleum products from Russia, which previously accounted for less than 10% of total US imports of these products (with Russian crude oil accounting for only about 3%). The European Union has not announced a similar import ban, but the United Kingdom stated that it would phase out Russian oil imports by the end of 2022.
The US oil and gas ban is the latest economic sanction that the US government has placed on Russia. For more information on these developments, see Practice Note, US Sanctions and Export Controls on Russia in Response to Ukraine Crisis: Tracker. For legal updates, see: