Chapter News, Trade & TTIP Related

Next Round of TTIP Negotiations Announced

The office of the United States Trade Representative officially announced that the 11th round of TTIP negotiations will take place in Miami from October 19th to October 23rd. As part of the negotiations, representatives will also hold a Stakeholders' Forum to allow interested groups to provide commentary and suggestions about the negotiations. Courtesy of the Atlantic Council

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Member News

USCIS Will Begin Accepting Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions for Fiscal Year 2017 on April 1, 2016

The filing period for new H-1B petitions to be counted against the annual H-1B quota (or H-1B cap) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 will begin on Friday, April 1, 2016. Cap-subject H-1B petitions will have an employment start date of October 1, 2016 or later. In preparation for the opening of the FY 2017 H-1B filing period, employers are strongly encouraged to begin identifying current and future employees who will need H-1B visa status to be legally employed in the United...

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Member News

What Does the European Court of Justice’s Invalidation of the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework Mean For U.S.-Based Multinational Employers?

In a landmark decision that will dramatically affect thousands of U.S. companies that transfer personal data from the European Union ("EU") to the United States, the European Union Court of Justice ("ECJ") yesterday invalidated the Safe Harbor Framework, which had permitted U.S. companies to comply with EU restrictions on the transfer of personal data outside the EU.    More than 4,000 companies, primarily U.S.-based multinationals, currently rely on the Framework, an agreement forged years ago between the U.S. Department of Commerce...

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Trade & TTIP Related

EU SECTORS TRIVIA

What is the EU protecting with its “Protected Designation of Origin” and its “Protected Geographical Indicator” labels? Protected Designations of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indicators (PGI) represent a rich tradition and history of local and specialized agricultural production. Various regions are home to famous food and beverage products that bear names symbolizing their authentic agricultural origins. And these names often represent centuries of respected culinary practices, agrarian traditions, and local expertise. Protected products may also be linked to a specific...

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Chapter News

October is Cybersecurity Month in the EU

Stop. Think. Connect. Cybersecurity is a shared responsibility! The EU’s month-long campaign to promote cybersecurity (#ECSM ) starts with these buzzwords. More than 100 events and activities organized in 25 countries aim to reach and educate citizens and communities about the risks and benefits of online communications and transactions and to share best practices for averting security breaches. “Raising awareness of the risks and threats, as well as the fact that cybersecurity is a shared responsibility,” are the cybersecurity campaign’s main objectives,” according to European...

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Chapter News

ECB President Draghi Receives Global Citizen Award

On October 1, Mario Draghi, President of the European Central Bank, was awarded the Atlantic Council’s 2015 Global Citizen Award. IMF head Christine Lagarde presented the award to Draghi at a ceremony in New York, and said he had “moved Europe in the direction of stability”. Draghi was one of four prominent individuals recognized as having made exceptional and distinctive contributions to strengthening the transatlantic relationship. In his speech, President Draghi spoke about the importance of the European Union to the global economy and...

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Chapter News

First Vice-President Timmermans and Commissioner Jourová’s press conference on Safe Harbour following the Court ruling in case C-362/14 (Schrems)

Speaking points of First Vice-President Timmermans and Commissioner Jourová First Vice-President Timmermans and Commissioner Jourová 's press conference on Safe Harbour following the Court ruling in case C-362/14 (Schrems) First Vice-President Frans Timmermans : Today's judgment by the Court is an important step towards upholding Europeans' fundamental rights to data protection. The Court confirms the need of having robust data protection safeguards in place before transferring citizens' data. I see this as a confirmation of the European Commission's approach for the renegotiation of...

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Chapter News

Remarks by J. Dijsselbloem following today’s Eurogroup meeting

Good evening and welcome to this press conference. We had a Regular Eurogroup, and a agenda which goes through issues of growth and competitiveness as always. First let me fill you in on Greece. We took stock of the latest developments. Of course we welcomed the swift formation of the new government. And welcomed the strong commitment of the Greek authorities to implement the programme. A lot of work remains to be done in the coming months. So it is very...

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Chapter News

Fighting Tax Avoidance: Commissioner Moscovici welcomes final adoption of international tax reform package

Pierre Moscovici, Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs, has welcomed the final package of Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) measures that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) adopted today. The BEPS package sets out a new international approach to corporate tax reform, aimed at preventing corporate tax avoidance and re-aligning taxation to the place of real economic activity. "The OECD has done impressive work to help countries around the world find common solutions to common...

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Member News

Is the Safe Harbor Framework Still Safe?

On October 6, 2015, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) will issue its decision in the Schrems case which may invalidate the U.S. Safe Harbor Framework. The Safe Harbor Framework permits U.S. companies to transfer personal data regarding their E.U. employees and customers to the U.S. in compliance with E.U. data protection requirements. The case involves a legal challenge brought by Austrian national, Max Schrems, against Facebook regarding Facebook’s transfer of personal data from the E.U. to the U.S. under...

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