The US Department of the Treasury presented on Thursday (22) a proposal to broaden restrictions on American investments in sensitive technologies in China and in other countries considered adversaries. The change provides for a broader ban on investments in artificial intelligence and adds biotechnology to the sectors subject to restrictions.
The proposal regulates the National Security Overseas Investment Act (COINS Act), approved by Congress in December 2025. The text expands the American outbound investment control program, in force since January 2025, and also covers transactions involving entities linked to Russia, Iran, North Korea and Cuba.
In artificial intelligence, the main change lies in the scope of the veto. Current rules distinguish prohibited investments from transactions that require only notification to the Treasury, depending on the characteristics of the systems developed. The proposal would eliminate this distinction for covered transactions involving companies in the targeted countries that develop AI systems, subjecting these transactions to the prohibition.
The expansion also includes advanced semiconductors, high-bandwidth memory (HBM), quantum technologies, supercomputing and hypersonic systems.
In biotechnology, the Treasury proposes restricting investments in certain activities related to brain-computer interfaces, biological compounds, bioinformatics, biological manufacturing and automated scientific discovery systems.
According to the agency, these technologies can contribute to the military, intelligence and surveillance capabilities of the countries covered by the restrictions.
US$ 50,000 limit does not authorize prohibited investments
One of the most relevant points of the document is the creation of an exception for lower-value transactions.
Under the proposal, transactions that do not exceed US$ 50,000 cumulatively over the previous 12 months would be exempt from the obligation to notify the Treasury. This exception, however, applies exclusively to the notification requirement.
Investments classified as prohibited would remain subject to the veto regardless of the amount. Therefore, the limit does not serve as authorization for small investments in restricted technologies.
The text also provides for exceptions for certain investments in publicly traded shares, investment funds and specific financial transactions. Investments subject to notification must be reported to the Treasury within 30 days after their completion.
The changes are not yet in effect. The US government will receive public comments until December 7, 2026 and will later publish the final version of the regulation, which will establish its effective date. Until then, the existing rules remain applicable.
