US Treasury Department excludes Venezuela from the list of countries subject to investment controls

He United States Department of the Treasury excluded Venezuela from the list of countries considered of concern for controls on certain US investments abroad. The measure was known through a regulation proposal published this Thursday and reported by the Reuters news agency.

The Treasury justified Venezuela’s departure by pointing out that Nicolás Maduro’s government “no longer exists” after its capture by US forces last January. The organization added that the current administration, headed by interim president Delcy Rodríguez, does not meet the risk criteria contemplated under the Comprehensive National Security Law for Investments Abroad.

However, the Department clarified that The proposed rule could still apply to certain specific investments in Venezuelan entities, without delving into details.

Passed by the US Congress in December 2025, the COINS Act marked a significant expansion of controls on US investments abroad, requiring US companies and individuals to notify the Treasury Department of certain investment plans and outright prohibiting them in other cases to avoid harm to US national security.

The new Treasury proposal establishes controls on investments linked to six technology sectors: advanced semiconductors and microelectronics, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, high-performance computing, hypersonic systems and biotechnology.

Points out that certain advanced biotechnologies could pose a serious risk to national security, citing the proliferation of biological weapons, the development of brain-computer interfaces and damage to the security of the US supply chain.

However, it allows certain exceptions, including investments in publicly traded companies and transactions valued at less than $50,000. The proposal would also allow investors to request exemptions for transactions deemed to be in the national interest of the United States.

According to what was reported by Reuters, the US Treasury will keep the period open for receiving public comments on this proposal until December 7.

The Treasury Department said the proposed rules would not prohibit all investments in countries considered problematic. Instead, they would focus on specific investments in entities that use dual-use technologies that benefit military programs, surveillance states and countries with human rights violations.

The exclusion of Venezuela from this list corresponds specifically to the foreign investment control program and does not imply, in itself, the elimination of other US sanctions in force against the country.