Treasury Sets Bizarre Maximum Per Diem of $179 for Travel to Cuba

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) today issued a final rule amending the Cuban Assets Control Regulations, 31 C.F.R. Part 515, to implement the President’s initiative of April 13, 2009 which allows travel to Cuba by those residing in the United States who have "close relatives" who are Cuban nationals.

Part 1: OFAC has eased restrictions on travel-related transactions for visits to “close relatives” who are nationals of Cuba by issuing a general license.

Travelers may visit “close relatives” (including, for example, aunts, uncles, cousins, and second cousins) who are nationals of Cuba.

There is no limit on the duration of a visit to these “close relatives.”

There is no limit on the frequency of visits to these “close relatives.”

Authorized expenditure limits for travel within Cuba have been increased to match the expenditures allowed for all other authorized categories of travel to Cuba — specifically, the current State Department “per diem rate” for Havana (for use anywhere in Cuba) plus amounts for additional transactions directly incident to visiting close relatives in Cuba. The current “maximum per diem rate” is $179.

Travelers may be accompanied by persons who share a common dwelling as a family with them.

Part 2: OFAC has also eased restrictions on remittances (including from inherited blocked accounts) to “close relatives” who are nationals of Cuba by issuing a general license.

Persons subject to the jurisdiction of the United States may send remittances to “close relatives” (including, as noted above, aunts, uncles, cousins, and second cousins) who are nationals of Cuba.

These amendments do not affect the prohibition on remittances to a “prohibited official of the Government of Cuba” or a “prohibited member of the Cuban Communist Party,” as defined in the CACR.

There is no limit on the amount of such a remittance.

There is no limit on the frequency with which persons subject to the jurisdiction of the United States may send such remittances.

Authorized family travelers may carry up to $3,000 of such remittances to Cuba.
Remittances for emigration-related purposes continue to be subject to separate restrictions.

Remittances may be made from depository institutions. To facilitate this, depository institutions are permitted to set up testing arrangements and exchange authenticator keys with Cuban financial institutions.

There are more loopholes between part 1 of the amended regs put out by the OFAC and tpart 2, that one wonders if the OFAC is even serious about these regs or just going through the motions. For example, the OFAC has set a maximum per diem on trips to Cuba of $179, but you are allowed to ship in advance any amount you want to any "close relative", and you are allowed to carry $3,000 to "close relatives", when you travel

Might conversations like this take place? "Hey Juan, I'm headed over to see you in Havana on the 9th.There is a limit as to how much I can carry myself, so I'm going to wire over some extra cash. Can you please pick this up for me at the bank?"

Am I missing something here, or are these regs totally bogus?