According to reports on September 9th, the US government is considering changing the equipment import licenses for Samsung and SK Hynix's Chinese wafer fabrication facilities to annual licenses. This modification would significantly increase regulatory complexity but would at least maintain continuity in fab operations.

Previously, Samsung and SK Hynix enjoyed Verified End User (VEU) status, which enabled them to obtain comprehensive approval for importing restricted fab equipment based on prior compliance with US measures, greatly simplifying operational processes. These licenses are set to expire at the end of this year.

Recent reports indicated that the US had already removed Intel, SK Hynix, and Samsung from the VEU program. The US Commerce Department has recently proposed a "site license" model to Korean officials as a replacement for VEU status. Under this model, Samsung and SK Hynix would need to apply annually for licenses covering a fixed set of equipment and materials, with quantities specified in advance.

The relevant US restrictions cover American tools used for manufacturing FinFET transistor logic chips at 16nm and more advanced nodes, DRAM with 18nm half-pitch, and 3D NAND flash memory with 128 layers and above. These restrictions began in 2022, with Intel, Samsung, SK Hynix, and TSMC previously receiving exemptions to streamline their Chinese fab operations.