Insights · Forced labour
Xinjiang-related forced labour risks in the supply chain: the UFLPA, the Entity List and the 2022 OHCHR assessment
What this is about
For companies that supply the United States directly or through customers, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA, Public Law 117-78) is a key checkpoint. The Act builds on the import ban on goods made with forced labour in Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307) and tightens its application to goods linked to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) of the People's Republic of China. This post sets out the legal position in the United States and the findings of the UN Human Rights Office.
The rebuttable presumption
Since 21 June 2022, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has applied a rebuttable presumption under Section 3 UFLPA. It covers goods mined, produced or manufactured wholly or in part in the XUAR, as well as goods produced by entities on the UFLPA Entity List. For these goods, importation is presumed to be prohibited under 19 U.S.C. 1307.
The presumption does not apply only if the CBP Commissioner determines that the importer of record has
- fully complied with the guidance for importers under Section 2(d)(6) UFLPA,
- completely and substantively responded to all of CBP's requests for information, and
- shown by clear and convincing evidence that the goods were not mined, produced or manufactured wholly or in part by forced labour.
CBP must report each such exception to Congress within 30 days and make the report public. The guidance under Section 2(d)(6) covers due diligence, supply chain tracing and the type of evidence showing that goods do not originate in the XUAR or were not made with forced labour.
The UFLPA Entity List
The list is maintained by the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF), chaired by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). It consolidates four sub-lists required by the Act, including entities in the XUAR that produce with forced labour, entities working with the XUAR government on labour transfers, and entities sourcing material from the XUAR under government labour schemes. According to the FLETF, the list should not be read as exhaustive.
The most recent update at the time of writing was published in the Federal Register on 3 August 2026. It added 43 entities, four of them to the sub-list on labour transfers and 41 to the sub-list on sourcing under government labour schemes; two entities appear on both. Two existing entries were also technically corrected. Changes to the list are decided by majority vote of the FLETF member agencies. Listed entities may ask the FLETF for removal and must show that they do not, or no longer, meet the criteria.
High-priority sectors
In the UFLPA Strategy of 17 June 2022 and its updates, the FLETF identifies high-priority sectors for enforcement. Under the most recent update of 19 August 2025, these are aluminium, apparel, cotton and cotton products, PVC, seafood, silica-based products including polysilicon, and tomatoes and downstream products. Added in 2025 were caustic soda, copper, jujubes, lithium and steel. According to the FLETF, the sectors are meant to provide transparency to importers and signal that the supply chains concerned should be scrutinised as a priority.
The OHCHR assessment of 31 August 2022
On 31 August 2022, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) published its "Assessment of human rights concerns in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region". It states, among other things:
- There are indications that labour and employment schemes, including those linked to the so-called vocational education and training centres, appear to be discriminatory in nature or effect and to involve elements of coercion, requiring transparent clarification by the Government.
- The extent of arbitrary and discriminatory detention of members of Uyghur and other predominantly Muslim groups may constitute international crimes, in particular crimes against humanity.
The OHCHR calls on businesses to meet their responsibility under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, including through enhanced human rights due diligence, and to report on this transparently. The response of the Chinese Government is annexed to the assessment at its request.
What companies typically review
- Do goods reach the United States directly or via customers, and do any upstream suppliers appear on the current Entity List?
- Do sourcing categories fall within a high-priority sector, and can the origin of inputs be documented down to raw material level?
- Is there evidence meeting the requirements of Section 2(d)(6) UFLPA that can be produced on request?
In the EU, Regulation (EU) 2024/3015 on prohibiting products made with forced labour on the Union market applies from 14 December 2027. The Commission's guidelines on its application were published in the Official Journal on 3 September 2026.
This post provides a general overview of the legal position and does not replace legal advice on individual cases.