More restrictions for chip machine exportations for Dutch companies ASML and ASMI

Rules for the export of chip production equipment will once again be tightened, the Minister of Foreign Trade, Reinette Klever, has said. She added that this only concerns “a very limited amount of technology and goods.” This includes specific measuring and inspection equipment.

Only a small number of companies in the Netherlands are active when it comes to this. Two of these companies are ASML and ASMI. There have been new Dutch restrictions for the exportation of certain chip manufacturing machines from ASML from Veldhoven since September 2023. The new export control measure will come into effect on April 1.

“We see more safety risks when it comes to uncontrolled exports of this specific equipment,” said Minister Klever about the reasoning for this change. The equipment in question, combined with other technologies, can enable a country to produce advanced semiconductors that are important for military applications.

Past measures were mainly aimed at China. They came after the United States government had put pressure on the Netherlands to do so. They were very concerned about the economic and military power of Beijing. The US implemented plans to restrict the exportation of chips used for artificial intelligence from last Monday.

“The semiconductor industry is international. The Netherlands plays a unique role in this. It is important that we do not disturb the chip manufacturing industry unnecessarily. This is why we worked as precisely as possible with this export control measure,” Klever said in a statement.

China has responded to the news by expressing its "great concern" to the Netherlands about the new restrictions, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce reported on its website. The Chinese government added that it believes that abuse of export controls threatens the global supply chain for semiconductors.

China said it hoped that the Netherlands, as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), would respect market principles and protect the rights and interests of companies from all countries, including Chinese and Dutch companies. It also noted that it hoped that the Netherlands would maintain the stability of the supply chain in the global semiconductor industry.

The tightening of export rules for high-value equipment is in line with a change in the export policies for chip technology implemented by the United States on December 2.

In addition to restrictions on the export to China of chips that are important for AI applications, it also concerned software and equipment for making semiconductors.

ASML said in December that the American measures have had an effect on sales. They probably contributed to the fact that the turnover in China amounts to about a fifth of the annual turnover of 2025, where China still accounted for almost half of all turnover in the second and third quarters of last year.

A spokeswoman now reported that the Dutch changes will probably not have an additional effect on ASML's sales figures.