U.S. targets ASML tools
U.S. lawmakers are moving to ban exports of ASML immersion lithography machines to China, shifting policy focus from finished chips to the tools that make them. (wccftech.com). The proposed MATCH Act would further tighten those controls by explicitly restricting critical immersion equipment. (ico-optics.org). At the same time, licensing approvals are being slowed by stretched staffing at the Commerce Department, which could create short‑term friction even where rules are not yet changed. (timesofindia.indiatimes.com).
U.S. senators have introduced a bill to block more chipmaking gear from reaching China, aiming at the lithography tools ASML still sells there. (foreign.senate.gov) (reuters.com) The bill is the Multilateral Alignment of Technology Controls on Hardware Act, or MATCH Act, introduced on April 8 by Senators Jim Risch, Pete Ricketts, Andy Kim and Chuck Schumer, with Representative Michael Baumgartner leading a House companion. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee said the measure would tighten controls on “chokepoint” semiconductor manufacturing equipment and close servicing loopholes. (foreign.senate.gov) Lithography machines are the tools that print circuit patterns onto silicon wafers, like projecting a stencil onto a chip. The specific target is immersion deep ultraviolet equipment, an older but still powerful class of machine that Reuters reported Chinese chipmakers can still buy from ASML. (reuters.com) (cnbc.com) That focus marks a shift from restricting finished artificial intelligence chips to restricting the tools used to make them. Senator Andy Kim said on April 8 that “continuing to control advanced chips is critical,” but added that China also must not gain “the means to produce these technologies itself.” (foreign.senate.gov) The timing reflects how important China remains to ASML’s business even under existing controls. ASML said in its 2025 annual report that total net sales reached 32.7 billion euros, and Reuters reported China accounted for 33% of ASML’s sales in 2025 after a surge in demand for older systems. (asml.com) (reuters.com) ASML’s most advanced extreme ultraviolet machines are already off-limits to China, and Dutch export rules have also tightened shipments of some deep ultraviolet systems. The remaining opening has been immersion deep ultraviolet tools, which are less advanced than extreme ultraviolet machines but still central to making many high-performance chips. (cnbc.com) (reuters.com) The new push also lands as the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security is struggling to process export licenses. Bloomberg reported on April 10 that the bureau has lost dozens of experienced employees over the past year, with nearly 20% turnover among rulemaking and licensing staff and approvals stretching for several months. (bloomberg.com) That backlog matters because the Trump administration moved in January to let some advanced chips, including Nvidia H200 and Advanced Micro Devices MI325X products, be reviewed case by case for export to China. The Bureau of Industry and Security said those applications must meet security conditions, but slower staffing means even unchanged rules can still slow shipments. (bis.gov) (federalregister.gov) (bloomberg.com) ASML has said for months that export controls are reshaping demand, while U.S. lawmakers argue allied rules still leave gaps that foreign suppliers can fill. The next test is whether Congress can turn the MATCH Act into law before China’s customers, ASML and regulators adjust again. (foreign.senate.gov) (asml.com)
