Law360, New York ( June 3, 2015, 10:19 AM EDT) -- At the beginning of 2015, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control significantly reduced restrictions on travel to and from Cuba as part of the United States' ongoing efforts to liberalize relations with the Caribbean island. OFAC has authorized Americans to travel to Cuba for a variety of purposes without the need to obtain prior approval from OFAC. Since January of this year, reports indicate that travel to Cuba from the United States is up by approximately 31 percent compared to the same period last year and even more Americans are traveling to Cuba via third countries (although the legality of such travel is not clear). This increase is not particularly surprising. While pure "tourist" travel to Cuba remains prohibited, the permitted categories of travel are relatively broad and give Americans who wish to visit Cuba a variety of options....