OFSI Issues New General Licence on Government Debt Payments and Guidance on Preventing Russian Export control and Sanctions Evasion

18 Oct 2024, 37 mins ago

On 14 October, OFSI published a new General Licence INT/2024/5294388 (“the Licence”) and Notice on Government Debt Payments.

The UK Government Debt includes all securities issued by or on behalf of HM Government in relation to the money borrowed by the UK Government.  The Licence allows non-sanctioned individuals or a body, corporate or unincorporate, to make or facilitate payments in respect of UK Government Debt where either the legal holder or the direct or indirect recipient or beneficiary of that payment is a UK designated person. The payment should be kept on a frozen account. The licence is of an indefinite duration, but OFSI may vary, revoke or suspend this licence at any time.

On 15 October, the UK Government published an updated guidance on Preventing Russian export control and sanctions evasion (“Guidance”). The aim of the guidance is to help businesses to understand the risks associated with exports of goods and technologies and to prevent sanctions evasion.

The UK, together with the EU, Japan and USA have developed the Common High Priority List (CHPL) to identify the items that pose a heightened risk of illicit diversion to Russia. Businesses should refer to the CHPL to ensure that the goods exported by them are not on that list. If they are, companies should ensure that they have appropriate controls in place to ensure that sanctions laws are not violated. The Guidance contains a list of red flags that businesses should use to conduct due diligence prior to goods exports and include, among others, suspicious customer information, inconsistencies in transaction, provision of false declarations or inaccurate or missing documentation.  It is important for businesses to remain vigilant as the red flags list is non-exhaustive and a “one-size-fits-all” approach does not exist.

Companies are encouraged to use various screening tools for enhanced due diligence and familiarise themselves with existing guidance documents and best practices.

Navigating sanctions laws could be a challenging task for any company, irrespective of its size and industry it is operating in. Gherson lawyers can assist you in explaining in simple terms what is required from you, and are able to provide training to your employees on sanctions compliance. We have experience in developing compliance policies and setting up relevant systems that align to your business demands.

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The information in this blog is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be comprehensive or to provide legal advice. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the information and law is current as of the date of publication it should be stressed that, due to the passage of time, this does not necessarily reflect the present legal position. Gherson accepts no responsibility for loss which may arise from accessing or reliance on information contained in this blog. For formal advice on the current law please don’t hesitate to contact Gherson. Legal advice is only provided pursuant to a written agreement, identified as such, and signed by the client and by or on behalf of Gherson.

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