Top 5 Questions Answered About OFAC Sanctions

Some of the agreements if not restricted by U.S. sanctions laws are possible that they will be permitted. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) can issue the general licenses and specific licenses.

A general license is termed as an exemption for OFAC rules that will allow some agreements which are not allowed in sanctions.

For these applications to be given to OFAC, then the application will be properly scrutinized for the foreign policies of the US and if it is found that these violate any rules then the application can be rejected. If there is no violation of OFAC sanctions then the application will be accepted. It will allow you to be involved in the mentioned activity or agreement.

While if we talk about specific licenses then it needs to be kept in mind that these are different. These types of licenses will need written communication to OFAC so an application is essential. It is important to note that the person who submits his name in the application will be the only one authorized for the use of the license for the mentioned purpose. No other person can use it and if the use would impose a penalty.

How do you prepare a specific license application and what is required?

Firstly, this part is important and if you are not aware of how to apply then it is important to choose an OFAC sanction lawyer in Washington DC. While some pre essentials will help you out;

You must understand for what purpose the application needs to be submitted. OFAC will need every minute detail of the activity to check with the foreign policies of the country. Besides this, the basic details will be required such as your name and addresses, also the name and address of third parties if involved. While these names will have the sole authority to use the right granted by OFAC.

The next thing that is important to understand is your activity may not be aligned with the foreign regulations of the US and hence you need to have a proper understanding of the clashes. If your activity is in violation then you need to have a valid reason for the activity to be performed.

There is no structured format or proof required to be maintained. But make sure that your application has in-depth details so that OFAC authorities can judge whether the permission is to be granted or not. You can present attached documents, annexures, and other proofs for the explanation.

How to judge if the specific license will be approved by OFAC?

while if you want to know if the application will be approved or not then you must understand that there are various rules and regulations that need to be kept in mind. It makes it difficult to estimate if your application will be approved. Also, there are continuous changes over the years in the policies and that makes it difficult to estimate the approval of the application.

But you can accurately estimate that your application will be affected by the changes in policies and if there are any changes in the authorities and positions of officials.

Every application will be different and hence it is important to judge before applying whether it will be approved or not. For this matter, you can hire OFAC sanction lawyers in Washington DC so that they can understand your case and give the proper judgment. This judgment can be taken as trustworthy and used for future estimation.

How to take the call for applying to OFAC or not?

The first check is whether you are a US citizen or not. If you are then there is no question. You have to abide by the OFAC rules and regulations. While those who are non-residents of the US can expect to have different rules and regulations and for that purpose, you need to talk to a lawyer who is expertise in OFAC sanctions.

If you do not abide by the OFAC rules and regulations then you may be imposed with penalties. The penalties will be rigorous for US citizens and different for non-citizens.

Generally, it happens that companies that are not located in the US but their branches are and they do not abide by the OFAC rules and hence they are imposed with large penalties.

What is the time required by OFAC to approve the license?

While for most of the applications which are seen on average we can see that the OFAC takes around 9 to 11 months to approve the license if the details are proper. But also this is seen that some applications get approved before nine months and that is dependent upon the type of license required and the agreement for which it will be used.

What if your license does not get approved by 0FAC?

while if your application does not get approved by OFC then you can understand that there are some problems in your application and you cannot do anything about it. While in some cases you can find that this rejection of application can be appealed but for that, you need to consult an OFAC sanction lawyer in Washington DC so that he can understand your case. in that case you will be required to give more information and if you are ready to provide that then you can go for it.