- Publication type
- Article
- Thematic area
- Sanctions compliance & due diligence
Introduction
Can you tell the exact difference between trade restrictions and financial restrictions when it comes to sanctions? Or, perhaps more pertinently, how each would affect your business?
How about the best ways to understand and/or use official guidance when it can come from the European Commission, European Council, or EU Member States?
Do you think the EU Consolidated Financial Sanctions List names all the entities subject to EU sanctions, or just some?
Do you understand how and why to do a Restricted Party Check, Country Check, and Product check when performing sanctions due diligence?
At the EU Sanctions Helpdesk, our job is to help European operators, particularly Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), in complying with EU sanctions across the world. The heart of the Helpdesk is the free Support Service, which offers personalised help to companies performing sanctions due diligence checks.
However, there is a lot that SMEs can do themselves to understand and get started on their own due diligence efforts. That is why another important part of the Helpdesk is publishing knowledge pieces, highlighting success stories and lessons learned, and running training sessions to help SMEs take the next step in sanctions compliance.
Get started now on your own sanctions compliance
With that in mind, one place to begin is our four-module training series. If you missed the live events themselves, you can check out the presentation materials right here on the Helpdesk:
This training provides you with an overview of EU sanctions, why they are imposed, what they do and who must comply. It also includes strategies to prevent circumvention using real-life case studies.
This training provides an overview of the legal framework governing sanctions, guidance provided by the European Commission and the role of EU Member States in implementing and enforcing sanctions. It also walks you through sanctions exceptions and the anonymous sanctions whistleblower tool managed by the European Commission.
This training focuses on the various targets of sanctions – people, companies and activities. It covers key sanctions lists within the EU, and the impact of third-country sanctions in the EU. It also explores the differences between directly and indirectly sanctioned persons and why companies and other entities not on EU sanctions lists may still be subject to EU sanctions.
This training focuses on the practical application of sanctions knowledge: how to use what you have learned to protect your business and ensure that you do not breach sanctions. It discusses what sanctions due diligence is and how you can implement it. The session covers specific transaction due diligence for high-risk products and services, contractual methods of supporting sanctions compliance and how you can systematically assess all the sanctions risks facing your business. The training also reviews red flags – indicators of potentially malign activity.
We hope you find these training materials useful. Make sure to stay tuned – more training events are coming!