- Country
- Italy
- Publication type
- Article
- Thematic area
- Sanctions compliance & due diligence
Handling sanctions as a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) often requires approaching the issue from multiple directions. There is a lot you can do yourself, as we have discussed in previous publications like our sanctions primer.
Regional and national support groups should never be overlooked as another form of tailored help. There are some differences in how EU member states handle sanctions, so local support can sometimes offer country-specific advice or highlight important niche issues.
With that in mind, we were happy to speak with the BRIDGEconomies Consortium, partner of the Enterprise Europe Network, recently. As an important player in SME support in Southern Italy, they have key insights into how sanctions are affecting businesses, how best to support them, and practical tools and tips all SMEs should know. The BRIDGeconomies Consortium is coordinated by S.I Impresa, the Special Agency of the Naples Chamber of Commerce and Unioncamere Calabria, partner for the Calabria region.
How have EU sanctions impacted Italian SMEs? How has the Consortium adapted its own support services?
"In 2026, the geopolitical landscape has turned EU international sanctions into a permanent, structural component of corporate management. Southern Italy boasts a wealthy ecosystem of SMEs in high-quality agri-food, manufacturing, machinery, and technology sectors. Historically, these companies maintained well-established export channels toward Eastern Europe and the Eurasian area. The progressive tightening of consecutive sanctions packages has forced an abrupt rerouting of these trade flows.
For the BRIDGEconomies Consortium, this has triggered a complete revolution in our support services. Sanctions compliance is no longer a sporadic inquiry; it is now the core of our day-to-day internationalisation advisory. The success of our recent joint webinar on April 30th, 2026—which saw widespread participation across the whole of Southern Italy—clearly demonstrates that companies now view sanctions due diligence as a mandatory, preventative step before initiating any commercial negotiation."
What are the main challenges faced by SMEs in Italy?
"The most complex challenge for the productive fabric of Southern Italy is the resource asymmetry. Our micro and small enterprises face severe "regulatory fatigue"; they simply do not possess internal legal or compliance departments to analyse trade restrictions or complex "dual-use" product classifications.
In Italy, this pressure is further amplified by strict criminal and administrative penalties introduced at the national level for export violations. In 2026, the most insidious hurdle is the risk of indirect sanctions and circumvention through triangulation. When a southern enterprise exports to neutral third countries, verifying the ultimate beneficial ownership of the client and ensuring that goods are not diverted to restricted destinations requires complex legal and logistical screening tools. As the BRIDGEconomies Consortium, our goal is to bridge this gap, ensuring that entrepreneurs are neither left isolated nor discouraged from exporting due to legal fears."
What support is needed for SMEs? And how could that be integrated into their day-to-day operations?
"SMEs do not need doctrinal interpretations or legal abstracts of the regulations; they need turnkey operational support on a transaction-by-transaction basis. An entrepreneur or export manager needs to know in real-time whether their specific Harmonised System (HS) product code can be safely sold to a specific foreign partner.
Consequently, personalised and timely assistance is vital. Across our regional helpdesks, our Consortium records a steady demand for simplified compliance checklists, standardized contract templates, and, above all, swift access to institutional validation channels. When a container is ready for customs, business timelines are tight. SMEs require rapid institutional answers to prevent devastating operational and financial bottlenecks."
Can you share your top recommendations for small and medium-sized enterprises on how they can best ensure sanctions compliance?
"We consistently share three strategic recommendations with our businesses:
- Adopt transaction-based due diligence: Structure every single sale by rigorously verifying the end-user, the exact product classification, the destination country, and the actual final use.
- Secure commercial contracts legally: Protect your business by always embedding strict anti-circumvention clauses (such as the "No Russia clause") and demanding clear, verifiable End-User Certificates (EUC).
- Leverage your networks: Never proceed by guesswork. Official tools like the EU Sanctions Map must be integrated at the very beginning of the corporate workflow. Before assuming any risk, Italian businesses should contact the experts at the BRIDGEconomies Consortium to trigger our free and official validation channels."
What do you think about the added value of the EU Sanctions Helpdesk and the free personalised Support Service?
"The EU Sanctions Helpdesk is an irreplaceable partner for the BRIDGEconomies Consortium. Its extraordinary added value lies in its ability to democratise high-level legal expertise, making it entirely accessible for free to small businesses in Southern Italy.
The personalised support service allows SMEs to overcome their scale limitations, providing them with official compliance reports that grant legal certainty and operational peace of mind. This direct cooperation between the regional network of BRIDGEconomies and the central EU Helpdesk represents the perfect model of how EU institutions can tangibly support secure regional economic growth."
How do you see the next steps in sanctions support for Italian businesses?
"In 2026, we must move past the idea that compliance is a bureaucratic hurdle. On the contrary, regulatory conformity is an essential business shield for corporate continuity and a powerful factor for international competitiveness. Exporting safely means protecting the value, jobs, and future of our enterprises in Southern Italy. As the BRIDGEconomies Consortium, we will continue to invest in and strengthen our synergy with the EU Sanctions Helpdesk to ensure that the South of Italy continues to grow and compete globally, with confidence and in total safety."
Get sanctions support
Are you interested in the Helpdesk’s sanctions compliance support? We can:
- Answer your questions on the applicability of EU sanctions.
- Offer you guidance on performing sanctions due diligence.
- Undertake sanctions due diligence for you, free of charge, if you encounter red flags or you simply need the support.
Visit our Support Service page to get started with the free service. This service is funded by the European Union, and you can learn more about the Helpdesk here.
Partners: If you would like to collaborate or exchange on events or other ideas to help SMEs with sanctions compliance, we would love to hear from you here.
About the BRIDGEconomies Consortium
The BRIDGEconomies Consortium is a leading node of the Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) in Italy, established by the European Commission to support innovation, sustainable transition, and the internationalisation of small and medium-sized enterprises. The Consortium serves as the strategic infrastructure for Southern Italy, pooling the expertise and geographical reach of institutional and chamber partners across seven regions: Abruzzo Campania, Calabria, Puglia, Sicily, Basilicata, and Molise.
As EEN advisors within the BRIDGEconomies Consortium, their daily mission is to streamline regional excellence and translate complex European Union regulations into practical, commercial, and accessible tools. This ensures that the export potential of Southern Italy can thrive within a framework of maximum legal security.