The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) published new guidance in October related to the implementation of the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). As we have previously summarized, the new law is divided into three parts: Title I-Sanctions with Respect to Iran; Title II-Sanctions with Respect to the Russian Federation and Combating Terrorism and Illicit Financing; and Title III-Sanctions with Respect to North Korea.

Although guidance is pending on Title III, OFAC has now published FAQs or updated FAQs on Titles I and II as follows.

Guidance on Title I / Iran Sanctions Developments

On October 13, in accordance with Section 105 of CAATSA, OFAC imposed sanctions on the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) applicable under global terrorism Executive Order 13224. On October 31, OFAC amended its Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations to block the property and interests in property of foreign persons identified by OFAC as officials, agents, or affiliates of the IRGC.

As OFAC FAQs 533 and 534 explain, although the IRGC was previously sanctioned by OFAC under other programs, the new designation does not allow for certain exemptions related to personal communications, humanitarian donations, information or information materials, and travel, which were previously available.

Guidance on Title II / Russia Sanctions Guidance

OFAC and the State Department have also now published substantial guidance related to implementation of the various Russia-related sanctions. The following table summarizes the recent changes, issued at three separate times in the last six weeks (September 29, October 27, and October 31):

 

Section of CAATSA

Topic

Agency

Guidance / Regulations Issued

Section 223

Modification of sectoral sanctions

OFAC

Amended FAQs Nos. 370, 394-95, 405, 408-10, 415, & 419

Published Modified Directive 1
Published Modified Directive 2
Published Modified Directive 4

Sectoral sanctions related to railways and mining / metals

OFAC

Published New FAQ No. 539

Section 225

Secondary sanctions related to special Russian crude oil projects

State

Published New Guidance and FAQ

Section 226

Secondary sanctions on FFIs related to financing transactions with sanctioned persons and related to special crude oil projects

OFAC

Published New FAQs Nos. 541-543

Section 228

Primary sanctions related to foreign sanctions evaders and serious human rights abusers in the Russian Federation

OFAC

Published New FAQs Nos. 544-546

Section 231

Secondary sanctions related to Russian defense or intelligence sector

State

Published New Guidance and FAQs

Published List of Persons Operating in Russian Defense or Intelligence Sectors

Section 232

Secondary sanctions related to Russian energy export pipelines

State

Published New Guidance

Section 233

Secondary sanctions related to unjust privatization of Russian state-owned assets

OFAC

Published New FAQ No. 540

The guidance represents a continuation of OFAC’s recent trend of issuing guidance at the same time as implementing regulatory changes, but taken together with the State Department’s guidance, arguably represents the most substantial guidance ever issued by the two agencies in advance of implementation of newly enacted Congressional legislation.

For more details regarding the contents of the guidance, or with respect to any questions it raises, please contact one of the professionals listed below.

For more information, contact: Jeff Snyder, Carlton Greene, Cari Stinebower, Chris Monahan, Dj Wolff

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Photo of Carlton Greene Carlton Greene

Carlton Greene is a partner in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm’s International Trade and White Collar & Regulatory Enforcement groups. He provides strategic advice to clients on U.S. economic sanctions, Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering…

Carlton Greene is a partner in Crowell & Moring’s Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm’s International Trade and White Collar & Regulatory Enforcement groups. He provides strategic advice to clients on U.S. economic sanctions, Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering (AML) laws and regulations, export controls, and anti-corruption/anti-bribery laws and regulations. Carlton is the former chief counsel at FinCEN (the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network), the U.S. AML regulator responsible for administering the Bank Secrecy Act.

Photo of Dj Wolff Dj Wolff

David (Dj) Wolff is the co-chair of Crowell & Moring’s International Trade Group and a director with Crowell Global Advisors, the firm’s trade policy affiliate.

At Crowell & Moring, he serves on the steering committee for the International Trade Group, where his practice

David (Dj) Wolff is the co-chair of Crowell & Moring’s International Trade Group and a director with Crowell Global Advisors, the firm’s trade policy affiliate.

At Crowell & Moring, he serves on the steering committee for the International Trade Group, where his practice focuses on all aspects of compliance with U.S. economic sanctions, including day-to-day compliance guidance, developing compliance programs, responding to government inquiries, conducting internal investigations, and representation during civil and criminal enforcement proceedings. Dj works regularly with non-U.S. clients, both in Europe and Asia, to evaluate the jurisdictional reach of U.S. sanction authorities to their global operations, identify and manage the potential conflict of laws that can result from that reach, as well as to support client’s design, implementation, and evaluation of a corresponding risk-based sanctions compliance program. Dj also regularly leads teams in diligence efforts on trade and related regulatory areas on behalf of his U.S. and non-U.S. clients in the M&A arena, having successfully closed more than 30 deals with an aggregate valuation of several billion dollars over the last 18 months.

Dj is ranked by Chambers USA in International Trade: Export Controls & Economic Sanctions. He has previously been recognized by Law360 as a Rising Star in International Trade (2020), by The National Law Journal as a “DC Rising Star” (2019), by Who’s Who Legal: Investigations as a “Future Leader” (2018 and 2019), Acritas Star as an Acritas Stars Independently Rated Lawyers (2019), by Global Investigations Review as one of the “40 under 40” in Investigations internationally (2017), and WorldECR as one of the five finalists for the WorldECR Young Practitioner of the Year award (2016).