EU updates best practices document for the effective implementation of restrictive measures.

The European Union (“EU”) has updated its best practices document for the effective implementation of restrictive measures (the “EU Best Practices Document”).

The EU Best Practices Document contains non-exhaustive and legally non-binding recommendations, drafted by the Foreign Relations Counsellors “Sanctions” formation Working Party for Member States implementing EU restrictive measures (the “Working Party”) and amends the previous version which was published in 2008 and can be found here.

The document describes a number of issues relating to EU sanctions and the implementation of these sanctions on a national level. As said, this document provides for an amendment of the 2008 edition by adding:

  1. a section on de-listing from United Nations sanctions lists;
  2. a section on the clarification of ‘ownership’ and ‘control’ in the context of the prohibition on making funds and economic resources available to designated persons or entities, as also described in the EU Guidelines on Implementation of Restrictive Measures from 2013, published here;
  3. a detailed description of the non-liability and no-claims clauses in a number of EU sanctions Regulations, describing that no person or entity executing an asset freeze in accordance with a regulation, while acting without negligence and in good faith, , can be held liable vis-à-vis the affected person or entity.
  4. that, unless otherwise specified, sanctions measures annulled by the European court remain in force for a period of two months and ten days, during which the measure can be appealed, and for as long as such an appeal is pending.
  5. guidance on the explanation of some of the exemptions from asset freezes (licenses), and of the process for transferring funds between EU and non-EU financial institutions when sanctions are involved.

The EU Best Practices Document is at: http://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-7383-2015-REV-1/en/pdf

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