Why screen your trading partners
EU sanctions regulations prohibit making funds or economic resources, goods included, available to persons and entities whose assets are frozen, directly or indirectly. The prohibition applies even when the customs declaration is correct: the operation itself is at stake, not the form.
Customs check the goods; the company must check who it deals with. Screening the seller, buyer, consignee and carrier before the operation is part of the diligence expected from an importer or exporter, above all in trade with Russia, Belarus, Iran or North Korea.
The lists searched
The tool searches four official sources, downloaded every day from the website of the authority that publishes them:
- the European Union's consolidated list of persons, groups and entities subject to financial sanctions, published by the Commission;
- the United Nations Security Council consolidated list, which the EU applies;
- the UK Sanctions List of the British government, binding on UK operators;
- the US government's Consolidated Screening List (OFAC's SDN list, the BIS Entity List and nine other lists), which matters when the operation involves the United States: US-origin goods, dollar payment, subsidiary.
The date of each list is shown under the result. Bans that target goods according to their destination are checked by the file checker, from the TARIC export measures.
How to read the result
The name entered is compared with every name and alias on the lists, after transliteration (Cyrillic, Greek), without accents or legal forms (Ltd, GmbH, OOO, JSC…), in any word order. The score says how alike the names are:
- strong match: the same words, apart from legal form and transliteration. For a person, three identical words or the same country as the entry are needed, because a first name and a surname are often shared by others;
- partial match: a close name (typo, one word more or less, low-quality alias) that needs a look;
- no match: no name on the lists reaches the partial threshold.
Out of 3,000 common names of people and companies that are not sanctioned, 0.3% give a strong match and 5% a partial match. The party's country, when you give it, rules out a good share of namesakes.
Frequently asked questions
Is the check free?
Yes, without signing up, within the day's free uses. The name entered is compared with the lists loaded on our servers, in the European Union: it is sent to no third party and stored nowhere.
Does a match mean my partner is sanctioned?
No. It flags a name identical or close to a list entry. At the official source, compare the other published details (date of birth, nationality, address, registration number) with your partner's. If doubt remains, do not go ahead and ask the competent national authority.
No match: can I trade without risk?
The result covers only the name entered and today's lists. An entity owned or controlled more than 50% by a sanctioned person is itself frozen without being listed, and sectoral bans (goods, services, financing) apply without any name. Screening supports your compliance procedure, it does not replace it.
Are my files screened automatically?
Yes. The file checker screens every named party (operator, client, foreign partner, seller, consignee, consignor) and the vessel, by its IMO number. A strong match on an EU or UN list blocks the file, a partial match is to be checked. On exports, each code is also checked against the export bans for the country of destination. The date of the lists appears in the report and the PDF.
Is your file ready?
Check it for free in a few minutes, before you prepare your declaration.