Being listed on OFAC's SDN List freezes assets and blocks global financial access. We file administrative petitions and coordinate legal strategy to achieve delisting from US sanctions.
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The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions. The Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) List identifies individuals and entities whose assets are blocked and who are generally prohibited from dealing with US persons and the US financial system.
SDN designation has global consequences: banks worldwide — not just US institutions — typically refuse to deal with SDN-listed individuals due to secondary sanctions risk. This results in frozen accounts, inability to make international payments, and loss of business relationships.
There are several legal pathways to pursue OFAC delisting:
An effective OFAC delisting petition requires: a comprehensive rebuttal of each factual basis for designation; evidence of lack of connection to sanctioned entities or activities; evidence of changed circumstances; and, where relevant, compliance programme undertakings. We coordinate with US-licensed counsel and present the petition in the form most likely to succeed.
OFAC administrative reconsideration typically takes 1–3 years. There is no statutory deadline for OFAC to respond. Judicial review in US courts can proceed in parallel and sometimes accelerates the administrative process.
Specific licences from OFAC can authorise particular transactions while full delisting is being pursued — for example, legal fee payments, humanitarian needs, or specific business transactions.
No. OFAC, EU, and UK sanctions are independent programmes. Delisting from OFAC does not automatically remove EU or UK designations. We manage multi-jurisdictional sanctions removal across all relevant regimes simultaneously.
A rejected petition can be renewed with new evidence or changed circumstances, or challenged in US federal court. We analyse the grounds for rejection and advise on the most effective next step.
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