Sanctions and money transfers

How sanctions affect international transfers

A sanctions money transfer check means your provider screens each payment to confirm that funds aren’t ending up with anyone, or any entity or country, under active financial sanctions. These sanctions are direct restrictions or prohibitions, put in place by governments or organizations like the United Nations to stop certain financial relationships, a government might, for instance, limit business with a company in a country under sanction.

The most frequent sanctions that affect transfers come from the European Union, United Kingdom, United States, and United Nations. Each authority maintains published lists naming individuals and organizations under restriction, and some countries or regions may have wider rules affecting all financial activity with them. Your provider has to obey the sanctions laws that apply to its business and where its accounts are held, but the bank handling the transfer can apply its own country’s requirements, too. If you want information about a related kind of screening, you may want to read who counts as a politically exposed person.

Why a transfer gets stopped

• A name in your transfer is close to, or the same as, one on a sanctions list. This is often a false positive, a match that is later found not to be the restricted person whose name appears on the list at all.
• Some of the details are missing or inconsistent. Maybe you left out part of a recipient’s address, spelled their name two different ways, or entered a bank account name that doesn’t match.
• Your transfer involves a country, sector, or company that’s actually restricted, sometimes, just processing money through a certain country or bank sets off the block.
• The provider thinks the reason for your payment isn’t clear enough. If you send a large sum, or mention goods that are banned for export, this easily triggers extra questions.

False matches are common with names like Mohammed or Li, but sometimes just spelling a name differently (perhaps because it’s transliterated from another system) causes a problem. When your money gets held, the provider is investigating, not accusing you of wrongdoing. For a fuller look at what individual holds mean, see why a money transfer is on hold.

What to do when a payment is stopped

1. Ask your provider what’s needed to lift the block. Sometimes, you’ll get a general explanation; other times, providers can’t give specific details due to legal restrictions on revealing how their checks work.
2. Submit accurate documents straight away. For example, scanned ID (matching the exact name you used), clear recipient info, or proof of the transfer’s purpose (a payslip, a car sale contract, flight bookings).
3. Be prepared to wait. Some reviews finish in hours, but it’s not uncommon for checks to take several days or even longer.
4. Never try to work around the process by sending the money through someone else’s account. That can be treated as a financial crime and could result in your account being frozen or reported.

If clearance isn’t possible, the provider may give the funds back or continue to hold them. You can search public sanctions lists yourself, including the EU Sanctions Map, UK Sanctions List, US OFAC list, and the UN Security Council’s consolidated list, to check names or companies before sending a payment.

Frequently asked questions