Sanctions Evasion Reference

Syria sanctions

US, EU and UK measures restricting dealings with the Syrian government, its energy sector and designated parties, with substantial humanitarian carve-outs.

target

Syrian Arab Republic

since

2004

authorities

3 listed below

reviewed

2026-08-20

The Syria programme’s principal contribution to this reference is the 2019 shipping advisory, which sets out the voyage-level indicators — unexplained deviations, loitering, and calls at anchorages known to be used for transfers — that recur throughout the maritime material.

Humanitarian carve-outs

Syria is also the clearest working example of the tension between comprehensive restriction and humanitarian access. The programmes carry extensive general licences and exemptions for humanitarian activity, and understanding their exact scope matters, because overstating the reach of an exemption is a recurring feature of penalty notices.

That is a general point about general licences: they authorise what they say and nothing adjacent.

Authorities administering this programme

Legal basis and official pages: OFAC Syria-related sanctions.

Techniques that appear here

Sources

  1. Syria Shipping Advisory: Sanctions Risks Related to Petroleum Shipments to Syria. U.S. Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control, 2019.
  2. Sanctions Programs and Country Information. U.S. Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control, 2026.
  3. Sanctions (restrictive measures). European Commission, Directorate-General for Financial Stability, 2026.
  4. Financial sanctions: consolidated list of targets. HM Treasury, Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation, 2026.