OFAC on Tuesday issued two more general licenses with respect to Syria, specifically General License No. 11 and 12. A brief summary of both are below:
General License No. 11: This allows for certain charitable activity related to Syria and related payments. Specifically, activities encouraging political development, combating illiteracy and even providing refuge are permitted, as are direct payments. Naturally there are conditions, including the stipulation that payments cannot be made through the Government of Syria or certain blocked entities.
General License No. 12: This general license permits payments for diplomatic and consular expenses in Syria by third countries through US financial institutions. The same type of conditions exist as above.
These new general licenses, particularly General License No. 11 will both help US entities take a more active role in Syria’s much-anticipated transition to democracy. Furthermore, it will most likely help lighten the workload at OFAC’s Licensing Division, where there are notable backlogs on some submissions.
An international trade compliance (sanctions, export controls, customs, anti-corruption) and defense lawyer.
U.S. Sanctions Regulations Blog 
Leave a Reply